This story, set in Iran and India, and dealing with women’s right to autonomy, has been shortlisted in the 87 Bedford competition.
‘Geeta, A Gem for Everyone’
A personal account of the Yoganusasanam that took place in Pune, India, in 2015 under the tutelage of Geeta Iyengar. Appeared in the journal ‘Iyengar Yoga Nieuwsbrief’, summer 2016, published by the Iyengar Association of the Netherlands.
https://iyengaryoga.nl/wp-content/uploads/nieuwsbrief6-download-low-resolution.pdf
The Menace at the Gate
1980s Punjab, and a restless teenager’s urge for independence plays out against the backdrop of Sikh unrest. Accepted for publication by the Bombay Literary Magazine, editor Tanuj Solanki. Delighted! This is my first step into the Indian market.
The Menace at the Gate
It’s the 1980s. Punjab, India. Tensions are running high. Not just because of the impending monsoon, but because of the escalating unrest between Sikhs and Hindus. Meanwhile, teenager Anju, cooped up in her parents’ house and desperate for escape, has her own preoccupations…
Online publication in the ‘Bombay Literary Magazine’. This is a free read!
http://bombayliterarymagazine.com/?p=407
The Queen of Campbeltown
Appears in an Earlyworks Press anthology called ‘The Ball of the Future’. Deals with the desperate struggle of a little lad placed in a children’s home out in the Highlands of Scotland to be reunited in the big city. Available from Earlyworks Press and from Amazon.
http://www.earlyworkspress.co.uk/publications.htm
https://www.amazon.co.uk/Ball-Future-Stories-Long-Short/dp/1910841250
‘The Work of Lesser-Known Artists’ Makes its Debut
‘Flamingo Land and Other Stories’ launched last week at Waterstones, Piccadilly, London. The book includes ‘The Work of Lesser-Known Artists.’ The story features hard-pressed gallery attendant Patti, struggling to make ends meet in an ever more draconian work environment supposedly dedicated to Art. It explores the issue of the commodification of people as well as the commodification of Art. For details on how to get hold of a copy, visit the Publications page.
The Work of Lesser-Known Artists
This story was a runner-up in the London Short Story competition 2014. It’s set in a major, publicly-funded gallery, and features the hard-pressed Patti who finds that her job as a gallery attendant falls far short of what she hoped it would be. Eventually, as tensions rise, Patti finds she has to take matters into her own hands. Published by Flight Press and available from Amazon.
Olga Sinclair Short Story Award 2015
Attended the prize-giving ceremony of the Olga Sinclair Short Story competition in Norwich on Tuesday 20th October. The competition is hosted by the Norwich Writers’ Circle, and was established in honour of one of their longstanding members and presidents. My somewhat mad story ‘Moving In’ achieved ‘highly commended status. The competition was adjudicated by Ashley Stokes, editor of Unthank Books. There were 155 entries.
One for the Off – Visual Verse
My latest – or should I say, my only – very short short story goes live today on the website of ‘Visual Verse’, an on-line anthology of images and fiction. Check publications listing to read it.
Fish International Short Story Award 2014/15
I’ve only just discovered – because I wasn’t notified – that I had three short stories longlisted in the Fish International Short Story Competition this year. These were, ‘The Menace at the Gate’, ‘The Queen of Campbeltown’ and ‘Drishti’ (under a different title). Good grief!