I wrote Where the White Poppies Grow ages ago. It is now available in the Bedford 2015 Anthology on Kindle and in paperback. I think the money goes to charity.
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My story, of 3000 words, The New Cool has been shortlisted for Writers’ Forum. If it doesn’t make the final three then it might be a consideration for an American magazine which prints stories of a similar nature.
My story Blue made it through to the final stages of this year’s Yeovil competition but unfortunately not the final three. I wrote it back in 2015 and it has been reworked since then, (more than once) but clearly it could stand a little more attention.
…Not me apparently. The 2016 Bedford Short Story competition results are just in and although I had two stories shortlisted neither one managed to make the final cut. Something of a consolation is that both my stories should appear in the 2016 Anthology which will be available to download from Amazon later in the year. Congratulations to the winners…maybe next time
1928 -2016
Sad to learn that William Trevor was one of the many artists; stars and celebrities to pass away last year. He was perhaps one of the finest short story writers and certainly one that inspired me to give the art a go. Wikipedia records him as an ‘elder statesman of the Irish literary world’. He once said, you don’t so much write a short story as attack it with a pair of scissors.
Another piece of luck; my story, Wanting to be John Wayne has been shortlisted for the HE Bates competition. The winner is to be announced in early February
I’ve been fortunate enough to have two short stories; Lifeline and It’s not easy being Clark Kent shortlisted for the Bedford prize. The winner is to be announced at a Presentation Evening in the New Year which I’ve been invited to attend, though I don’t think I’ll be able to go.
Even if neither story makes it into the final three it’s still very encouraging and competitions like the Bedford Prize do so very much to keep the motivation for writing alive.
This is the second year that I’ve been shortlisted for the Bedford prize. Where the White Poppies Grow – appears in the 2015 Bedford prize anthology, available on Amazon. .
For those that don’t know Stoner by John Williams was said to be one of the finest, forgotten American novels of all time. I’ve just finished reading his lesser known or even more forgotten work Butchers Crossing which I can recommend.
‘Young people,’ McDonald said contemptuously. ‘You always think there’s something to find out.’
Apparently my story, Where the White Poppies Grow is now available to ‘your e-reader device’, or so an email has just informed me. This sadly rules me out as I still haven’t made the journey from paperbacks to electrical wizardry. You can find the story in the 2015 Bedford writing competition anthology on Amazon, cost £1.00 which goes to charity. Hope you like it.
