STORIES
I write stories.
RETREAT WEST SHORT STORY ANTHOLOGY - September 2020
I’ve got two stories in the latest Retreat West anthology. Sal, a story about a girl who hears music in everything, won first place in the 2019 Retreat West Short Story Competition and My Kind (later edited as Sinkh♡le and published in Outsiders) was shortlisted.
Get a copy.
LITRO - June 2020
Wrote a story about sisters. Sort of. You can read Play Pretend over at Litro Magazine.
BEST MICROFICTION 2020 - April 2020
So happy the editors selected Skyscraper Woman for inclusion in this collection of the best tiny stories from the last year.
You can read it here.
OUTSIDERS: A SHORT STORY ANTHOLOGY - March 2020
Read my story, Sinkh♡le, in the latest anthology from 3 of Cups Press. Edited by the inimitable Alice Slater, it’s full of stories about strangers, loners and people who don’t fit in.
Stories from: Julia Armfield, Jen Campbell, Sarvat Hasin, Beverley Ho, Susan James, Kirsty Logan, Lena Mohamed, Heather Parry, Leone Ross, Stephanie Victoire, Anna Walsh, Eley Williams, Lara Williams and Anna Wood, and a foreword by Irenosen Okojie.
Get a copy.
RETREAT WEST SHORT STORY COMPETITION - February 2020
Sal, a story about a girl who hears music in everything, won first place in the 2019 Retreat West Short Story Competition. The anthology is out is in September.
The judge, the great Angela Readman, said: “Reading Sal gave me goose bumps. The title is deceptively simple, yet the originality of the character took this coming of age story to a whole other level. The writing shone. The tension between men, women, and social expectations is palpable. I found that the more I read the story the more layers it revealed. This is a story that just keeps on giving. It deserves to be read more than once. Every word earned its place as the winner.”
THE MECHANICS’ INSTITUTE REVIEW: THE CLIMATE ISSUE - September 2019
“The trouble with climate change is that it’s too big to see.”
Delighted to have a story in this important anthology. My piece, Specks, is about women, climate change and mental health.
Available at Waterstones, Foyles, Amazon and all good bookshops.
BRITISH AND IRISH FLASH FICTION (BIFFY50) 2018-2019 - September 2019
Skyscraper Woman made the BIFFY50 list!
The top 50 pieces were selected by four editors: Rebecca Williams, Neil Campbell, Elisabeth Ingram Wallace and Barbara Byar.
THE MAIRTÍN CRAWFORD AWARD - June 2019
Madra won first place in the 2019 Mairtín Crawford Short Story Award.
The prize was judged by Wendy Erskine.
Mairtín Crawford was a writer and poet and a significant figure in Northern Ireland's literary community.
LITRO - June 2019
One weekend last year, I watched way too much film noir and wrote a story about a priest, a woman and some oranges.
You can read Confession over at Litro Magazine.
TSS FLASH FICTION 400 COMPETITION - May 2019
Skyscraper Woman won first place in the spring 2019 TSS Flash Fiction Competition.
The prize was judged by Elisabeth Ingram Wallace and Rupert Dastur.
You can read Skyscraper Woman online. The story will also be published in a chapbook with the other winners of the last four or five competitions.
CAMBRIDGE SHORT STORY PRIZE - April 2019
Hold Fast was awarded third place in the 2018 Cambridge Short Story Prize and Another Girl was shortlisted.
The prize was judged by Angela Readman, C. G. Menon and Rupert Dastur.
Both stories will be published in The Cambridge Short Story Prize Anthology 2018 later in the year.
GALLEY BEGGAR PRESS SHORT STORY PRIZE - February 2019
Sal received a special mention in the 2018/19 Galley Beggar Press Short Story Prize.
Special mentions were awarded to stories which impressed and moved one or more of the judges.
The prize was judged by Philip Langeskov, Aki Schilz and Jonathan Gibbs.
LONDON SHORT STORY PRIZE - November 2018
Dead Shark was highly commended for the 2018 London Short Story Prize. The prize seeks to discover, publish and profile the best stories and writers coming out of the capital.
The 2018 prize was judged by authors Guy Gunaratne and Clare Fisher, and literary agent Sarah Such.
Dead Shark is published in The London Short Story Prize Anthology 2018.
SEÁN O’FAOLÁIN SHORT STORY PRIZE - September 2018
The Dogs was a runner-up in the 2018 Seán O’Faoláin International Short Story Prize. The competition is dedicated to one of Ireland’s most accomplished story writers and theorists, and sponsored by the Munster Literature Centre.
The 2018 prize was judged by author Paul McVeigh.
The Dogs is published in issue 36 of Southword and you can read it here.
LIARS’ LEAGUE - December 2017
Flitter was selected for the Liars’ League Sacred & Profane event.
Established in April 2007, Liars' League is a themed monthly fiction night, where professional actors read new short stories by writers from around the world.
You can read Flitter here.