STOP Press - Kitty Fitzgerald's novel Identity - the latest offering from Room To Write features in The Guardian's books to give someone you love
At Room To Write we are delighted to announce our inaugural Short Story Competition- the competition will run from May 1st through to August 1st and the final shortlist of ten will be published here on the website in August.
The shortlist will be read by our sponsors Booker Prize winner Pat Barker and Hans Christian Andersen Prize winner David Almond
ROOM TO WRITE SHORT STORY COMPETITION
THE JUDGES
The Room To Write Short Story Prize will be judged by:
Avril Joy: Novelist & 2012 Costa Prize winner.
Wendy Robertson: novelist & short story writer.
Sharon Griffiths: novelist and short story writer
THE SPONSORS
Sponsors are: Booker Prize winner Pat Barker, David Almond: Hans Andersen Prize, Councillor Sam Zair Durham County Council
THE PRIZES
1st Prize: £200,
2nd Prize: £100
3rd Prize: £50
The winning story will be published in the Northern Echo and broadcast on listenupnorth.
ENTRY FEE: £5.00 per entry
CLOSING DATE: August 1st
WORD COUNT: Your story may be up to 1,500 words – not including the title.
FOR RULES AND HOW TO ENTER GO TO OUR COMPETITION PAGE
02/04/2014
Yesterday afternoon we held our first Back to Basics Short Story workshop. Over twenty people came which meant we had to find more chairs and more ways of squeezing people in! But that only added to the enjoyment and the buzz of the afternoon.
We were delighted to see both familiar and new faces and to be working with such a receptive and hardwoking group.
We hope everyone who came found it productive and enjoyed it as much as we did. We’re looking forward very much to week 2 – and if you didn’t make week 1 don’t despair do just come along and join us next Wednesday. (Workshop cost £2.00 to the Library for tea/ coffee and biscuits).
Above a snapshot of our flip chart – words and phrases the group came up with at the very start when we shared our ideas about the short story…
Wendy and Avril
See you next week…….
19/03/2014
Back to Basics Spring Workshops
Don’t miss our Back to Basic workshops at Bishop Auckland Library and Town Hall. Room to Write’s Avril Joy (Winner of the 2012 Costa Short Story Prize) and novelist & short story writer Wendy Robertson are offering a second series of Back to Basics Workshops for writers wishing to hone their skills in the writing of short stories.
The workshops are FREE of charge and will take place in the Library on Wednesday afternnons on the 2nd, 9th,16th & 21st of April.
This workshop will be useful for writers of all levels. If you’re interested then just come along, no need for prior booking. We look forward to seeing you there. Even if short stories are not your thing there will be a lot to learn for any writer wanting to improve their skills…
Coming soon – Our Room To Write National Short Story Competition ~ to be launched on Thursday May 1st. More of that to come!
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Roomtowrite is excited to welcome author Kitty Fitzgerald to our list – coming soon from Kitty – Identity – watch this space
Praise for Miranda’s Shadow ….Enthralling and gripping Lifestyle Magazine, August 2013
4/03/2013
Over the next two months roomtowrite are delighted to be publishing two new titles: in January, and available now as an e-book, Avril Joy’s From Writing With Love 
Whether you’re just beginning your love affair with writing or whether you’ve already fallen passionately and irrevocably in love, this is a book for you. If you fear you may be falling out of love with writing this is still a book for you. If you’re looking for permission to write, searching for that writer’s voice only you have, or wondering how you can overcome fears of failure and learn to celebrate what you do, this is a book for you.
‘I came late to writing and after a matter of only months found myself hopelessly in love. I had some modest, early success with publication but then a series of difficult rejections. In 2011 I came dangerously close to falling out of love with the one thing that had changed my life. Writing had brought me a deep and lasting sense of satisfaction and pleasure, it was the only thing I really wanted to do, so if I wasn’t prepared to lose it all I had to think again.
Much of this new thinking, has gone into the pages of From Writing With Love , where Avril shares with us how she stayed in love with writing, what still inspires her what has helped her cope with success and disappointment in her writing life and much of what she’s learned about the craft of writing along the way.
And from Wendy Robertson – due out in February her fascinating Russian novel:
Journey to Moscow: The Adventures of Olivia Ozanne –
Olivia Ozanne is the writer abroad, the stranger alone, a woman who can see the surface of things and beyond. Well rid of her ex, Kendrick and his leather sofa fetish, she comes to stay with her daughter Caitlin. This is post-glasnost Moscow with its fallen statues, burgeoning mafia, newly restored churches, its phones tapped but no longer listened in to, a city that demands hard currency. Through Olivia’s eyes we see into the heart of this city and its people. We peer inside their tiny flats into their constricted interior lives, where we meet the mysterious Aunties whose surprising histories, stretching back to the revolution, are slowly uncovered by Olivia.
This is a richly painted canvas of an iconic city, in many ways relevant to our understanding of the Russia of today. It is a story about a woman in search of a new self and it’s hard not to fall in love with Olivia with her enormous appetite for life or for that matter her lover Volodya who she meets at the flower stall.
‘I fell in love with them both. But Wendy Robertson’s greatest gift is in making us fall in love with the place and its people. Gorgeous.’
Watch this space, also Wendy’s Blog and Avril’s Blog for further details and photos of our virtual launches for both titles.
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Roomtowrite publishing wishes all our readers a Happy New Writing Year – if you’ve been given a notebook for Christmas you might like to read what Wendy has to say over at Lifetwicetasted about opening a new notebook and making a start on new work. Likewise, if you’re looking for inspiration or the courage to pick up your pen and WRITE!
If 2014 is the year you intend to get your short stories out into the world and enter them in competitions then take a look at Avril’s thoughts on what judges look for when reading short stories As a judge for The London Magazine short story competitions she’s been reading plenty over Christmas.
As for the year ahead there will be new publications (more of that to come) inc. Avril’s inspirational book on writing From Writing With Love – which will be available in February both in hard copy and as an e book on Kindle.
ALSO This is a very special year for roomtowrite’s Gillian Wales who will be co- curating an exhibition of mining art later this year at The Bowes Museum – watch this space for more details and updates from Gillian.
Happy Writing x
STOP PRESS Nov 27th Read Wendy’s latest blog post on Independent Publishing and Social Media:
Createspace and Orphans in the Social Media Storm
over at Lifetwicetasted
SPECIAL OFFER – An Early Xmas present : from Monday Dec 2nd for three days The Orchid House – Avril Joy – FREE on Kindle
STOP PRESS:
For new poems from prison click on the Prison Writing tab above
For a new short story click on Short Stories and Articles tab above
For the latest on our Back to Basics workshops, April 2013 – Writing the Short Story see EVENTS
The launch of Wendy Robertson’s latest novel – Paulie’s Web – proved to be a great success – to read Wendy’s account of the evening, How to Enjoy Your Book Launch, plus photographs HERE
If you’re busy editing a short story or a novel then you’ll find helpful advice from both Wendy and Avril on their websites:
High Quality Self- Editing Skills
Editing Your Novel – The Problem of Confidence
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