It’s here!
The monthly writing news and submission opportunities for you writers out there. Compiled for my blog for Word Factory every month just for you.
Good luck!
Author: Paul McVeigh Writer
Short Story or Novel? Which will you write?
Recently, I travelled to Mexico with The British Council to read my short stories and talk about the state of the short story in the UK. I was asked to do a blog post for their ‘Voices Magazine’ based on questions the editor sent me.
A brief snip…
‘You could perhaps draw the following analogy to compare the two: a short story would be like producing a photograph, while a novel would be more like making a film. A photographer will be thinking about every tiny detail in the frame and how it conveys meaning. It can be a character portrait or a moment captured in time. The novel, like a film, can take us on a journey, capture many lives, cover lifetimes/generations, discuss a society or the history of a culture. For example, when I wanted to capture what it was like for a whole generation of children to grow up in Northern Ireland knowing nothing else but The Troubles, I knew that this had to be done in a novel. To describe the day-to-day life and the cumulative effect of living in fear, on one boy, his family and the community at large, the reader needed to spend time with that boy, in that community.’
Read more here. Find out about my short story class in London on Novemeber 7th here.
Comic Strip Book Promo – Genius!
Last week the writer Avalina Kreska wrote a fantastic short, review of The Good Son on her blog. She said – ahem – ‘A masterpiece – a must-read – beautiful – stirring – surely there will be a film…’
Of course I was overjoyed. But then came this…
Avalina Kreska’s Incredible Comic Strip
I was completely blown away. Its so funny, original, quirky and imaginative… I’ve never seen a response to a book like this. And I’m much better looking in this so pretty chuffed.
If you like it and fancy contacting Avalina about her work with comics you can do so here. I’m going to get mine printed and framed.
Thanks Avalina!
Festival Time! Cork, Ireland and Wraclow, Poland.
I’m really looking forward to Cork International Short Story Festival next week. I’m especially excited to be chairing an event with Edge Hill Prize-winner Kirsty Gunn and one of my all-time favourite writers Claire Keegan. I’ll also get to see my good friend Liadain O’Donovan give out the Frank O’Connor International Short Story Award, on behalf of her father, to Carys Davies, that evening.
Liadain O’Donovan at 13th International Conference on the Short Story, Vienna ’14.
After returning home to Brighton, I head off to Wroclaw, Poland on Oct 1 to attend the Międzynarodowy Festiwal Opowiadania – International Short Story Festival where I’m honoured to be joining the other international guests Jon Boilard, Clare Wigfall & Colin Barrett. I’m reading on Saturday Oct 3. You can check out the programme here.
Maybe I’ll see some of you in Cork or Poland. Come and say ‘hello’.
Get writing! Get submitting! Get Published!
I’m Associate Director at the wonderful Word Factory. If you love short stories you should come along to the monthly event to hear the best short story writers in the world read their work and discuss the form.
Each month Word Factory produces a list of short story submission opportunities for writers and there’s also links to interesting resources. These are taken from my blog for writers which you find and have a look here.
Get writing! Get submitting! Get published!
Missed My Sold Out Class in Bath? Try Brighton Oct 10.
‘That Killer First Page’, my class on the short story, has now sold out in Bath on Oct 17. It’s been quite a run… sold out in Belfast, Cork, Waterstones Piccadilly and Writers Victoria, Melbourne, where it broke records by selling out in 20 minutes!
If you missed your chance in Bath you could always try Brighton. I’ll be teaching the class for New Writing South writer development agency on October 10. Click here to find out more.
Don’t forget I’m judging the Penny Dreadful Novella Prize alongside Sarah Baume and Colin Barrett and am the sole judge of the Bare Fiction Short Story Prize.
Wonderful Found Review of The Good Son. Thanks Nuala.
There I was minding my own business when author Nuala O’Connor (her new novel Miss Emily getting wonderful reviews here and in the US) dropped a note to say that she’d seen a wonderful review of The Good Son in Books Ireland. She took some pics of it and emailed it to me. It is a rather fantastic review and made me very happy. Nuala mentioned she has missed reviews in the past and this was the second time that week I’d been sent a review I’d missed (the other being Novel of the Week in The Tablet).
Here’s a quote from this stunning review and you can read the whole thing on these pics from Nuala.
‘The Good Son’ is a hard-hitting, at times harrowing, but ultimately captivating and transformative tale – a story that will leave an indelible imprint on its reader.’ Books Ireland
What a fantatsic review.
Cork International Short Story Festival. Sept 22-26.
I am very excited to be attending the Cork International Short Story Festival for the second year (you can download the programme here). It will be my third visit to Cork, having read at last year’s short story festival and the Cork World Book Festival this April for the Irish launch of The Good Son. I love this city and have made some great friends there. I love The Penny Dreadful lit mag that comes out of Cork too.
At this year’s festival I won’t be reading, instead I have the honour of chairing an event with this year’s Edge Hill Prize-winner Kirsty Gunn and one of my favourite short story writers Claire Keegan, on Saturday 26th.
If you love short stories I urge you to go to Cork this year. The festival is chock full of the finest short story writers from around the world. Festival Director Patrick Cotter always puts on a great programme and this year is no exception. You get to hear authors read and hang out with them too if you’re lucky. You can also takes classes. This year there are courses delivered by new Irish sensation Danielle McLaughlin who has just had her second short story published in The New Yorker.
There’s also a course with Claire Keegan. I brought Claire to the London Short Story Festival last year and watching the writers leave her masterclass was quite a sight. They were stunned. I asked a few for feedback and they said they’d never experienced anything like it. One said she got more from that afternoon than the whole of her 2 year MA course! Don’t miss this opportunity.
Among the many other writers there you have Toby Litt, Frank O’Connor Award-winner Carys Davies and Helen Link from the USA. I hope to see some of you there.
Diriye Osman Praises Word Factory & The Good Son
In this touching article for the Huffington Post, Polari Prize-winning author Diriye Osman talks about his fear of reading his work live. He praises Word Factory, where I’m the Associate Director. Have you ever been? It’s a monthly short story salon in Waterstones Piccadilly. If you love short stories or just great writing you should come along. Over the last 3 years we’ve had AS Byatt, Hanif Kureishi, Michael Morporgo, Lionel Shriver… to name but a few. You can have a look at the upcoming salon’s here and there’s also a treasure trove of videos of past salons.
You can see Diriye read from his groundbreaking short stories at Word Factory this month, Sept 19.
Oh, and Diriye also praised my debut novel The Good Son, calling it ‘a revelatory and stunning coming-of-age story set during the Troubles in Ireland’. Nice!
You can read the full article here.
He looks amazing!
Polari, 16 October, Brighton
Polari presents… Friday 16 October 7:30pm Marlborough Theatre
A big hit last year, London’s award-winning LGBT literary salon returns to the Marlborough as part of a national tour. Described by The Huffington Post as “The most exciting literary movement in London… crackling with energy, ideas, excitement” Polari won ‘LGBT Cultural Event of the Year’ in the Co-op Respect Loved By You Awards 2013. Hosted by Paul Burston with guest authors and performers including VG Lee, Damian Barr, Juliet Jacques and Paul McVeigh . “Lively, funny and inspiring a gay-themed salon of interest to anyone remotely interested in literature, whatever their sexual bent” Patrick Gale
“Always fun, always thought-provoking a guaranteed good night out” Sarah Waters
“I love doing Polari a blend of audience sweetness, panache, cleverness and really good fun” Ali Smith
This event is part of a Polari National Tour funded by Arts Council England – See more at: http://www.marlboroughtheatre.org.uk/event/polari/#sthash.JywE16Bi.dpuf
Paul McVeigh 