Update, deadlines, appearances, chattings

Okay, people, the deadline, May 31st - is fast approaching. I am deeply honoured to be the judge of the flash fiction section, but I would be even more deeply honoured to be given the privilege of reading your flash fictions. So please please send 'em! 250 words maximum, no minimum (wow me in 50, I know it can be done...): first prize of £1,000, second prize £500, 3rd prize of £250, 3 supplementary prizes of £25.  Details here >>

What else is upcoming? Well, on June 21st I get to do something immensely exciting, which is to chair a session on surreal and weird short stories with three of my favourite writers at Spread the Word's inaugural London Short Story Festival: Adam Marek, Dan Powell and Rob Shearman. I will be interrogating them fiercely about the what, why and how of it all, and they will be sharing their work and their thoughts about it all with me and, by extension, you. Come! Find out more here >> 

Then, later that same day you will find me celebrating flash fiction at the National Flash Fiction Day event in Bristol. More details on that soon!

And I will be playing Word Association with Tom Vowler as part of the blog tour for his new novel, That Dark Remembered Day, on July 10th. Find out more about the tour here >>

And then I'm presenting an academic paper and then I'm off to Vienna and ... ok, enough excitement for one day. Going to go do some writing now. 

Off to London

I'm off to the Big City today, various bits of business and pleasure - including the launch of Rob Shearman's third short story collection, Everyone's Just So Special! I hope the forecast temperatures don't actually manifest, sweaty London is not my idea of fun.

But I also hope I will have a chance to swing by Foyles, the new home, for August, of the PhotoStories exhibition. Here's me standing by my PhotoStory, We Watched Him on Our Screens, when it was exhibited at Saatchi's.

Rob Shearman also has a PhotoStory in the exhibition, as do Adam Marek, Clare Wigfall and 11 other fantastic writers. (The typographs are available for sale.)

Ok, I'd better go. Bye!