Submit your island tales

Iona cr Judy DarleyFor their first issue of 2016, Brain of Forgetting invites work on the theme of islands.

There’s something so enticing about islands – the way they’re often surrounded by water, enveloped by mist or engulfed by storms. There’s potential for serenity or peril, and plenty of myths to dabble in.

The journal editors say: “Islands have always played a special role in literature and the popular imagination. What we’re looking for is work that interprets the theme ‘Island’ in an original way that engages with the past. Varying interpretations from international authors and artists are encouraged. In particular we are interested in work that challenges and redefines notions of insularity.”

Send up to four poems (100 lines max each), up to two pieces of flash fiction (900 words max each) or one short piece of creative non-fiction (1,200 words max).

For a taste of work they relish, see Issue 1: Stones, or Issue 2: Poppies.

Submissions are open until December 31st 2015, so you just have time to slip ashore before the tides turn.  The Island issue will be published in print in February 2016.

Find full details of how to submit at http://www.brainofforgetting.com/submissions.html.

Writers sought for collaborative art project

St Mary Redcliffe churchyard cr Judy DarleyFamiliar the area in Bristol known as Redcliffe? That place with the tower blocks, crimson caves and a remarkably beautiful parish church as grand as a cathedral?

Working with The Redcliffe Neighbourhood Development Forum and Dream of A Shadow, Future Way aims to engage the people of Redcliffe and the wider community of Bristol by using storytelling to challenge the way we view this section of the city.

You’re invited to submit a tiny story (split into 3-5 sections of 250-words max) with an immense goal, to re-imagine a corner of Bristol in collaboration with artists, architects and community groups. All genres are encouraged, writers of all experience levels are invited. Entry is free and there’s no limit on the number of entries you can submit.

Stories will be ‘tagged’ to locations within Redcliffe in 250-word sections, forming a series of fictional trails to be followed through the physical city. These tags can be scanned via QR codes, revealing a virtual fiction immersing the reader between realities in a format previously used by the Bristol Story Trail.

Due to the nature of the project, the brief is quite specific and submissions must meet the following criteria:

  • All entries must be set in the future Redcliffe area (how far is up to you)
  • All entries should be in 3-5 sections of 250 words (max) each, forming a trail through the area
  • Each section is planned to be tagged to a specific point within Redcliffe, i.e. a wall, lamppost, street, door etc.

The deadline for submissions is 12pm, Monday 20th April 2015.

Please submit your story together with suggested tag locations for each defined section (photographs would be ideal).

All entries must be submitted by email to livingfictionbristol@gmail.com

Winners will be announced on Monday 27 April 2015. Each selected author’s work will be featured in the Redcliffe Future Way Project and will appear in exhibitions later in the year.

Find out more @DoaSLiveFiction and bristolstorytrail.wordpress.com/future-way-call-for-submissions/

Tackle an art project exploring mental illness

What's in my headIt’s remarkable that fifteen year’s into this century mental illness remains a taboo subject. The ‘What’s in Your Head’ exhibition for the Fringe Arts Bath Festival aims to tackle the stigma head on, literally.

Curated by Bath Mind, a charity that works to alleviate the suffering of people with mental health problems, the exhibition will be a collaborative venture inviting participation from anyone interested in exploring the topic in a visual way.

All you need to do is download a picture of an outline of a head (a version of it is shown at the top of this post) and fill it with the thoughts they wouldn’t normally dare to share.

“We’re really excited about What’s in my Head and hope to get some really interesting entries,” says Kate McDonnell, Bath Mind trustee. “You don’t have to be an artist to submit work, and you can do so anonymously if you wish. With around 25% of us experiencing some kind of mental health issue at some point in our lives, it’s really important to stand up and talk about it. It can help those suffering mental distress to feel less alone and more able to get help when they need it; it can help their family and friends gain insight into what their loved ones may be going through.”

You can download the application form and head outline here, and send your completed artwork to What’s in My Head, Bath Mind, 13 Abbey Church Yard, Bath, BA1 1LY.

Closing date for entries is 17th April, ready for the exhibition taking place as part of Fringe Arts Bath Festival this May. It’s a curated show, so not all entries will make it in, but all entries will be displayed online on the Fringe Arts Blog.

So why not put your creativity where your mind is and challenge concepts of normality?

Call for writers to take part in Penzance Literary Festival

Penzance cr Judy DarleyTelltales is inviting writers of short fiction to submit stories on the theme of ‘Tide and Time’ for the chance to be selected to read at Penzance’s annual literary festival.

They’re hoping the theme will “inspire writing flavoured with sea and salt, full of ebb and flow, flotsam and jetsom, in contemplation of being castaway or of eternity – but, as always, pieces on any subject will be considered.”

Your submission must be no more than 2,000 words long. The deadline for submissions is 9 July 2014.

The chosen writers will be invited to read their submission at The Admiral Benbow, Chapel Street, Penzance at 7pm on Saturday 19 July 2014.

I took part in last year’s TellTales at the Penzance Literary Festival, with my story The Scent of Summer, and had a wonderful time at the night of readings at the Admiral Benbow. Highly recommend it!

To find out more, visit www.telltales.org.uk