‘Ranging from surreal and quirky to heartfelt and poignant, there are stories and poems in this terrific collection to suit every palette.’ —Liam Bell, author of Man at Sea
‘A cracking collection of flashes and poems spanning a wide variety of subjects, styles and voices. Stories and poems to make you think, make you laugh, make you cry and, most importantly, make you want to read them again. Short and Sweet is everything a good anthology should be and it’s one I know I will dip into again and again.’ —Karen Jones, author of When It’s Not Called Making Love
Short and Sweet: volume one
An anthology of very short poems and prose from Scotland and beyond
Discover some of the world’s best new writing from talented storytellers and poets.
This book features writing from both established and new voices and includes some pieces from the Weekly Ploom, our digital publication, now appearing for the first time in print.
But that’s not all! The collection of over fifty tiny pieces of creative writing that will suit any palette has many never-before-seen stories and poems for you to enjoy.
With chapters on the natural world, the unnatural world, people and place, and being human, there’s a poem or a story for every moment. While you wait for the kettle to boil, dip in and find yourself transported…
Including writing from international authors:
Adam Taylor || Aidan Casey || Alan McIntyre || Andrew C Kidd || Andrew Newall || Andy Edwards || Annie Firth || Beth McDonough || Brandon McQuade || Bruach Mhor || Catriona MacLeod || Ciaran McDermott || Claire Thom || Dan West || Dave Close || Donal McLaughlin || DS Maolalai || Emily Stanford || Emma Mooney || Emma Robertson || F.E. Clark || Franky Bonfanti || Jack T Canis || James Alexander || Janet Crawford || Jean Davis || John Grey || June Gemmell || Karen Arnold || Karen D’Arcy-Kernan || Kendra Jackson || Laura Fyfe || Laura Law || Lisa Farrell || Lyndsey Croal || Mathew Gostelow || Matt Dennison || Michael Berton || Ricky Monahan Brown || Robin Cantwell || Ross Crawford || Ruby Dunn || Salvatore Difalco || Salena Casha || Sarah Royston || Satya Bosman || Stephen Kingston || Stuart Watson || Thomas Zimmerman || Timothy Goodwin || Tom Tumilty
AVAILABLE NOW
£1 from the sale of each book will be donated to the Shannon Trust, supporting their vital work in helping prisoners who can read to teach those who can’t.
Paperback, 112 pages.
ISBN 97817396284
‘”I step outside, catch my breath.” So reads the first sentence of Robin Cantwell’s Down and Out in Dirtbag City. It’s an opening sentence that gets the reader involved straight away, asking questions – why does the narrator want to step outside and, come to that, what is inside? Why do need to catch their breath? What’s got them so anxious?
The other stories and poems in in Short and Sweet show the same feel for getting the reader on board by focusing on what it feels like to be caught up in a particular situation or circumstance, a moment of fleeting joy, sorrow, panic, regret, confusion, astonishment. Put simply, here is writing about what it feels like to be alive and sometimes, as in Ross Crawford’s It’s a Lang (Efter)life and Lyndsey Croal’s Vacancy, what it feels like to be dead. There are poem and stories about snowberries and the passing of time, motherlands and a father’s hands, stars and bones, and much else besides. They can prompt a grin or stir a wee shiver of pain – a few may even make you wince – but they all do the important work of reminding us what it feels like to be human in a more than human world, doing our best to ask good questions, tell good stories, find the right words.’ —Chris Powici, author of Look, Breathe