Digging out sheep from under snow

* The Big Snow of 2025 on the Galtees * Brothers Tom John William & their nephew Billy Cunningham along with their Hill Sheep Farming Neighbours are out on the Galtees with the last few days digging out their sheep who have been trapped in what has been the worst snow fall in decades.

[image or embed]

— Carlow Weather (@carlowweather.bsky.social) January 10, 2025 at 8:31 AM

Extraordinary video from Carlow Weather on Bluesky

Farewell to Storyville

The End of the Road

We are now closed indefinitely for submissions of short stories. It’s been fun.

Take care. Be good. See you around!

Ed.

Bonus book for the next Story of the Month

Cover: Day of the Flying Leaves

In addition to a copy of one of the New Short Stories anthologies, the next Story of the Month author will receive a copy of Day of the Flying Leaves, poetry by yours truly. I will also inscribe and sign an as-yet unpublished poem on a blank page. I hope this will not be a disincentive! (Ed.)

Posters: "Kidnapped - Bring Them Home NOW"

On a postbox in Harrow, London HA1 today

The Phone Book (final edition)

Cover of the last ever phone book

The Phone Book

We've been delivering it to you from 1880 to 2024.
Harrow, our last book has landed at your door.
Final edition. Hold on to it forever.

(From Royal Mail/BT this morning)

Publication: Willesden Herald New Short Stories 12

For all the details and links and how to buy, please see New Short Stories 12 on WordPress.

Announcement: Results of the Willesden Short Story Prize 2022

Zakia Uddin

The Willesden Short Story Prize 2022 was revealed at Willesden Library this evening. First prize went to "Hotline" by Zakia Uddin. 

Runners-up were "Vevey" by Catherine McNamara and "Cuckquean" by Jackie Morris. 

Thanks to Claire Lacey and Katy Darby for bringing the stories to life and making the event go with a zing. 

Thanks to Jarred McGinnis for judging and to the writers of all ten shortlisted stories, as every one is a prize-winner in this short story competition. (Ed.)

The indomitable spirit of Ukraine

Little girl singing "Let it go" in a shelter#UkraineRussianWar #Ukraine #UkraineUnderAttack pic.twitter.com/6gfcUoiwJJ

— Ankita Jain (@Ankita20200) March 6, 2022

➽ Links to Donate
– Disasters Emergency Committee (UK)
– List of organisations providing support Ukraine

Jarred McGinnis to judge Willesden Short Story Competition 2022

Jarred McGinnis

We are pleased and excited to announce that novelist and short story writer Jarred McGinnis has agreed to judge the Willesden Herald Short Story Competition 2022. An American abroad, his debut novel The Coward (Canongate, 2021) was a BBC Radio 2 Book Club recommendation. It is also about to be published in the US as well as France, Italy and Spain later this year. He has many strings to his bow, including short fiction for BBC Radio 4 and much more besides, which you can read all about on his website. He is no stranger to our competition, having had a short story in New Short Stories 4. [Ed.]

The sad, shameful demise of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry

The sad, shameful demise of the Whitechapel Bell Foundry https://t.co/YIeKthPLdo

— Spitalfields Life (@thegentleauthor) May 14, 2021

Newsflash: You can't trust Trump (ask his sister)

'His goddamned tweet and lying [...] The change of stories. The lack of preparation. The lying. Holy shit.'
In secretly recorded audio [2018-19], President Trump’s sister says he has ‘no principles’ and ‘you can’t trust him’ #LiarTrump #BidenHarris2020 https://t.co/BiatwZOSR9

— Stephen Moran (@stephen_j_moran) August 23, 2020

#BidenHarris2020

 "Are you ready to go to work?" Roll on November!

Let's hope they present the flailing Donald Trump with the Order of the Boot.

Sheryl Crow - Woman in the White House (2020 version).

Test, test, test - explanation and plea (Jeremy Hunt)

Why it is essential we adopt mass community testing as our national strategy: my video today pic.twitter.com/QriHoYAhYa

— Jeremy Hunt (@Jeremy_Hunt) March 31, 2020

Covid-19: We can't move forward till we can see where we are.

COVID19: How can we control it if we don't know where it is? Test everyone. (Jeremy Hunt)

“How can we possibly suppress the virus if we don’t know where it is?”

Former health secretary Jeremy Hunt condemns the government's mismanagement of coronavirus testing. #CoronavirusLockdown pic.twitter.com/zd4jMmfkLr

— PoliticsJOE (@PoliticsJOE_UK) March 24, 2020

Vision, having sight of the problem, is vital in order to solve it. Jeremy Hunt cites other countries who have got control of their outbreaks with intensive testing and contact tracing. Let's hope the government understands this message and acts on it.

No third runway for Heathrow - Appeal Court ruling

We've won our case against the government! The Court of Appeal has judged their plans for Heathrow expansion illegal on climate grounds 🙌. This ruling is an historic and ground-breaking result for climate justice and for future generations. #NoThirdRunway pic.twitter.com/9oAdz0aZuy

— Friends of the Earth 🌍 (@friends_earth) February 27, 2020

Follow the link for more commentary by Friends of the Earth. This is good news for everyone living in West London and, probably, the world.

Harrow West: Vote tactically to stop the Tories

Only a vote for Labour can stop the Tories in Harrow West. pic.twitter.com/DimufUPOJm

— Gareth Thomas for Harrow West (@GarethThomasMP) November 30, 2019

A vote for any candidate in Harrow West other than Labour's Gareth Hunt, the incumbent, is a vote for the Tories to continue their 9-year reign of chaos. It is not, in the words of the late Peter Cook, "time for a futile gesture at this stage of the war." Any vote that does not support the main challenger to the Conservative candidate in any constituency on December 12th, is a vote for at least another five years of HELL.

To find the candidate best-placed to defeat the Tory in your constituency, visit RemainUnited.org.

Never mind Black Friday, it's Willesden Green Saturday

November 30th is publication day for Willesden Herald's New Short Stories 11. "Fifteen stories like the dreams of fifteen nights." We paid a posh PR agency (Hartley Ailive) forty grand for that strapline and the particular shade of red in the logo and a series of inconclusive meetings with people, most of whom said nothing.

If you have any friends, please order copies for them as a Christmas box from Book Depository by clicking this link or Amazon UK. Thank you.

Edmondo Redmond O'Woodward (prop.)

New Short Stories 11 - first look - unboxing

The eagle, or anyway the secretary bird, has landed. Now available from Amazon.co.uk, Book Depository and Amazon.com.

Updated 13/12/2019

Coming Soon: New Short Stories 11 - preview

The 15 best international short stories, as submitted to the Willesden Herald in 2019. Editor: Stephen Moran. With an introduction by Gina Challen.

Front cover for New Short Stories 11.
Photo and design by Stratos Fountoulis.

Contemporary fiction from Britain, Ireland, America and Nigeria, from huge cities to very small towns and on several journeys. We're at work, at school, in homes, gardens, cities, in the countryside and on the road. There are crises, violence, tragedy, vengeance, reflection and recon-ciliation. Here are vividly evoked times and places, characters of every kind, and insights into their circumstances and relationships.

Editor: Stephen Moran. Fiction by JL Bogenschneider, Ursula Brunetti, Carol Dines, Derek Dirckx, Sarah Evans, Jeff Ewing, David Frankel, Ray French, N. Jane Kalu, Marylee MacDonald, Jaki McCarrick, Gerard McKeown, Jay Merill, Diana Powell, John Saul. With an introduction by Gina Challen.

Here are fifteen stories transporting us, like the dreams of fifteen nights. In one we remember a beloved teacher, a hated one and our friends. In another we are on a bus somewhere in Britain, on the way to losing our virginity. On another night we wake from a heartbreaking haunting in the changing seasons of Lagos, Nigeria. Or we're in Northern Ireland practicing with a friend's shotgun, and wondering if we can trust him. Then again we're in the Irish borderlands in a tale of neglect and revenge. We travel through remote parts of the US, a fugitive from the past, and hook up with a loner in his last days. Or we're in a surreal family circus, with a remarkable cast of characters, living out a poignant adventure. A nun travels on leave through small town America in search of family history and closure. We agonise over a doctor's ethical dilemma and a professor's marital crisis, drenched in a rainstorm. We're in Newport in Wales, trying to stay off the booze and achieve a reunion. We take something that's not really ours and turn over in our minds what would have happened if we hadn't. We spy on a swimmer as she swims naked in the sea every day till it all goes wrong. In a nightmare, there's a river, a forestry work camp, two labourers living on-site, and a dead body. We meditate and scroll through thoughts on the people, situations and how we interact with those around us, friends and neighbours. (SM)

Update 22 November
Now available for pre-order from Book Depository, Amazon UK and Amazon.com. At the time of writing, Amazon dotcom says it has availability within 2 days. Amazon UK is currently lagging behind that a little.

Lineup for New Short Stories 11 revealed

Contents

Introduction by Gina Challen – vii

JL Bogenschneider – Miss Maughan – 11

Ursula Brunetti – Satellites – 31

Carol Dines – Forgiveness – 47

Derek Dirckx – Dark in Here – 71

Sarah Evans – Only Human – 91

Jeff Ewing – Fireball Outfit – 111

David Frankel – Meadowlands – 125

Ray French – Voyager – 141

N. Jane Kalu – To Have a Ghost Baby – 159

Marylee MacDonald – Caboose – 167

Jaki McCarrick – The Emperor of Russia – 193

Gerard McKeown – Rabbit Season – 211

Jay Merill – Vole or Mole – 223

Diana Powell – The Watcher – 231

John Saul – The garden designer – 241

Notes on Contributors – 257

~

The book is being put together now. One of the next tasks is the cover design, which will be in the hands of Stratos, who has designed all the covers to date. Watch this space for news on the progress of the production and publication. (Ed.)