Tuesday 12 November 2013

A shortage of stories

I'm part of the short stories group run by Vanessa Wester, which produces collections of short stories on a variety of themes in aid of charity. There have been four so far (have a look here for details of the three I'm in) and the most popular one to date is, I believe, Reading is Magic, written for children.

We'd like to produce another collection for children; our current theme is 'past, present and future', so there's plenty of opportunity for time travellers and historical figures, ghosts of the past and robots of the future...

Only problem is - we don't have enough stories.

We currently have four - we reckon we need at least eight to make it a viable project. Last time, we had a baker's dozen...

So do you write for children? Could you offer a story to support a good cause? If you are interested, please consider joining us. We can provide some limited help with editing - though we are not professionals - and all we expect in return (if your story is chosen for publication) is that you help to promote both the finished book and the charity it supports. Please note that not all the stories we are offered will be suitable for inclusion, but we do try to use as many as we are able. It's a good way to get your name and work in print - and helps others as a bonus.

If you want to find out more, please take a look at the short story group page and if you have a story (or two) you'd like to offer, mail Vanessa directly.

Alternatively, drop me a line via the comments here if you have questions that aren't answered on the site.

Thank you,

Katherine x

4 comments:

  1. Hi Katherine. What is the maximum length of the stories and where do we submit our stories? Should they include illustrations or are the illustrations provided?

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  2. Hi Mimi! Thanks for your interest...

    In the past, we've not given a definite word limit. Personally, I've tended to stick at around 2000 - 2500 words max, though some were a little longer. I write for 8-12ish yrs, but we had stories suitable for younger and older too. Best not to go too YA, 'cos if they are being read by younger kids, the content is not always appropriate. We haven't considered illustrating in the past - it's a whole different ball game when e-booking!

    Submit to vanessawester.vw@gmail.com or via me at microscribbler@gmail.com

    Would be great to have you on board!

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  3. How long do I have? I am between books at the moment so could try.would love to manage to be involved. :)

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    Replies
    1. Apparently until the end of the week, according to Vanessa...

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