So… a few months ago, I was interrupted in my novel writing by a couple of short stories that insisted on hatching, right then and there, in the middle of everything. Once they were fully nurtured into the strange creatures that they are, I realised that I had no idea what to do with them. How do you fledge a short story? I’ve never written short stories before, so I didn’t really know where you put them once they were written. Thrust them upon unsuspecting relatives? Save them for a future anthology? Pretend they never happened?
In the end, I entered the first one for a competition, thinking—why not?—but mostly expecting it to suffer its first crash-and-burn rejection.
Instead, clever thing, it got itself shortlisted in the Hammond House 2017 International Literary Prize.
Bravo Siren. You’ve done me proud.
P J King 