Frogmore Short Shorts 2006
To those who won: thank you. Among these ten miniatures was everything I would hope for in fiction of any length: wit and humour, intelligence and heart, learning and ingenuity. Each winner offered me something different, and each offering was delightful. Special congratulations to the author of 'Going On', which contained all of these things and more.
To those who missed out: read the winners. Another opportunity to publish will come around soon enough. You can improve your writing by looking at the strengths in each of these ten short shorts.
To all: the short short story is an unusual form that calls for unusual measures. Because there is so little room for a linear narrative, the form invites more experimental constructions. Many of the stories that didn't make it this year attempted to cram too much traditional linear story into a slipper which was never going to fit. Many also tried to force an ending on a narrative that did not want to end ever after, happily or not. By contrast, the winners often adopted a lyric impulse, capturing a story through a single event or moment in time. I loved the oddness of 'A Special Friendship', the open-endedness of 'Dear Imogen' and the ingenious wit of 'Donald's Erections' and 'Lindsay Shits'. The overall winner stood out for its savage characterisation, and the sense of a life captured in a moment. Congratulations.
Tobias Hill
Judge
First prize is awarded to Clare Girvan of Exeter for GOING ON (see page 19).
Second prize is awarded to Jenny Morris of Norwich for THE RED COAT (page 24).
Third prize is awarded to Matt Shoard of Tunbridge Wells for LINDSAY SHITS (page 32).
Other short shorts shortlisted were:
A SPECIAL FRIENDSHIP Latella Francesca
DEAR IMOGEN Frances Gapper
THE LAST TIME WE WERE TOGETHER David Gill
HEAVY BONES Tania Hershman
ANGEL Rob Hindle
DONALD'S ERECTIONS Matt Shoard
THE BLUE HOUSE Jane Wood
These seven short shorts will appear in number 69 of The Frogmore Papers (March 2007).
Page(s) 18
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