Forethoughts: Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Vol. 3

Note: My afterthoughts on the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Vol. 3 have now been posted.

And so my literary journey brings me to another short story anthology that I’m hugely excited about reading, the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 3 (Bristol Review of Books). I’ll admit from the outset that this year is the first year that I’ve gotten involved with reading anything outputted by the Bristol Short Story Prize, but I’m so glad that I have, simply because of the promise that their short story anthologies hold. Join me then as I tell you a little more about this particular anthology, and reveal my reasons why I’m so excited about diving into it.

I’ll begin however by telling you what first drew my attention towards the Bristol Short Story Prize, and their delicious publications. It all began on Twitter, and if any publishers are still in doubt as to whether it’s worthwhile building a presence on Twitter then I can tell you, solely through my interactions with and experience of @BristolPrize, that it most definitely is. I don’t know who the ‘Twitterer’ behind the keyboard is at the Bristol Short Story Prize, but I do know that they do a phenomenal job, in both promoting their product and in championing their authors. More impressive however is the fact that the person(s) responsible is also tireless in their efforts when it comes to promoting the short story form in general. And for that reason alone they have earned my undying admiration.

Of course, the person(s) promoting the short story form on Twitter is only doing the bidding of his/her/their ‘master’ (who knows they might even be the ‘master ). The raison d’être for the Bristol Short Story Prize’s existence is to raise the profile of the short story form, and their published anthologies stand as the tangible fruit of their labours. Founded in 2007 by the quarterly cultural magazine Bristol Review of Books, one need only take a quick skim of the About Us page on the Bristol Short Story Prize website to see what they are all about (I also invite you to take a look at their ‘Our Aims’ webpage too):

The Bristol Short Story Prize aims to publish great short stories and promote the stories and writers as much as possible. Discovering previously unpublished writers is central to our aims and we are absolutely committed to raising the profile of and celebrating the short story genre and making it accessible and available to as wide an audience as we can.

And so I come to this latest publication from the Bristol Short Story Prize clear in the knowledge that they stand as a true ambassador for the short story form. And with this in mind I can’t be more excited about working my way through their anthology, especially when I also know that the BSSP are committed to publicising ‘lesser known’ and ‘upcoming’ writers (something which is very close to my heart here at RobAroundBooks, simply because it offers an opportunity to discover new and exciting writers).

I noted earlier that this anthology publication is the main product of the Bristol Short Story Prize, and I should briefly tell you a little bit about its ‘make up’:

Contained within the pages of the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 3 are the stories which were selected by a panel of judges as being the ones which stood out as the best of the entries received for this year’s 2010 Bristol Short Story Prize. Along with this year’s winning story – a work of flash fiction by Dublin-born author Valerie O’Riordan – and the entries from the two runners-up – Ian Madden and Rachel Howard, the BSSP anthology also contains seventeen other story inclusions, all of which were chosen for their outstanding quality.

So there appears to be a whole lot of short story goodness in BSSP Anthology 3, and although the mix looks to be rather eclectic – which is no bad thing – the reading prospect is made all the more exciting due to the fact that every inclusion has been considered by a panel of judges. And talking of judges, one of them is none other than Tania Hershman, author of The White Road and Other Stories (Salt Publishing) and the founder of The Short Review. Tania possesses a remarkable passion and taste for the short story form. So much so that I’m always attracted towards anything that Tania is involved in the judging of. I’ve quickly discovered that if Tania’s name appears on the list of judges then one is guaranteed the most expert of opinions.

So that’s the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Volume 3. And I should really be closing these forethoughts by giving brief mention of the anthology’s wonderful cover art; the creation of Gaby Selby, a 2010 graduate in illustration at the University of the West of England in Bristol. Fact it I’ve already covered this anthology in a recent Daily Bookshot, and so I’ll send over to that post, where you see me fawning all over the cover (thankfully there’s not a picture of that ).

In closing then I’ll give you a quick rundown on how I intend to work my way through this anthology. As is always the case when I review short story collections/athologies on RobAroundBooks I will tackle each story one at a time, reviewing and rating each as I go. When I’m through I will offer up my final afterthoughts on the collection as a whole basing my final rating on the average score for all the stories together, but also taking into account how the collection works as a whole.

So keep an eye out for those individual story reviews, people (and incidental comments in my Reading Journal and on Twitter), and keep some cotton wool handy for when you hear my inevitable squeals. I’ve a good feeling that I’m going to discover a few remarkable writers amongst this lot. Does life get much more exciting than that? I should say not!

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:: Contents of the Bristol Short Story Prize Anthology Vol. 3 ::
(links lead to individual reviews of each story, when posted)

• Mum’s the Word – Valerie O’Riordan
• Only the Sure of Foot – Ian Madden
• Gardening – Rachel Howard
• Man Friday and the Sockball Championship – Mike Bonsall
• Two Girls Under an Apple Tree – Kate Brown
• Marrakech – Darci Bysouth
• Struthio Camelus – Joanna Campbell
• Signs of Our Redemption – Tara Conklin
• A Sense of Humour – Rik Gammack
• Conservation of Angular Momentum – Ashley Jacob
• Wine at Breakfast – Claire King
• The Meek Inherit – Natasya Parker
• rZr and Napoleon – Jonathan Pinnock
• Spring Tide – Marli Roode
• Born Not Made – Rachel Sargeant
• Ten Plastic Roses – Yana Stajno
• An Experiment – Natasha Tripney
• Being Mother – Sherri Turner
• Bitter Gourd Fruit – Ben Walker
• But Then Again, Maybe it is – Clare Wallace

Bristol Review of Books Ltd. | July 2010 | £10.00 | PAPERBACK | 180 PP | ISBN: 9780955955549

A note about forethoughts
‘Forethoughts’ offer an insight into what my initial thoughts and impressions of a book are before I begin reading it. Informal, and largely written as a stream-of-consciousness exercise in a single sitting, my ‘forethoughts’ capture an important stage of the reading experience for me – the anticipatory period before the book is first opened, when my excitement is piqued for the reading experience which lies ahead.

Blissfully ignorant my ‘forethoughts’ may well be, but when combined with my eventual ‘afterthoughts’, the result is a unique and comprehensive record of a very personal literary ‘journey’ through a particular book; a literary journey which will hopefully be of some value to other readers.