Jan 2022

I set up this website in 2013 and it’s been a wonderful 9 years but I made the decision to no longer keep it updated, due to the amount of work involved for me. I will keep the site here as it is in the hope that it remains a useful resource and a great celebration of the short story!

Tania

How does ShortStops work?

• If you are a writer or reader of short stories – or both! – browse our lists of Live lit, Literary magazines and contemporary short story collection author for ideas for where to submit your stories, read short stories and listen to short stories being performed. Keep an eye on the blog for pretty much daily blog posts from lit mags, live lit events, short story competitions, writing workshops and others with news, calls for submissions, invites to events, interviews with editors, reviews of magazines and events etc…

• If daily is too much, sign up for our newsletter, sent out once a month with a round-up of everything that’s been on the blog. Click on the link on the right-hand side of this page to enter your email address.

• If you are a UK- or Ireland-based/connected literary magazine or live lit event, you can sign up to be a ShortStops contributor and design your  own Page on ShortStops, talking about your wonderful publication or event in general terms, with links to your various websites etc…  You then get listed in our Live lit and Literary magazines lists. That’s the basics. You then have the option, if you’d like, to create a draft  post for our blog once a month (or less) with news, calls for submissions, invites to events etc… In order to prevent blog posts clashing, ShortStops’ curator schedules the posts to go up, giving your post loads of prominence before the next one comes along.
• We also welcome posts about short story competitions, writing workshops and other short-story-related events and activities!

• Our  newsletter only contains a round-up of what’s been on the blog – so if you’d like to get a mention, you need to be signed up as a contributor to the site and create a blog post.   Click on the link on the right-hand side of this page to sign up for the newsletter

• If you are the author of a short story collection from or based in the UK or Ireland, we will gladly add you to our list.

Contact Tania Hershman, ShortStops curator, on shortstopsuk@gmail.com

Why? Well it was November 2013

… it’s a short story party…

I’m excited. About short stories. All short stories, all the time, that’s just who I am. I grew up in London but then moved abroad for 15 years. I started trying to write short stories in 1999, reading as many as I could, and going on writing workshops. When I moved back to the UK, to Bristol, in 2009, I thought I’d take a look around and see what was going on in the short story world. You know what I found. SO much! And here was this myth about the poor old, beleaguered and unloved short story. What? There’s so much love, and so much activity and so much talent and so much dedication and time and effort – and I thought that it was about time we got really excited about it all!

So I decided short stories in the UK and Ireland should get a little razzle-dazzle of their own. Do you know how much short story activity there is in your neighborhood, or a few miles down the road, or online? I bet you didn’t know there are almost 200 literary magazines that publish short stories round these parts… and dozens of “live lit” events where short stories are read, by their authors or by actors, every month? Not to mention the loooong list of contemporary authors who’ve published short story collections. And then we have even more short story links…

Our lists will grow and grow, and our site will fill up with blog posts from all these  wonderful lit mags, live lit events and authors with news, calls for submission, extracts from new issues, photos of events, reviews and other treats. Don’t miss out – sign up for our newsletter to get regular updates from all these – or follow the blog by email, on Twitter @ShortStopsUK and Facebook.com/ShortStopsUK.

We’re here for you to find short stories to read, to find events where you can go and be read to, and to find places to send your short stories.

It’s a short story party… and we’re only just getting started!

Tania Hershman

Curator, ShortStops