Author: A. J. Ashworth

There seems to be a bit of a buzz about bookshops at the moment – those independents which are bursting with individuality and character as well as offering a great selection of reads. The first thing I noticed was The Guardian’s Independent Bookshop guide back in September. Then there was a post by Jen Campbell saying she wanted to write a series of ‘spotlights’ to help spread ‘the joy of physical bookshops’. You can read the first of her posts about Ripping Yarns here, the bookshop where Jen herself works.

Then there was this on Flavorwire showing photos of what were declared to be ‘The 20 Most Beautiful Bookstores in the World’. Of these my own particular favourites are Barter Books, Alnwick, the famous Shakespeare & Company in Paris and the Cafebreria El Pendulo, in Mexico City, Mexico, with its stacks of books, greenery and a winding staircase. I can only hope I get to see a few of them in the flesh one day, if not all of them.
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I was interviewed over on Jen Campbell’s blog this week so if you fancy a read click here. Jen’s also running a competition and the winner will receive a copy of my collection. To be in with a chance of winning all you have to do is leave a comment below the interview.

I saw this article recently and am really fascinated by the photos in it (thanks to Michelle McGrane for bringing it to my attention).

It’s sand magnified more than 250 times so that we can see the different structures and colours of each grain – ‘unique as snowflakes’ the article says. And they are. Some are small, recognisable fragments of shell, others are little pieces of rock. And the colours are amazing too. Not the beige we normally associate with sand but blues and yellows and purples and reds. I don’t think I’d ever even thought about sand or what it might look like if we zoomed in on it before seeing this article. Fascinating stuff. You can visit the photographer Dr Gary Greenberg’s website here if you’re as intrigued as I am.
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Many thanks to Michelle McGrane for hosting me on her Peony Moon blog today. If you want to find out a little bit more about my book, and the inspiration behind it, head over there by clicking here.

The organisers of York Literature Festival have just announced the 2012 programme and I’m very pleased to be part of the line-up. Among those appearing are former Poet Laureate Andrew Motion, poet and broadcaster Ian McMillan and politician Tony Benn, who’s topping the bill. The festival is set to run from March 29th to April 1st so take a look at the programme to find out more.

My event, ‘Pub Shorts’, will be hosted by Helen Cadbury and will feature fellow writers Tony Dew, Steve Toase and James Wall. It will be held on Sunday, April 1st from 4pm to 5.45pm and will include readings from the four of us plus a discussion on the future of the e-book versus print in short story publishing.

* ‘Pub Shorts’, Wolfe Room, Black Swan Pub, Peasholme Green, York. Tickets cost £4 and are available from York Theatre Royal’s Box Office (01904 623568).

Well, the new year has brought two nice things to look forward to. Firstly, Jen Campbell is going to interview me for her blog so I can’t wait to have a chat with her about the book. Go and have a wander over to Jen’s site now if you haven’t already – there’s a great list of previous interviews on there including ones with Neil Gaiman, Joanne Harris, Joe Dunthorne, Jon McGregor and many others. Also, while you’re there please buy one of the few remaining copies of Jen’s poetry pamphlet ‘100 Poem Challenge‘, the proceeds of which go towards EEC International which funds research centres using stem cell research and gene therapy to find a cure for degenerative eyesight problems. Jen is a great writer so you’ll not only get some nice, new reading matter but you’ll be supporting charity too.

Secondly, I have been asked to read as part of a short story event for York Literature Festival on April 1st so that should be good. I will pass on the details as soon as I have them, as well as info on the other writers who will be reading as part of the event.

For those who were lucky enough to get book vouchers for Christmas, I thought it would be a good idea to offer some suggestions on what to spend them on. So, here are a few new/forthcoming books I’d like to recommend. I either have/want/have read/want to read them so I hope that you’ll want them too.

I got a bit of a shock yesterday – a lovely shock – after finding out that my collection had been named by British writer Maggie Gee as one of her favourite books of 2011. Maggie’s chosen books appeared in The Guardian (Nigeria) alongside selections from other writers, editors and publishing professionals from around the world. The article, written by Nigerian writer A. Igoni Barrett, can be seen here. But, as the text is a bit small to see on the photo, here’s what it says:

Maggie Gee, author of My Animal Life: I re-read Bernardine Evaristo’s fascinating fictionalised family history, the new, expanded Lara (Bloodaxe, New ed., 2009), tracing the roots of this mixed race British writer back through the centuries to Nigeria, Brazil, Germany, Ireland—comedy and tragedy, all in light-footed, dancing verse. In Selma Dabbagh’s new Out of It (Bloomsbury, 2011), the lives of young Palestinians in Gaza are brought vividly to life—gripping, angry, funny, political. Somewhere Else, or Even Here (Salt, 2011) by A.J. Ashworth is a stunningly original first collection of short stories.

So, as you can imagine, it was a shock indeed. I look forward to getting hold of copies of books by the other writers Maggie mentions, as well as those mentioned by some of the other contributors. A surprise for sure but a great end to the year.

It’s National Short Story Day this Thursday, December 22 (the shortest day of the year) so, to mark this special day, I thought I’d offer one person the chance to win a signed copy of my book.

All you need to do to be in with a chance of winning is to find my profile on Twitter (@AJAshworth) and retweet (RT) one of the messages about the competition. You have until 7pm on Thursday, December 22 to enter. One name will be drawn and a signed copy of the book will be sent to that person – or to someone else of their choosing. The competition is open to anyone, no matter where they are in the world. So get RTing! (And don’t forget to visit the National Short Story Day website too.)

UPDATE: 9pm on Thursday 22nd – congrats to @jessicapatient who wins a copy of my book. Thanks to all 42 who entered.

The book launch went really well last Wednesday at Blackwell’s in Sheffield. I’d been invited to hold the event as part of Sheffield Hallam’s MA Writing Masterclass* series – Hallam being the university where I studied for my MA.

My former tutor Felicity Skelton – herself an excellent short story writer – gave a lovely introduction, which was actually very touching. I then read the first story from the collection – ‘Sometimes Gulls Kill Other Gulls’. Afterwards I got a nice selection of questions from different people including if I was finding it difficult to motivate myself to write after the MA (Yes, a bit) and whether writing was like acting (Yes, because you have to immerse yourself in the lives of the characters). And by this point it was time to wrap up.
Continue reading “Launching”