The Olive Orchard by Philip Kavvadias
July 19, 2021
Short Fiction: “The orchard belongs to the Vasdekas family. It has been with them ever since that first olive shoot defied all laws of botany.”
featured
Adult Education by Rachael Gordon
July 5, 2021
Short Fiction: “When it comes to men, I am currently sitting stoically in a vast kingdom of disappointment.”
latest
She Walks with a Tokoloshe by M.L. Hufkie
June 28, 2021
Short Fiction: “Nobody had liked her uncle’s wife.”
In Memoriam by Stephen Vowles
June 21, 2021
Short Fiction: “From the fires of hell,” I inform him. “Or perhaps the blood of Christ?” His uncertain gaze returns to scrutinise me
Beautiful Vague Things by Millie Walton
June 14, 2021
Short Fiction: I wonder fleetingly whether I have ever been sexually attracted to her. It’s not a real thought.
Fossils by Alice Ivor
June 7, 2021
Short Fiction: …I know it’s just his way of telling me he’s sad to see me go. I slip my hand into my pocket and run my fingertips over my ammonite.
Mr Howard’s Girls by Abigail Seltzer
May 31, 2021
Short Fiction: Before I could stop myself, I had him in swimming trunks, kissing me. Next thing I knew, we were lying on a beach, gazing into one another’s eyes.
The Man in the Red Cap by Duncan Grimes
May 24, 2021
Short Fiction: I can see him holding on to the far buoy with his head leant back, staring out to the horizon. I watch his bright red cap bob between the waves as I sit in my lifeguard Kayak.
When All This is Over Go To Pat’s Flat by Shelley Hastings
May 17, 2021
Short Fiction: Get a cab. Don’t walk. The party has started. Little Mo is on the decks, he’s wearing his Moondance T-shirt from the millennium, swaying, can in hand.
Who Am I If You Keep Telling Me to Shut up? by Kayleigh Cassidy
May 10, 2021
Short Fiction: Whistling, I gaze through my reflection. This plexiglass doesn’t look strong enough to hold all that water.
ARCHIVE
Julia Roberts by Len Lukowski
May 3, 2021
Short Fiction: I was sorry for trying to kiss her if it’s not what she wanted. Hey, it’s OK, she replied. It’s just I’ve never been with a woman. I’m not a woman. You know what I mean.
The Ahp by Kaliane Bradley
April 26, 2021
Short Fiction: Vision and colour crowded in. She was awake too; he could feel her wakefulness through the mattress.
The Rainbow Ruckus by Thomas McColl
April 19, 2021
Short Fiction: It’s well known that there’s always a crock of gold at the end of a rainbow. What isn’t so well known is that a double rainbow’s different, and at the end of that there’s simply a big ruckus.
Onrabull by Aisha Phoenix
April 12, 2021
Short Fiction: In lime green flares and a marigold shirt that set off her conker-brown skin, she waved her arms as she described the kind of beasts into which our enemy could transform…
The Last of the Mohicans by John D Rutter
April 5, 2021
Short Fiction: We knew they would come; it was only a matter of when, so we responded quickly to the alarm.
The Call of Water by Katie Packman
March 29, 2021
Short Fiction: Lana’s thoughts drift back to the strange call. Who was asking for help? Why did they call this number?
The Baobab Tree by Zahirra Dayal
March 22, 2021
Short Fiction: You reach for a book and blow the dust off, watching it fly around the dimly-lit room. It’s the story of the Baobab Tree.
Pink Swans By Lucy Ashe
March 15, 2021
Short Fiction: The first time the man arrives at the ballet studio, the girls ignore him. An embarrassing father come to watch a class, probably, or a friend of Miss Maisie.
H20 by Farrah Akbik
March 8, 2021
Short Fiction: My father left Damascus like a lover creeping from his mistress’ bed in the dark of night.
We Are Johnny Pulp by Liam Konemann
February 22, 2021
Short Fiction: Johnny Pulp used to be a girl. It’s not his favourite thing about himself, but that’s the deal.
The Opposite of Attraction by Lucy Yates
February 15, 2021
Short Fiction: This morning I imagined breaking up with Alice.
far away fields by Alex Reece Abbott
February 8, 2021
Short Fiction: …we had appendicitis flapjack (my cousin Mary), banana bread broken leg (me), lung cancer linguine (Aunty Joan), heart attack hummus (Grandma Phyllis)…
The Joy of Cooking by Emma Henderson
February 1, 2021
Short Fiction: …we had appendicitis flapjack (my cousin Mary), banana bread broken leg (me), lung cancer linguine (Aunty Joan), heart attack hummus (Grandma Phyllis)…
Escape the Room by Sophie Powell
January 25, 2021
Short Fiction: If someone broke into your house now, how would you get out?
No Man at All by Naomi Elster
January 18, 2021
Short Fiction: Whoever named this town Prosper had a sense of humour, and no one was laughing anymore…
All those Leos who have been lying in bed for months clenching their teeth outstaring the wall can finally relax the jaws and shut their eyes by Roswitha Gerlitz
October 26, 2020
Short fiction by Roswitha Gerlitz In order to keep the formating of this piece, please click the link below to read it. ‘I am a London based visual artist, theatre/opera performance director, producer and writer navigating pathways between diverse practices. My artistic concepts, creative approach and aesthetic languages are informed
Air Pressure by Alice-Louise MacGillivray
October 19, 2020
Short Fiction by Alice-Louise MacGillivrary
The World of the Singer from Jonny Sax by M A Packman
September 11, 2020
Short Fiction by M A Packman
There’s a Fruit Pastille in the cat’s bowl by Mark deMeza
September 11, 2020
Short Fiction by Mark deMeza
What To Expect When You’re Expecting by Lauren Miller
September 11, 2020
Short Fiction by Lauren Miller
A Stream Runs Through Us By Jess Sturman-Coombs
January 20, 2020
Short Fiction By Jess Sturman-Coombs
Fear The Reaper By Oliver Buck
December 9, 2019
Short fiction on the nature of death by Oliver Buck – Selected by students at Treasure House School
Another Language By Matthew Bates
December 2, 2019
Short Fiction By Matthew Bates – Runner-up of The Booker Prize at Birkbeck Creative Writing Competition
Dandelion By M Pope-Weidemann
November 25, 2019
Short Fiction By M Pope-Weidemann – Runner-up of The Booker Prize at Birkbeck Creative Writing Competition
The Carousel of Progress by Richard Roper
November 18, 2019
Short Fiction by Richard Roper – Winner of The Booker Prize at Birkbeck Creative Writing Competition
What It Means to Be Human By Rufus Harman
October 28, 2019
Short fiction by Rufus Harman, selected by students at Treasure House School as part of the MIROnline Youth Takeover.
The Legend of Freydis by Arielle Lentin
October 21, 2019
Short fiction by Arielle Lentin, selected by students at Treasure House School as part of the MIROnline Youth Takeover.
Corn Running by Gilli Fryzer
July 8, 2019
Short Fiction by Gilli Fryzer – Winner of The Mechanics’ Summer Folk Tale Festival
Split / the difference by Micaela Maftei and Laura Tansley
March 25, 2019
Short Fiction by Micaela Maftei and Laura Tansley
Well here I am right back where I was yesterday by Melissa Wan
December 21, 2018
Experimental Short Fiction by Melissa Wan
Idea for a Story: Café Man by Nick Trench
December 17, 2018
Experimental Short Fiction by Nick Trench
Sister Sarya at The End of The World by Gerard McKeown
December 3, 2018
Short Fiction by Gerard McKeown
Rebecca Rouillard on winning Mslexia’s Novel Competition
November 14, 2018
Katie Baldock spoke to Rebecca Rouillard about writing after winning Mslexia’s 2017 Novel Competition.
When the Universe Listens by Alison Theresa Gibson
October 8, 2018
Short Fiction by Alison Theresa Gibson
Dream Clips of the Archons by Paul Green
October 1, 2018
Opening sequences from an evolving narrative by Paul Green
The Head of the End of the World by Melaina Barnes
September 24, 2018
Short Fiction by Melaina Barnes. The Head of the End of the World was shortlisted for MIR15.
Pitmatic by Helen Cryer
September 17, 2018
Short Fiction by Helen Cryer. Pitmatic was shortlisted for MIR15.
Llyn Dwfn by Liz Kay
September 10, 2018
Short Fiction by Elizabeth Kay. Llyn Dwfn was shortlisted for MIR15.
Pencilled In by Eleanor Capaldi
September 3, 2018
Short Fiction by Eleanor Capaldi. Pencilled In was shortlisted for MIR15.
Coming to Town by Alex Clark
July 30, 2018
Short Fiction by Alex Clark Coming to Town was shortlisted for The Mechanics’ Institute Review Issue 15
Kestrels and Crows by Tim Cooke
July 23, 2018
Flash Fiction by Tim Cooke. Kestrels and Crows was shortlisted for The Mechanics’ Institute Review Issue 15
Zoe Gilbert discusses her new novel “Folk”
May 7, 2018
Zoe Gilbert discusses the power of traditional story telling and her new novel “Folk” with Lauren Miller
Sian Hughes talks to Mslexia
January 5, 2018
Sian Hughes spoke to: Editorial Director, Debbie Taylor; Assistant Editor, Francoise Harvey; and Advertising & Digital Marketing Associate, Laura Steven – to hear their thoughts about creativity, writing, editing, and people that are difficult to work with…
Some of the Fountains, Some of the Time by Simon Holloway
December 4, 2017
Short fiction by Simon Holloway
Starstruck in Bellini’s by Rajeev Balasubramanyam
November 27, 2017
Short Fiction by Rajeev Balasubramanyam
Cecília by Nara Vidal
August 21, 2017
Short fiction by Nara Vidal, first published in A Loucura Dos Outros (The Madness Of Others) in Brazil.
No Place To Call Home by JJ Bola
May 10, 2017
An Extract from JJ Bola’s debut novel No Place to Call Home which will be published by OWN IT! on June 22nd.
After The Event Takes Place by Laurence Barratt-Manning
January 23, 2017
Short Fiction by Laurence Barratt-Manning
Luca’s Trip to Havana by Leila Segal
January 13, 2017
Leila Segal shares a story from her debut collection; Breathe: Stories from Cuba (flipped eye, 2016). Leila also talks to Melanie Jones about her writing, Cuba, and small publishers in this interview. You can buy a copy of Breathe here. Leila will be reading at MIRLive on January 30th and copies of Breathe
Creative Writing by Maggie Womersley
January 11, 2017
Short fiction by Maggie Womersley. This story was originally published in The Mechanics’ Institute Review: Issue 10. The Mechanics’ Institute Review is an annual collection of fiction now open for submissions to all UK authors. While submissions are open, we will be posting some of favourite work from past collections. Creative Writing was selected by
Stag by Louise Lee
January 4, 2017
An extract from In The Name Of Love by Louise Lee. This extract was originally published in The Mechanics’ Institute Review: Issue 12. The Mechanics’ Institute Review is an annual collection of fiction now open for submissions to all UK authors. While submissions are open, we will be posting some of favourite
Holding On To Nothing by Cassandra Passarelli
December 22, 2016
Short Fiction by Cassandra Passarelli
Stephen Morrison-Burke Feature
November 2, 2016
Stephen Morrison-Burke shares High Dust and Donkeys, an extract from his novel in progress. He also talks to Alison Hitchock about winning the Kit De Waal Scholarship and his plans for the future
Date Night At The Big Disco by Valerie O’Riordan
October 17, 2016
Short Fiction by Valerie O’Riordan.
Things To Throw In The Fire by Danielle Bainbridge
October 14, 2016
Short Fiction by Danielle Bainbridge
Three Singers by Kavita A. Jindal
September 26, 2016
Short Fiction by Kavita A. Jindal. This story appears in the anthology ‘Love Across A Broken Map‘ which is available from Dahlia Publishing and features stories from the The Whole Kahani collective. The collective will be appearing at The Manchester Literature Festival in October.
Akram’s War
June 27, 2016
AKRAM’S WAR by Nadim Safdar is published by Atlantic Books and available here. Nadim shares his first chapter with us and discusses writing on the Birkbeck Blog.
The Girl in the Glass Tower
June 13, 2016
Elizabeth Fremantle shares an extract from her novel The Girl in the Glass Tower. The novel came out on June 2nd and is available here. Elizabeth talks about writing on the Birkbeck Blog.
Walleye Junction
June 6, 2016
Karin Salvalaggio shares an extract from her novel Walleye Junction. The novel, which came out on May 10th, continues her Macy Greeley Mysteries series. Karin talks about writing on the Birkbeck Blog.
The Otherlife
May 30, 2016
The Otherlife by Julia Gray comes out on July 7th with Anderson Press. Julia shares the first chapter of the novel with us and discusses her writing process on the Birkbeck Blog.
They Are Trying To Break Your Heart
May 23, 2016
David Savill’s novel They Are Trying To Break Your Heart came out last month with Bloomsbury Publishing and is available here. David shares an extract with us and talks about the novel and his writing process on the Birkbeck blog.
The Art of Not Breathing
May 16, 2016
Sarah Alexander’s debut novel, The Art of Not Breathing was released on April 1st and is available to purchase here. She shares her first chapter with us as part of our published alumni series. Sarah talks about the novel and her writing experiences in interview which you can read on the Birkbeck Website.
We Go Around In The Night And Are Consumed By Fire
April 26, 2016
An extract from Chapter One of We Go Around In The Night And Are Consumed By Fire by Jules Grant, out on 28th April with Myriad Editions.
Roundabout
March 14, 2016
Short fiction by Federica Lugaresi, shortlisted for the 2015 Fish Publishing Short Story Prize.
Paddy and Agatha
February 1, 2016
A short story from Toby Litt’s new book, Life-Like, published by Seagull Books.
The Authenticity of Ash Creek
August 20, 2015
A short story by James Mitchell, first published in MIR11.
Olivia in 4 Parts
August 20, 2015
A short story by Jacquelyn Shreeves-Lee, first published in MIR11.
Our First Lesbians
August 20, 2015
A short story by Rebecca Rouillard, first published in MIR11. Rebecca’s story ‘The Window’ is featured in MIR12.
Switzerland
August 20, 2015
A short story by Dave Wakely, first published in MIR11. Dave’s stories have appeared in MIR10, MIR11 and MIR12.
The Longest Fight: Excerpt
February 2, 2015
An excerpt from Emily Bullock’s debut novel The Longest Fight, an exploration of love and family loyalty set in the gritty, ambitious world of boxing in 1950s London.