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Success Stories
We would like to hear from previous winners about successes they
have had since they won a prize in Bridport Prize.
Please email.
Graham Mort won 1st prize in the 2007 short story competition
Graham writes 'I won first prize in the short fiction category in 2007 for my short story,
'The Prince'. A collection of my short stories - 'Touch' - will be published by Seren in 2009.
www.graham-mort.com
Vanessa Gebbie won 2nd prize in the 2007 short story competition
Vanessa writes 'I won Second Prize in Bridport 2007, with my story I Can Squash the King, Tommo.
My debut collection of short fiction, Words from a Glass Bubble, was published by
Salt in March 2008. It is currently longlisted for the Frank O'Connor Prize.
www.vanessagebbie.com
Liza Wieland won 3rd prize in the 2007 short story competition
Liza writes 'I wanted to tell you that my novel A Watch of Nightingales
was selected as the winner of the Michigan Literary Fiction Award and will be published
by The University of Michigan Press next year. An excerpt from the novel won the Indiana
Review fiction prize.'
Christopher Stocks won a supplementary prize in the 2007 poetry competition
Christopher writes:- My first book, Forgotten Fruits, was published by Random House in May 2008;
it's had great reviews, and was subsequently chosen by Monty Don as his favourite book of the year.
Forgotten Fruits was also shortlisted for the 2008 André Simon awards (they're the leading UK food-and-drink
book awards now that the Glenfidditch Award no longer exists) and the 2009 Guild of Food Writers awards.
A paperback edition was published this spring.
As a result of its success, Random House have commissioned me to write a second book,
this time a kind of social history of British forests, which I have just begun to research,
and which is due for publication in spring 2011.
www.christopherstocks.com
Judith Allnatt won a supplementary prize in the 2007 short story competition
Judith writes ' My novel 'A Mile of River ' has been published by Transworld (Doubleday/Black Swan).
The novel was chosen as Simon Mayo's Book of the Month for Radio 5 Live, in April 2008 and was shortlisted
for the Portico Prize for Literature in November 2008. My second novel 'The Poet's Wife' will be published
by Transworld in July 2009.
I was thrilled to be included in the Bridport Prize shortlist and the anthology and
found it enormously encouraging that Tracey Chevalier, a writer whose work I admire, had chosen my story.
www.judithallnatt.co.uk
Isabel Ashdown won a supplementary prize in the 2006 poetry competition
Isabel's novel,
Glasshopper, was launched in September 2009. An extract from Glasshopper won the Mail on Sunday
Novel Competition 2008, judged by Fay Weldon, Sir John Mortimer and Michael Ridpath.
Glasshopper was recently listed in the 'Best Books of 2009' in the Observer Review and the London Evening Standard.
Isabel is working on her second novel, which will be published in the UK in Spring 2011.
www.isabelashdown.com
Laura Solomon won a supplementary prize in the 2005 and 2004 short story competitions
Since being in the 2004 and 2005 anthologies, I have had a short story collection 'Alternative Medicine'
published by Flame Books, UK 2008 a novel 'An Imitation of Life' published by Solidus, UK, 2009 and another
novel 'Instant Messages' accepted by Proverse Publishing, Hong Kong.
www.laurasolomon.com
Carys Davies was a runner-up in the 2005 short story
competition
Her first short story collection 'Some New Ambush' was published
September 2007 by Salt, www.saltpublishing.com the
Cambridge based publisher of poetry, fiction and non-fiction.
The book has been reviewed in the Independent by Boyd Tonkin who
compares her writing to Dylan Thomas and Margaret Atwood. He
describes the 15 stories in the book as being a 'darkly funny and
unsettling collection'.
Her debut collection of short stories 'Some New Ambush', which was longlisted for the
2008 Wales Book of the Year Prize, was also shortlisted for the 2009 Roland Mathias
Prize and was a Finalist in the 2008 Calvino Prize.
Carys said "Winning a runner-up prize in the 2005 Bridport was
SUCH an important step for me and I have been working hard ever
since to put together this collection."
Jane Borodale was a runner-up in the 2005 short story competition.
Her first novel The Book of Fires www.bookarmy.com will be published by HarperCollins in June
2009 as part of a two-book deal. A story about love, redemption and
eighteenth-century fireworks, it is also due out early 2010 in the USA, with
Viking.
Jane said 'I was thrilled when The Butcher's Daughter won a prize in the Bridport. It
felt like a confirmation that my writing was coming together and heading in
the right direction, and I'm sure that, in a circuitous way, it helped
towards publication of my novel. Thank you!'
David Swann won three short story prizes in the Bridport - in
1996, 2000, and 2003. Two short stories were also placed on the
shortlist in 2005.
He said "All five stories (one of them re-titled) were included
in my debut short story collection 'The Last Days of Johnny
North', published by Elastic Press of Norwich in January,
2006."
"The Bridport Prize helps writers when approaching publishers. It
proves that you have a track record. Success in the competition
has given my life a real boost, and I'm grateful to all the
helpers (e.g. readers) who do such a wonderful, invisible job
behind the scenes."
Dorene O'Brien from the USA. won 1st Prize and £3000 in
2004 short story competition.
She wrote to say "Just wanted to say that winning the Bridport in
2004 has been great for me and for my writing career. My short
story collection, Voices of the Lost
and Found , is available June 2007. I have put
together a web site Dorene
OBrien to promote the book (which includes the
winning story).
Emma Darwin from London won third prize in the 2004 short
story competition.
When Jim Crace gave my story 'Maura's Arm' third prize in 2004, I
began to feel that my writing career was taking off. Sure enough,
nine months later I was offered a two-book deal by Headline
Review. My first novel The Mathematics of Love will be published
on 3rd July 2006, and by Morrow in the US in January 2007.
French, Russian and Polish translation rights have already been
sold, and I'm now working on my second novel as part of a PhD in
Creative Writing at Goldsmiths' College.
Graham Clifford, London, UK. won a supplementary poetry prize for his poem "Searching for Sleep" in the 2004
competition.
Graham was also shortlisted in the 2007 Poetry Competition.
2007 was pretty good for Graham, prize-wise. He won first prize in the Biscuit Competition,
biscuitpublishing for a portfolio of 6
poems which included the poem from the Bridport Prize 2004 competition.
He says "I will certainly be having another go this year at the Prize- I still have very fond memories of
the day and still regard Bridport as one of the important ones to win.
Alex Keegan, Newbury, UK. won second prize in the 2003 short story
competition.
Alex writes:- Although I was already writing novels my true love was the short story
I had my first Bridport success with "The Card" (4th) then managed second place with
The Last Love Letter of Berwyn Philip Price which was reprinted in The Western Mail.
I then placed second again in 2003 with "The Bastard William Williams"
I'm delighted to inform you that a collection of my prize winning short stories was
published in early 2009 by SALT PUBLISHING (ISBN 978-1-84471-477-3) and I have now
completed two craft books: The Ballistics Handbook I & II
Mo McAuley from Kent, UK won a supplementary short
story prize in the 2003 Bridport Prize.
She has a book called 'The A - Z Man' coming out in June 2008. It’s now up for pre-order on
Amazon and
Waterstones websites.
Jane Rusbridge from West Wittering, Sussex, UK won a supplementary short
story prize in the 2003 Bridport Prize.
Her novel The Devil's Music is
published in July 2009 by Bloomsbury, with whom she has a two book deal. The central
character in the short story which won the prize wouldn't leave her alone, and The
Devil's Music grew from that story!
Jane says "Winning a Bridport Prize gave me so much encouragement."
www.janerusbridge.co.uk
Adam Marek from Bedfordshire, UK won a supplementary short
story prize in the 2003 Bridport Prize.
He has a story in the British Council's New Writing anthology,
which comes out in June 2007, and Comma Press are publishing his
first collection of short stories in October, so things are going
really well. He is looking forward to meeting Rose Tremain at the
Prospect event, as it was Rose that selected 40-litre monkey in
Bridport 2003.
Tiffany Atkinson won a supplementary poetry prize in
2002
Congratulations to Tiffany Atkinson who has won the 2007 Jerwood
Aldeburgh First Collection Prize for her collection 'Kink and Particle' . The news was announced at this
year's Aldeburgh Poetry Festival - Tiffany will receive
£3,000 a week's paid protected writing time plus a paid
invitation to read and participate at the 2008 Aldeburgh Poetry
Festival. Kink and Particle has also been shortlisted for the
Glen Dimplex New Writers Award and is a Poetry Book Society
Recommendation.
Morgan McDermott from Chicago, USA won a supplementary short
story prize in the 2002 Bridport Prize
The Ohio State University Press and the M.F.A. Program in
Creative Writing at OSU are pleased to announce that Morgan
McDermott has been selected as the 2006 winner of The Ohio State
University Prize in Short Fiction for his collection of short
stories Owner's Manual.
The OSU Press will publish Owner's Manual in the Spring of 2007.
In addition to publication, the award carries with it a cash
prize of $1500
Rowland Molony from Beer in Devon won first prize in the 2001 Bridport Prize Poetry competition.
In 2007 his novel, 'After the Death of Alice Bennett', was published by Oxford University Press.
Kate Long from Shropshire, UK won a supplementary short story
prize in the 2001 Bridport Prize.
A year after Kate Atkinson picked my short story Wish Lists out
to win a supplementary prize, I landed a two-book deal with
Picador. In March 2004 my first novel, The Bad Mother's Handbook,
got to number one in the Times bestseller chart, was serialised
on Radio 4 and nominated for a British Book Award. The novel has
now been sold to twenty four countries and is being made into a
tv film starring Catherine Tate. I’ve since had two more
novels published, Swallowing Grandma and Queen Mum, and my
fourth, The Daughter Game, will be published in 2007.
"What winning a supplementary prize in The Bridport did for me
- apart from being a grand day out - was to give me an important
signpost that my writing was on track; a big thumbs-up from fate
that I should keep going with the novels. It was especially
thrilling to have my story chosen by one of my very favourite
authors, Kate Atkinson". October 2004
Rebecca Goss from Liverpool, UK won a supplementary poem
prize in the 2000 Bridport Prize.
My poem 'Aeroplanes' won a supplementary prize in 2000. It has since been
animated and was aired on BBC Big Screens nationwide. You can see it here at
'www.youtube.com/watch?v=yJLleTY59-U'
My first full length collection is due with Flambard Press in 2010. You can
find out more about me at: 'www.poetrypf.co.uk/rebeccagosspage.html'
1999 Poetry Winner: Mario Petrucci
Capturing the winning slot with Negatives (composed in those
first nervy days of my residency at the Imperial War Museum)
provided a booster rocket in that long, deep-space journey many
writers endure: of feeling they might just have permission to
place themselves somewhere among the literary constellations.
Something in my poem had seized the judge's attention across the
starless divide of anonymity, thereby reaching thousands of
observers. I've since had several near-misses, including a prose
longlisting (2007); but Negatives continues to spread its dark
petals at the heart of my most recent collection, Flowers of
Sulphur ( Enitharmon). Of course, poetry isn't ever about awards;
but there's nothing wrong with aiming (quietly, linguistically)
for the moon. Bridport 1999 was a temporary protractor and
slide-rule to help me gauge the trajectory, and required power,
of my work.
Richard Aronowitz 1999 poetry runner-up
I was a runner-up (poetry) in 1999 when Tobias Hill was judge
and I have since then had eleven poems published in the anthology
“Anvil New Poets 3” (Anvil Press, 2001); single poems
published in “The Guardian” and “The
Interpreter’s House”, three in “Envoi”
(forthcoming), etc. My debut novel, “Five Amber
Beads”, came out in 2006 from Flambard Press to good
reviews.
My second novel, “It's Just The Beating Of My Heart”, is being published by Flambard Press in February 2010.
www.richardaronowitz.com
Robert Dodds was a runner up in 1995 with the story 'Hairpin Bend'.
'Hairpin Bend' was one of the stories included in my first
published collection 'Rattlesnake and Other Tales' (Polygon, 2001). Additionally,
I have now had nine stories broadcast on BBC Radio Four. I also write novels for older
children, and Andersen Press have published my supernatural thrillers 'The Midnight Clowns'
(also published in France), 'NIghtland', and 'The Secret of Iguando' (also published in the USA,
and broadcast on BBC Radio Four). My fourth novel in this series, 'The Murrian', comes out in
October 2008.
Even though I suppose I'm an 'established' writer in some respects, I still try to write a short story
each year for the Bridport Prize deadline. I was greatly encouraged by my prize in such a prestigious
competition, and still harbour the ambition to write the winning story one day!
Kathy Page was a winner in 1994 and a runner up in 1996
Winning the award in 1994 was a great boost. I think writers
published, unpublished and in between need all the encouragement
they can get. Since winning, I've gone on to publish two novels:
Alphabet, nominated for the Governor General's Award here in
Canada, and The Story of My Face, long-listed for the Orange
Prize. I have continued to wrote short fiction too, and have much
enjoyed writing commissioned stories for both Radio 3 and 4.
www.KathyPage.info
Elizabeth Kay won third prize in the short story competition
in 1987.
I won third prize in the short story competition in 1987. I know
this is a long time ago now, but it was so lovely to be taken
seriously and it really did make a difference to the way I looked
at my work. Since then I've had a lot of things published. The
best known is the Divide trilogy, published by Chicken House, for
chidren of 9+., which has been translated into several languages.
In March 2008 Fury will be published by Barrington Stoke, and I
have another one due out in 2009. I have a website: www.elizabethkay.co.uk
And we are proud that that these writers entered Bridport
Prize:-
Kate Atkinson (1990)
Helen Dunmore (1990)
Paul Farley (1994)
Tobias Hill (1994, 1996, +?)
Sheena Pugh (1995, 1997, 1999, 2003)
Mario Petrucci (1999, 2000)
Glyn Maxwell (1989)
Jane Draycott (1998, 2000, 2002)
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