The First Parisot Writing Group Outing

On Thursday the Parisot Writing Group went on its first outing.  The destination was Chateau de Cénevières in The Lot.  The Chateau and the Lot River are the inspiration behind the story one of our members is writing and it was illuminating to see the actual setting for her story and to envisage her characters there.  The owner’s son, Patrick de BRAQUILANGES gave us the tour and it was interesting to get the perspective from someone who had grown up in the chateau.  He showed us a cot that all the Braquilanges babies had slept in.  He offered us a glass of wine at the end, which went down very well!   Afterwards we had a picnic at Calvignac and wandered around the contemporary art structures installed there as part of the Exoplanete Lot exhibition.  We agreed that a summer outing should be a regular feature on the writing group agenda!    

The Writing Scene in France

In the August edition of Living France there is an informative article by Vanessa Couchman about the thriving expat writing scene in France.  The piece features the Parisot Writing Group with photos! 

Gascony Writers Anthology 2016

My copy of the Gascony Writers Anthology has arrived, showcasing fifteen short stories covering diverse subjects and writing styles.  I'm so pleased to see my flash fiction story, Pilgrimage in print. To order your copy (6 Euros plus postage) please contact:  gasconywriters@gmail.com

'The Cow' acrylic on canvas by Ginster Plantagenet

Finding The Time to Write

My writing plans have gone awry of late, so it was good to finally get down to doing some writing last week.  I managed to write two new short stories (2,000 words each) and sent them off to two competitions (The Quercy Local Short Story Competition and Mslexia Short Story Competition).  It was liberating to be writing some new material.  I now need to get back to writing novel number two so no more procrastinating!

The Best. Winners and Runners Up from the International Club of Bordeaux's 1st Annual Short Story Competition (English Edition)

This anthology by the International Club of Bordeaux contains stories by some members of the Parisot Writing Group.   The ebook is available from Amazon and is free of charge until Wednesday. Just click on anthology or ebook and it will take you to the relevant Amazon page. 

Another Flash Fiction Success!

Delighted that my flash fiction story, Pilgrimage, has been selected for publication in the Gascony Writer's Anthology, which is due out in May 2016.  This story is close to my heart as it is based on a place high in the Pyrenees where my husband and I camped ten years ago when we trekked from the Atlantic Coast to the Mediterranean Coast.  

Second Place!

I am thrilled that my short story, The Wedding, was placed second in the Flash 500 competition.  My other story, Angel was short listed too so feeling very happy!  The challenge of flash fiction lies in its brevity - in this case 500 words.  It is important to make each word count yet create tension and drama.  In The Wedding I combined backstory and several key characters, which was a challenge.  You can read The Wedding here.