If this weather is getting you down, here’s a story that’s guaranteed to lift your spirits. Beautifully written by Glaswegian author, journalist and Master McStoryteller, Pat Black, The Mowgli Chronicles is best described as It’s a Wonderful Life brought to 1980’s Glasgow. What more entertainment do you need on a cold, miserable Saturday night?
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Here’s a Sunday treat for McStorytellers readers, a brand new story by Glaswegian writer, journalist and bletherer, Pat Black.
Eschewing the ice-skating on a dull Friday night, Tam and Stu seek excitement among the forbidden wares on offer in the heady world of Atlantis. But are they skating on thin ice instead? Quintessential McStorytellers fare. Enjoy! After far too long an absence from McStorytellers, we’re delighted to welcome the return of Glaswegian journalist and writer Pat Black with a superb new story. Mural begins with a demolition, but by its end more than an old school is broken apart. As ever with oor Pat, deep, dark and dangerous.
Enjoy the deconstruction! We’re delighted to welcome back today Glaswegian writer and master McStoryteller Pat Black. In his brand new tale, Arena, Pat takes us on an uneasy journey from the make-believe world of miniature armies and bloodless battles to the harsh, real world of thugs and cowards and unprovoked violence.
Enjoy the ride! Bullies stalk our two brand new stories today.
In a bitter-sweet memoir entitled Cold, cold tarmac, Edinburgh-born Garry Stanton recalls the bully who still haunts the memories of his school days. Sentinel Blues is also dominated by a bully, one that is gung-ho, high-tech and lurks in the sky. With another war in the Middle East looming, this gripping drama from the assured hand of Glaswegian Pat Black is more than timely. Enjoy! We’re delighted to list below the next McFestival Dozen, the 12 stories entered in our Being Scots McCompetition that will be featured at the Edinburgh eBook Festival in August and will be included in the subsequent McStorytellers anthology.
Home-Koming Night by Allan Watson The trout who dreamed of being a salmon by Jack MacRoary Born and Bred by Alasdair McPherson Greek As A Foreign Language by Andrew McCallum Crawford Scots Away by Angus Shoor Caan The Voracious Reader by Pat Black Snippits in Scots by Andrew Velzian Bring Your Befuddled Zxeardks by Garry Stanton Don Masson's Big Toe by Fiona Johnson The Unofficial Burryman by Brendan Gisby Mr Black by John McGroarty Jings, crivens, help ma Boab, it's independence! by Cally Phillips We invited all our McStorytellers to submit entries on the subject of Being Scots. While the approaches to this subject varied wildly, inevitably a couple of themes emerged from the submissions. Many entrants sought “to see oursels as ithers see us”, the “ithers” being defined as those who live in England (of course), the rest of the world and even another planet! Many also were at pains to highlight Scotland’s failings: our penchant for unhealthy foods, our lack of prowess on the international football stage, the religious bigotry that divides great swathes of our nation – to name but a few. But virtually all imbued their piece with humour – that wry, dry Scots sense of humour that helps to define us, that sets us apart from our neighbours near and far. To sum up, therefore. According to the submissions, the Scots are full of faults, which we’re happy to acknowledge, even to laugh at. And we don’t really care what others think. Like William Wallace and his army at the Battle of Stirling Bridge, we bare our arses to our adversaries. Or was that only in the movie? Either way, that image has provided a cracking idea for our next anthology’s book cover, which we’ve previewed above. Remember these dates. The Edinburgh eBook Festival will run from 12th August through to 25th August. Every morning from 11:00 am, McStorytellers will host the Festival’s Short Story slot, when we’ll be saying a bit more about the McCompetition, showcasing the selected stories and announcing the availability of the Being Scots anthology. Remember also that there will be much, much more going on every day at the Festival. So please don’t just tune in for the Short Story slot. Watch this space for further Festival announcements. Mind our Being Scots McCompetition (which you can read all about here: Scots Wha Hae)? Mind we said the closing date for submissions was the end of June? Aye, well, that means you now have only this month to get your submission to us. Here, by way of encouragement, are the cracking submissions we’ve received so far (in the order we received them): Home-Koming Night by Allan Watson When Frankie Loved Jeanie by John McGroarty The trout who dreamed of being a salmon by Jack MacRoary Born and Bred by Alasdair McPherson Greek As A Foreign Language by Andrew McCallum Crawford Scots Away by Angus Shoor Caan The Voracious Reader by Pat Black Snippits in Scots by Andrew Velzian One last mind. Mind we said that the best of the submissions will feature not only at the 2nd Edinburgh eBook Festival in August, but also in the next McStorytellers anthology? Well, by way of further encouragement, we’re delighted to announce that BOTH our earlier anthologies are FREE to download this weekend. Just click on the book covers to get yourself to the Amazon Kindle pages. Had enough encouragement? Now it’s time to hone those submissions!
I must go down to the seas again, to the vagrant gypsy life,
To the gull’s way and the whale’s way where the wind’s like a whetted knife; And all I ask is a merry yarn from a laughing fellow-rover, And quiet sleep and a sweet dream when the long trick’s over. Those haunting closing lines from John Masefield’s Sea Fever are complemented perfectly by our story today. The story is called Taxi For Glennie. It has been written by Glaswegian journalist and author Pat Black. And it will stay with you as well. Thank you, Pat. Here’s yet another cracking entry in our Being Scots McCompetition.
The Voracious Reader comes from the unerring pen of Glaswegian writer and bletherer Pat Black. It’s a gritty, wry and poignant tale of prison life. Quintessential Scots. Quintessential Black. Most definitely one to savour! So you want to write short stories? Well, here’s a masterclass you might learn from. Three writers skilled in the genre show how it’s done.
If it’s a model of flash fiction you’re looking for, go no further than The Pit, a wee slice of the supernatural from the Flashmaster himself, Aberdeen-based Bill Robertson. And there’s not a spare word in sight! Then there’s the ability to write concisely, dispensing with the frivolities, reaching the heart of the matter. That’s exactly what Grangemouth-born Andrew McCallum Crawford does in I’m Not Their Dad, in which a fraught relationship is laid bare in as few words as possible. But your writing also need to be versatile, just like that of Glaswegian Pat Black, who can turn his pen from comedy to sci-fi to high drama in the blink of an eye. And here he is having a bash at Tartan Noir in Settling Accounts, a gripping, McChandler-esque tale set in his home city. Enjoy – and learn! |
McBlog AuthorBrendan Gisby is McStoryteller-in-Residence. He's the author of four novels, three biographies and several short story collections. The McStorytellers
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