Comma Press Short Story Course with Karline Smith at Hope Mill

Sarah-Clare Conlon, Literature Editor
Writer Karline Smith.

Manchester Short Story Course with Karline Smith at Hope Mill & AWOL Studios, Manchester 15 December 2021 — 11 May 2022 Tickets from £100.00 — Book now

Organised by Ancoats-based Comma Press, one of the UK’s leading publishers of short fiction, this course of six workshops, led by Manchester author Karline Smith, will help you get a handle on short story writing.

You’ll develop three short stories to completion under the watchful eye of “hard-boiled female urban noir writer” Karline Smith.

You’ll look at the predominant narrative structures used by short story writers and receive tailored advice on how to shape a story, and how to improve the characterisation, dialogue and narrative voice in your own work. Completing set writing tasks between workshops, and receiving structured, peer-driven feedback, you’ll develop three short stories to completion under the watchful eye of “hard-boiled female urban noir writer” Karline Smith – for the purpose of this course you will be looking at stories of up to 5,000 words.

While the course isn’t geared towards any particular sub-genre within the short story form – be it literary fiction, sci-fi or horror – you’ll be looking at techniques applicable to all these genres. The workshops are held monthly at Hope Mill, on a Wednesday evening (6-8pm), to enable you to complete writing (and background reading!) assignments. The dates are: 15 December, 12 January, 16 February, 16 March, 13 April and 11 May.

Born to Jamaican parents who arrived in Britain in the 1960s, Karline Smith was one of the first black female crime writers to deal with the subject of drug gangs in inner-city Britain. She is the author of three novels, Moss Side Massive, which was dramatised by Liverpool’s Unity Theatre, Full Crew, and Goosebumps and Butterflies are Fairy Tales (published by Black Sapphire Press). She is also the author of several short stories, variously published in The City Life Book of Manchester Short Stories (Penguin), M.O.: Crimes of Practice, and Resist (Comma). She is currently working on her fourth novel.

Manchester Short Story Course with Karline Smith at Hope Mill & AWOL Studios, Manchester 15 December 2021 — 11 May 2022 Tickets from £100.00 Book now

Where to go near Comma Press Short Story Course with Karline Smith at Hope Mill

Parade ensemble
Manchester
Theatre
Hope Mill Theatre

Sitting in a Grade II-listed former Mill on Pollard Street, Hope Mill brings exciting fringe theatre productions to Manchester’s thriving live theatre scene.

Manchester
Bar or Pub
Le Social Wine Bar

Le Social is a stylish wine bar and tasting room, focusing on exhibitions by local artists as well as natural wines, deli boards and continental plates.

Flawd
Manchester
Bar or Pub
Flawd

Flawd is a neighbourhood wine bar based in Ancoats, from the team behind the wonderful Higher Ground dining experience.

Pollen Bakery
Manchester
Restaurant
Pollen Bakery

Popular bakery in the Ancoats and New Islington area, specialising in sourdough bread and viennoiserie baked goods.

Cask Ancoats
Manchester
Cask Ancoats

Cask in Ancoats opened in November 2018, it is the flashy sister bar to Cask on Liverpool Road.

Stacks of croissants
Ancoats
Café or Coffee Shop
Café Cotton

This café in Ancoats is locally famed for its lunchtime deals and sandwiches

Ancoats
Café or Coffee Shop
Companio Bakery

Started by artisan baker Russell Goodwin, Companio Bakery sells freshly-baked bread from a small unit in Manchester’s Ancoats.

Track Brewing Co Taproom
Manchester
Bar or Pub
Maray x Track

Ahead of its upcoming Manchester launch, acclaimed Liverpool restaurant Maray has teamed up with Track Brewing Co Taproom.

Alcohol Delivery in Manchester
Manchester
Bar or Pub
Cloudwater Brew Co

Cloudwater is a world-renowned brewery in Manchester. Set up in 2014 by Paul Jones and James Campbell, they’re a shining example of the best of modern British beer-makers.

Castlefield Artisan Market in Castlefield Manchester
Ancoats
Shopping Centre
Castlefield Artisan Market

While it’s not quite as up there as Alty Market – though it shares a similar vibe – it’s still worth a visit to this monthly market. It’s held, confusingly, in the Royal Mills in Ancoats (not Castlefield) and serves up an eclectic range of stalls and stallholders: everything from local craft and pottery to […]

Manchester
Restaurant
Erst

An offshoot of the popular Trove bakery in Ancoats, this new restaurant specialises in perfectly-formed and eye-catching small plates with a focus on environmentally-friendly practices.

What's on: Literature

Writer Nicholas Royle. Photo by Zoe McLean
LiteratureManchester
Ghosts at the Old Library

Levenshulme Old Library has commissioned brand-new festive ghost stories from six writers for three special atmospheric lantern-lit reading events after hours in the Carnegie building.

from £10
LiteratureWest Yorkshire
Poetry at the Dusty Miller

Poetry at the Dusty Miller is a brand-new night with invited readers, organised by Carcanet-published Carola Luther and Judith Willson in the Coiners’ Room in the Mytholmroyd pub.

free entry

Culture Guides

Music in Manchester and the North

Spotlighting global artists who all, in one way or another, break the mould, we preview the best gigs happening this side of Christmas and beyond.