Adam Marek

Short story writer

KJ Orr interview – Light Box

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KJ Orr's debut short story collection - Light Box - has recently come out, and it's brilliant, so I wanted to ask her about it. Here's the interview. AM: Why did you call the collection Light Box? KJO: It made sense for a number of reasons, and my hope is that there is pleasure in coming across some of those while reading, so I won’t point … [Read more...]

Interview with The Short Story

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I just did an interview with The Short Story website about inspiration, influences, teaching creative writing, the writing life, and the moment I knew I wanted to be a writer: http://www.theshortstory.co.uk/the-short-story-interview-adam-marek/   … [Read more...]

My favourite books of 2015

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These are my nine favourite books of 2015. They weren't all published this year, in fact only three of them were, but they're the books I most enjoyed reading. 1. Everything is Teeth, by Evie Wyld and Joe Sumner Evie Wyld's graphic novel is filled with shark-infested memories of a childhood in Australia and her fascination with the … [Read more...]

My night in a sleep lab

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Earlier this year, I got to spend a night in a sleep lab at Manchester University for a new story commission. It was for Spindles: Stories from the Science of Sleep - the latest in Comma Press's series of science-inspired fiction. When I first found out I'd get to have electrodes glued to my head and be part of an experiment, I was so excited, but … [Read more...]

The Penguin Book of the British Short Story

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I'm so thrilled that my story The 40-Litre Monkey has been included in The Penguin Book of the British Short Story. Editor Philip Hensher read over 6,000 short stories, going all the way back to Daniel Defoe, to make his selection for this incredibly handsome two-volume collection of British short stories. I can't quite believe that my story is … [Read more...]

Tessa Farmer – In Fairy Land exhibition

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Tessa Farmer's In Fairy Land exhibition at the Viktor Wynd Museum of Curiosities deeply satisfies the part of me that has always wanted to see a Bacchanalian fairy feast on the back of a giant spider crab. When you first walk into the exhibition, it's kind of hard to spot. It's hidden amongst the hundreds of oddities (from a stuffed mermaid to … [Read more...]

The Beijing Bookworm Festival in bullet points

Adam Marek 8 Comments

I just got back from the most amazing trip to the Beijing Bookworm Festival. Thanks so much to the Bookworm and to the British Council for taking me over there, along with awesome short story writers Zoe Gilbert and Rachel Tresize. What a treat. Here's my report of the week's highlights, in bullet points. Meet Zoe and Rachel at Heathrow. Mutual … [Read more...]