Guy Arnold, London Independent Story Prize 3rd Round 2024 Flash Fiction Finalist, 'Alpha'

London Independent Story Prize 3rd Round 2024 Flash Fiction Finalist, 'Alpha', Guy Arnold

Can you please tell us about you and your daily life?

I live on the South coast in the town of St Leonards on Sea, in a three-story town house. I share my life with my son James and my cat, Jade, who presides over our home like a sultan. My partner Kim lives close by with her son and together we explore the wild stretch of coast to the East of Hastings. I work full time running a refugee service in Central London and my days are packed. Somehow I find time to write short stories, poetry and flash fiction.

How often do you write? Do you have a writing routine? And what inspires you to write?

I am inspired by forgotten worlds and lost causes, flawed character with strong hearts and places where hope is found amid the skeins of life. I write most days if can. I rise early, and I often write about the dawn of each day, the moods, the sounds, and the sudden wash of colour. Even the silences have some kind of internal vibration. I write about these sensations until I have filled two sides of my journal with small handwriting. I usually have a favourite pen which is currently a Pilot V5, and I prefer small hardback journals with soft paper.

When a story begins to “live off the page” I grab time when I can, working through the morning before I begin work and on trains, which are especially productive for me.

To learn more about my chosen craft I attend courses (City Lit are good) or study aspect of plot or editing using online resources. Sometimes I study novels I love, to understand how the writer uses words to draw the reader seamlessly into the life of the story and the truth of the characters.

How does it feel to get your work recognised?

Recognition for me feels like walking on air. Even seeing my name on a shortlist makes the heart beat faster. There is something very special about creating original stories and poetry which are compelling enough for others to read, but it’s a lonely twisting road. Being recognised by LISP will help me reach new audiences and help me through the moments of self-doubt, when I question my ability.

What is the best thing about writing a story? And the most challenging?

The best moments for me are when small deft touches can replace a descriptive passage and still infer a character’s truth to the reader. I have just finished a short story called “The Pirate.” It started life under a different title but when I gave the central character hooded eyes and a splash of dark hair I realised I had based the character on my late Father. The scenes then became lucid, like a cine reel, and the story seemed to write itself.

One of the challenges I find in writing short stories is holding to the arc of the story and not introducing unnecessary characters or events. I also have a tendency to try and wring to much out of a sentence or seek out unusual words that can bamboozle the reader. This is a tendency I am learning to rein in.

How did I develop the idea for “Alpha”

When I first moved to St Leonard I commuted to London and would stop and buy a sausage roll for breakfast from a café near the station. It was a family set up and behind the counter was an old mirror with the words “beware of the wife” printed in fairground writing. The café seemed impervious to modern trends and I loved it for that, even though the sausage rolls were on the flaccid side.

The café closed but for me the story did not end, and I became a lonely watcher, often stopping to note latest attrition though the grimy glass doors.. At first the interior seemed frozen in the moment of closure but then it began to internally decompose in a fascinating way, while new forms of life grew.

I have always written creatively but Alpha seemed to echo a particular interiority of my own and became part of a more recent journey for me as a writer. I have written several pieces about these associations, but the consciousness of Alpha really came together as a piece of flash fiction.

Can you please give few tips about writing?

Keep a journal and use it often. Keep it by your bed and carry it around. In the chance hearings, on public transport, shops and cafes are the rhythms pf speech people use. These are useful resources for a writer, so catch them. Remember too that all creative writing involves interiority. Trust to that and know that memories and experiences float up from the unconscious like bubbles surfacing. For this reason, I think it’s wise to rise early and catch the tail of your dreams.

What are the best things and the most challenging things about competitions

Awards and competitions are a good way to channel a writers effort towards a single goal and to start shaping looser narratives around a theme. It’s helpful to think about the award body or publication in cultural terms when considering a submission, in terms of “fit”.

One challenging aspect is the degree to which a writers natural voice and pace can be shoehorned into a word limit. There is a skill I think in working to that paucity while retaining essence. I am still learning this one; well, I am always learning.

Do you recommend that writers submit to LISP

I do, yes, and I look forward to being part of the LISP movement of writers.