Insertponceyfrenchnamehere's blog

Firstly this week, I'd like to say a big thank you to everyone who's donated to our JustGiving account.

I'm delighted to annouce to Josiah and Archibald's many fans on ABCTales that you can now pre-order Book 4 in Phil Whiteland's Bring Out Your Dead series All Josiah and Archibald had to do was collect the late Sir Lewisham Carnock from his resting place in Alicante and escort him back to the U.K. Nothing could be simpler, could it? Well, yes, with Josiah and Archibald it could, particularly when an unfortunate turn of phrase leaves them marooned...

Story and Poem of the Week, and Inspiration Point 22 March 2024 Posted by Ewan Some very good writing indeed this week. Give yourselves a pat on the back for making this job as difficult as ever. Story of the Week I very much liked Starfish Girl’s The Spa . Equally good were Parts 1 & 2 of Blighter’s Rock’s The Plan. But in the end Celticman was in competition with himself – and not for the first time – with The Little Lady and the eventual...

Posted by airyfairy. Thank you to all our writers, as ever, for the marvellous work on the site this week. Our Story of the Week is a thank you to someone who has been at the very heart of ABC Tales. Jean D has been generous enough to share her journey through cancer with us, with her customary wit, warmth and talent. All of these things are in evidence in what, sadly, she has told us will be her final posting here. We shall miss you, Jean. The...

I'm very happy to announce that I'm a Woman by Mary-Ann Storm who writes on ABCTales as Mary-Ann is available now on Amazon Very apt for International Women's Day! Link to buy (Amazon): https://tinyurl.com/2d5pvd7y

Our Story and Poem of the Month for February, very kindly chosen by marandina: I’m not sure where the last year went but here I am with the monthly picks for the third February in a row. I figure that if I do this for long enough, eventually I will know what I’m doing… It feels like the world is even crazier since this time in 2023 with the conflict in Ukraine grinding ever on, a new, horrific warzone in Gaza, the cost of living crisis still...

Before I announce our Story and Poem of the Week, I'd like to remind you that AI assisted writing is not permitted on our site. While we obviously don't have a hard and fast method of weeding out writing that doesn't comply with our restrictions, our very clever and wonderful editors are pretty good at spotting something that doesn't seem quite right and these pieces of writing will not be considered for cherries or any other awards. While on...

Not an easy task ever and this week is no exception. Poem of the Week RhiannonW’s Titterstone Clee (533m)16/02/24 was very fine, as was seashore’s deeply moving Killing the Killers . However, from a personal point of view, I always like to see writers stretch themselves, go places that don’t normally go with their work, do something different. With that in mind,this weeks Poem of the Week is Jack O’Donnell’s sweetly charming Tilly cut loose from...

I'm very pleased to announce the publication of our very own celticman's new novel Beastie A gritty and hard hitting novel set in 1970's Scotland. Decimalization, dole queues and The Troubles in Northern Ireland brought home to a Clydebank tenement. Teenage swaggerer: Chaz Sweeney seizes the chance to get out and make a name for himself as a big man. Angela, aged four: Her mum can’t protect her. Her only friends Pizza Face (Chaz’s brother) and...