Sarah Van Bonn was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her lyric essay ‘On Bears: A Constellation’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. Fact. Bears can swim. Indeed, bears are excellent swimmers. Legend. The Ojibwa … Read more
Nicholas Ruddock was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with his entry ‘Ventimiglia’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. The two strongmen set out twenty minutes before dawn, stepping down from their caravan, weaving between … Read more
Eliza Robertson was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘Délphine’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. After you admitted your fear of ketchup, the perverse side of me went to Dépanneur Ultra … Read more
Avrina Prabala-Joslin was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘The Plumage’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. Janvi and I sit in my tree house watching Husu aunty and Leela ma … Read more
Hannah Harper was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘One In Eight’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. “That’s a wrap,” she said. “Now I do you.” She stretched out her … Read more
Threshold by Angela Hughes Angela Hughes was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘Threshold’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. Exact time eludes me. Darkness has an early morning shallowness; … Read more
Apricot Stones by Chloe Gocool Chloe Gocool was shortlisted for the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘Apricot Stones’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. *WARNING: The full story contains references to mental … Read more
Circus Freak by Anbara Salam Anbara Salam was selected as one of the two runners-up of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘Circus Freak’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. I was abducted … Read more
Victoria Manifold was selected as one of the two runners-up of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize with her entry ‘Camel’, excerpted here in the run-up to the launch of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize Anthology, The Circus, forthcoming from The Reader Berlin in partnership with KLAK Verlag in 2020. Camel by Victoria … Read more
S.K Perry was selected as the winner of the 2019 Berlin Writing Prize for her entry A Wide Neon Yell. Excerpted here, the short story explores the themes of sisterhood against the backdrop of a circus family tradition known as the hair hang. As the winner of the first prize, the author will be … Read more
The city was outside the car window when I woke up, all lit up with traffic lights and street lights and kebab shops. The sky was purplish stripes. I’d fallen asleep on the long drive back from the seaside. There weren’t as many traffic jams as usual, so it must have been pretty late. The … Read more
