Blogs

Wow ! Having struggled with this for years, I'm bowled over by the number, and diversity, of the entries. 19 in all. We've had entries including army buddies and ABC itself, Buddhists, babies and ballet, cooking, DNA, Eastenders, fish, fabric and financial advice, the Olympics, sailing, sci-fi and sheep, and two lots of zebras. Almost an alphabet of subjects in itself Oh and one backwards .. It's difficult to pick a favourite, they were all so...

Unexpected death Sometimes, disappointment feels like embracing the unavoidable death you anticipated would come crashing through the roof of your room, only to find it had slipped in through the door. W.H. Auden (1907-73) Epitaph On A Tyrant Perfection of a kind, was what he was after, And the poetry he invented was easy to understand; He knew human folly like the back of his hand, And he was greatly interested in armies and fleets; When he...

You know this story which is part of the attraction. You get hurt and you get hard. Poet, Seamus Heaney pairs the theme. Pains become armour walking hand in hand with history. Rocky chases chickens and punches cold slabs of meat in a freezer while chasing his dream of becoming heavyweight boxing champion of the world. Djokovic after winning one of the most brutal Grand Slam finals in tennis history celebrates with a square of chocolate. I must...

Don't forget tomorrow is the last day for entries to the Alphabet Challenge ! So far, we have had 13 very eclectic entries showcasing the wide variety of ABCers' imagination and vocabulary. Can we squeeze any more out of those little grey cells ?

2nd call for contributors / collaborators

https://www.channel4.com/programmes/harvey https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Harvey_(1950_film) Our parents would have known who and what Harvey was. But don’t expect anybody under fifty. They might be vaguely familiar with James Stewart. He was the Tom Hanks of yesteryear and resident good guy. Frank Capra’s It’s a Wonderful Life (1944) is a regular at Christmas. James Stewart is such a perfect match to the ever-so amiable Elwood P. Dowd it’s...

Firstly a very big thank you to Gloskat for her brilliant alphabet challenge idea which has been a resounding success and has only five more days to run. You can find it here until the 18th: https://www.abctales.com/blog/gloskat/alphabet-you-can%E2%80%99t It's been a very strong week for prose this time around. I've really enjoyed w.w.j.abercrombie's Michael, celticman's Awaiting and SoulFire77's three parter The Lady in Sycamore Lane: https://...

Picture this: You're 80 years old. Most people are kicking back with grandchildren, maybe tending a garden or binge-watching shows. Not Ramsey Campbell. This Liverpool legend is still out here crafting nightmares that slither into your brain and permanently set up shop. Fresh off turning 80 on January 4th 2026, he's proving age is just a number when it comes to writing psychological horror. His most recent novel, An Echo of Children is a slow-...

Her: Thank you soooo much for giving me a ride home. My car was supposed (finger italics) to be fixed today but a part they had to order hasn’t come in yet so hopefully tomorrow. It’s been in the shop like literally forever and it’s getting so expensive to Uber every day. When they told me they had to order a part I was like seriously? You’re a car repair shop. Why don’t you have the parts you need already (eye roll)? Anyway you’ve saved me like...

The Big Issue is a fiver (£5) now. I can remember the shock and disbelieve it was £2. Then £2.50…and so on. My sister gave me this copy. She bought it from an Eastern European women from outside Asda. Like most folk that catch her eye and don’t look away, I usually just slip her £2 and say I don’t want the magazine. Win-win. But not for the magazine. There’s a guy on the bridge at the shopping centre. He’s there every day and plays some musical...