GALLEY BEGGAR PRESS SHORT STORY PRIZE 2024/25
Ten questions with GBP Short Story Prize author Liz Churchill
(1) HI THERE LIZ. CONGRATULATIONS ON YOUR GBP SHORT STORY PRIZE LONGLISTING, WITH ‘LINHA ONE’. WHAT A STORY. CAN YOU PLEASE INTRODUCE IT TO OUR READERS, IN TWO OR THREE SENTENCES
Hello, hello! Thank you so much! Yes...
‘Linha One’ is a story about a woman (an unnamed narrator) who is on holiday alone for a week in Porto. She goes on a date, has some short interactions with strangers, and wanders around sight-seeing. She takes the Linha One tram from the river to the sea and the river again. Although she tries to distract herself, her mind keeps returning to memories of her involvement with a man back in the UK and the back and forth of their friendship/more than friendship. It’s a story, ultimately, of drawing a line.
That was five sentences. Sorry!
(2) AND CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT THE INSPIRATION FOR ‘LINHA ONE’, AS WELL AS THE WRITING OF IT?
Well. I wanted to write about a relationship of sorts between two people who are seemingly close but not aligned in terms of what they both want and what they both need. What does it feel like when how you relate to someone is never consistent or clearly defined? I wanted to explore the tension and confusion and potential for hurt that comes in an unbalanced dynamic.
So, I tried to write a story about that several times but it always fell flat. I didn’t really know how to make it come alive. Then I started writing quite light-heartedly about a woman on holiday in Porto going on a date. I had no idea where I was going with that but through the process of playing around with it, I felt like I landed on a voice – which became the voice of the narrator in ‘Linha One’.
At the same time, I was thinking about dating apps and how hit-and-miss those kind of interactions are. And I started to see a parallel in terms of scenarios where one person’s attempt to connect with another person is futile. I started to think about misunderstandings, different perceptions or intentions and people not speaking the same language.
This led me back to the idea of writing about a central character being on holiday; I thought that I could combine the voice and location I’d landed on with the relationship story I’d been trying and failing to write. And then this layered structure suddenly started to emerge which seemed interesting. I started to write lots of scenes of the narrator in the present in Portugal, scenes of backstory and dating app interludes. I also decided to include the animal videos from João because I liked the idea of sending funny videos with no message — what might they have the potential to convey? I thought the constant notifications could act as a distraction to the narrator and punctuate transitions. I became very interested in the different sorts of juxtapositions and metaphors that could be created if I took some time to consider where to place them.
So then what I did was, I colour-coded all the Portugal scenes, the UK scenes, the dating app/social media messages, and the animal videos. I printed them out and lined them all up on the floor. Then it was a matter of construction. I could easily manipulate events and interludes and I gradually got rid of lots of them until I was left with what I thought was a collection of the most significant moments with which to tell the story, to put across the emotions and the bigger picture at play. Then I experimented with the order of everything until I arrived upon a structure I was happy with. I got such a sense of satisfaction at this stage because I knew then that finally it was just a case of polishing it all up.
(3) ‘LINHA ONE’ FEELS VERY MUCH LIKE A STORY ABOUT EPHEMERAL THINGS: A SHORT HOLIDAY AWAY, FLEETING HOOK-UPS, SNAPSHOTS AND SELFIES AND POSTS ON SOCIAL MEDIA – AND ALSO THAT, AGAINST THIS FRAMEWORK, ANY ATTEMPTS TOWARDS SOMETHING MORE LASTING (A MORE COMMITTED RELATIONSHIP WITH ANTHONY, SAY, OR EVEN JUST SEEING JOÃO ONE MORE TIME),ARE ALMOST INEVITABLY DOOMED. WOULD YOU SAY THIS IS TRUE?
Yes! And thank you – because I love the way you have described the story here. I really like that use of the word ephemeral… rather than superficial, say, that might suggest things that hold little significance. My hope for the story is that the effect of all the ephemeral things build up to communicate a sense of longing for that which is out of reach. The loneliness of this.
It’s also a story about being stuck in something repetitive — like the to-and-fro shuttle of the Linha One tram. The narrator accepts the back and forth of a platonic and a sexual relationship with Anthony even though it doesn’t ultimately nourish her. She goes on holiday to try and have fun on her own and to put some distance between them — but her thoughts keep moving back to him and when she returns from her holiday, she wants to return to him. She needs to find a way to break free of this pattern in order to arrive somewhere more fulfilling.
(4) HAVE YOU BEEN TO PORTO? AND DO YOU WATCH CUTE VIDEOS OF ANIMALS ON SOCIAL MEDIA?
Haha, I love that you’ve asked me this! Yes and yes!
Firstly, I’ve been to Porto — that’s why I chose it as the location for ‘Linha One’. I loved it there so much! I massively struggle to write about a place I’ve not been to. Porto was a real place for me for my having been there so hopefully it comes across as real to the reader! (If that makes sense?)
Secondly, I fear that ‘Linha One’ might be missing a reference to an animal video of an Indian ring-necked parrot saying ‘I love you, baby!’.
(5) OK! ON TO YOUR WRITING MORE GENERALLY. HOW LONG HAVE YOU BEEN WRITING? DO YOU HAVE A DAILY ROUTINE? ARE YOU WORKING ON SOMETHING AT THE MOMENT?
I’ve been writing for about five years now. It started when I joined a Creative Writing evening class in 2019. And I’ve done various short courses and seminars and workshops since then and gradually got more and more serious and more and more passionate about it.
No! I don’t have a daily routine. I don’t write every day. I write when I can and I write when I really have the urge to write. If I’m at the stage of generating a new story and I’m really excited about it, I will write often and in short, sharp bursts. I’ll be tapping ideas about it into my phone notes all the time and it will be swirling around in my head on car journeys, when I’m out walking, if I’m hoovering, in the shower, etc. And I love it when that happens.
Yes. At the moment I’m primarily working on a collection of short stories. I also write quite a lot of very short pieces/monologues that are more geared towards being read aloud and performed.
(6) WHAT’S THE BEST WRITING TIP YOU’VE EVER RECEIVED, AND WHAT’S THE WORST?
Well. Interestingly, the first short story course I ever did was a Zoom course with Comma Press during lockdown. And the tutor was fellow longlistee, C.D. Rose. And on the course, I remember he asked us to make a note of various things we observed around us one week. It didn’t need to be anything fancy, it was just an exercise of noting down things we noticed. And then we shared our observations and discussed how fiction is a combination of observation, experience and imagination. I found that very useful and I’ve never stopped doing it. I have a never-ending list of small observations and I thread them through my writing as details all the time. So I’m very grateful to Chris for this… he also provided us with a killer reading list — some of the writers on which I reference in answer to question 8!
The worst writing tip? Hmm. It’s not really a tip. But I have a bugbear with the writing exercise: think of your character’s most treasured possession… I don’t know my own most treasured possession. I don’t know my friends’ or family’s most treasured possessions. I don’t think you need to know your character’s most treasured possession to know your character. And I think I am bah humbug about most treasured possessions!
And while I think of it, I also don’t like the advice: every word in a short story needs to matter… needs to earn its place. Because…what a way to inject unnecessary stress into the process of writing a story! I think it’s better to write words that excite you, interest you, move you, amuse you and then whip them into shape, create structure for them — and make them work for you. Then, chances are they might work for someone else who reads them. They won’t work for everyone and every one of them doesn’t need to work perfectly for the story to work as a whole.
Also, ‘Kill Your Darlings’ is widely quoted but it is really useful. You write the thing with some degree of passion behind it. But then to give it form you need a healthy amount of dispassion. I know my story won’t progress and become a better story and I won’t become a better writer if I’m too precious about it all. That flexibility is important.
… And now I’m going to sit with the irony of having ended the question on Kill Your Darlings and having also given you double what you asked for. Ha.
(7) HABITS, TOO. WHAT’S A BAD WRITING HABIT YOU HAVE – AND GIVE US ONE THAT’S PROVED FAIRLY USEFUL.
Bad habit… I get a bit obsessed at the word, sentence and paragraph level from the very start of writing anything. I need to remind myself, often(!), to zoom out and to keep interrogating the story as a whole and to ask myself: Is It Working?!? Not just … is this particular sentence working?
One that’s proved fairly useful… I read everything I write out loud, lots of times (I often record myself on a Dictaphone and listen back to it). I need to hear it and test out the rhythm. It really helps me to iron out the shape of the story, hear the beats of it, make decent edits and ensure it all sounds right.
(8) CAN YOU TELL US ABOUT SOME AUTHORS YOU ADMIRE, AS WELL AS SOME THAT YOU ARE INFLUENCED BY?
Yes! There’s so, so many and I love how writers and books are in conversation with each other and one writer leads to another and to another. I love it when you read something and you think, yes, that’s it. That’s how you express that! That’s an example of that exact thing. I was thinking this a lot as I read Lucy Sweeney-Byrne’s Paris, Syndrome — that collection about women travellers really spoke to me — the depth and complexity of inner life she achieves, the way she articulates restlessness and dissatisfaction. I’m really inspired by writers who conjure specificity of character in their work — I loved Ben Lerner’s Leaving the Atocha Station for this reason; the way he can dissect and magnify the tiniest units of social interaction — it’s very funny. Likewise, Paul Dalla Rosa has a similar ability — I found his collection An Exciting and Vivid Inner Life wonderfully entertaining — such crisp and dry stories! I was really inspired when I read Muriel Spark’s The Girls of Tender Means — the rhythm and repetition, the crescendo of the structure. I admire writers who are skilful with humour like George Saunders, Kevin Barry, Thomas Morris, Anna Wood (previous winner of this prize!). I love Wendy Erskine’s writing because she just seems to understand people so well. I love Claire Louise Bennett for her wide, eccentric breadth of thoughts. Tove Janson too. I am inspired by the way the writers ZZ Packer and Colin Barrett use similes. I am forever a fan of Shirley Jackson. I love the strength and beauty of Toni Morrison’s writing and just as much, I love to hear her wisdom about many things… I like to watch old videos of her being interviewed. Last year four books that I read and particularly loved were Marie Darrieussecq’s All the Way, Miranda July’s All Fours, Lara Pawson’s Spent Light and Lauren Elkin’s Scaffolding. The year before that, I drip-fed read Kim Addonizio poems because I think she’s amazing.
So that’s just a selection. I get annoyed because I’m such a slow reader but I am a very focused reader. And I know that when I’m really focused on a book, I am feeling and absorbing so much. So I tell myself it’s the quality of the reading experience over the quantity. And like a lot of writers, my house is haemorrhaging unread books.
(9) AND WHAT ARE YOU READING AT THE MOMENT?
I’ve just started reading Anaïs Nin for the first time — Under a Glass Bell. I kept noticing her being referenced by authors I love — and then I started reading about her life — what a life! So far I’m loving the rhythm of her language. I’m also a little bit scared of this edition of the book… I took it out from The London Library and it is an Editions Poetry, London, 1947 edition with line drawings by her husband, Ian Hugo. So not the first edition she self-published but still a little bit of a relic. I’m too scared to carry it around in my bag in case it gets damaged so my current book for the train (I’m back and forth a lot between Birmingham and London) is Games and Rituals by Katherine Heiny which is warm and witty and bouncy and clever.
(10) “THE HORROR OF THE BLANK PAGE.” DO YOU FEEL THAT HORROR? AND HOW WOULD YOU ADVISE OTHER WRITERS TO GET BEYOND IT?
No I don’t feel the horror of the blank page because I always manage to type … something … but I do feel the — not horror exactly — but the stultifying feeling of bad prose — when the words I’m typing feel mundane and dull. When that starts happening, I’ll stop writing. Because I know I need to feel excitement to write. And excitement is a feeling that needs to move. So I’ll move myself. I’ll try and get some energy going in my body and that often gets some energy going in my mind again.
But sometimes I know that I just need a longer break because there’s very little point in bashing out words for the sake of bashing out words if no good words are coming. I trust that a bit of time away will ultimately lead me back. Because I always do want to come back to writing.
LIZ CHURCHILL is a writer, drama facilitator and parent-carer based in Birmingham. She writes short stories and is working on a collection. She runs a live fiction night called Mo Stories. She’s part of Writing West Midlands Room 204 cohort of writers and the London Library Emerging Writers Programme cohort of 2024-25. She completed The Stinging Fly summer school in 2022. Her work has been published online by the Mechanics’ Institute Review, STORGY, Ellipsis Zine and Scratch Books. Her work has been published in print in Floodgate Press’s Night Time Economy anthology. She has previously won the Scratch Books A4 Competition.