Pleased to be able to post that my Flash fiction (100 word) story called ‘Night Vision’ will be published in Adverbially Challenged Volume 5. It is story number 491 and once a further 9 stories have been accepted for publication, the book will be published. All profits go to FIRST STORY (Changing Lives through writing).
FIRST STORY supports and inspires creativity, literacy and confidence in UK Secondary schools where over 50% of pupils are considered deprived. The Charity helps young people nurture and develop their creative writing skills.
About Adverbially Challenged Volume 5
Adverbially Challenged Volume 5 contains 100 adverbially-saturated stories submitted to Mike’s Not-Entirely-Serious Wantonly-Rule-Breaking Adverb Writing Challenge.
The challenge was conceived by Mike Scott Thomson, a totally legendary lord of grammar and writing law who lives in the metropolis of London. Due to his stature and expertise in the realm of writing, he is allowed to break writing rules and provide this platform for other rebellious souls to join him.
A pic of the readers who attended the book launch party for the previous adverb anthology at LeftBank in Bristol, UK (Mike and I are in there somewhere)
You will find a full history of the adverb writing challenge in the introduction of the book. It has become ever increasingly epic over the years, as the chronicle of ill-advised word usage ages like a fine wine.
Mike and I would like to say a huge thank you to Angela Googh for her help preparing the interior of this book. Ange, you’re a legend 🙂
At the time of its publication, Adverbially Challenged Volume 5 was the thirteenth writing challenge anthology released.
The Writers In The Anthology
All the writers in Adverbially Challenged Volume 5 submitted their stories to Mike’s Adverb Challenge, which is one of the many writing challenges run on my website.
The 100 authors of the 100 stories featured in the anthology are:
A S Winter, Abbie Melvin, Aisha Ali, Alan Barker, Alan Pattison, Alexandra Klyueva, Alexandra Pedro, Alice Lam, Allen Ashley, Alyn Hine, Amanda Jane Davies, Angela Dawson, Angela Googh, AnnaLise Sandrich, Ashutosh Pant, Barbara Hill, Beth Richards, Betty Hattersley, Bridget Yates, Caio César Varalta, Carla Vlad, Carmina McConnell, Cathy Cade, Charlotte Louise, Chioma Abiaka, Chris Espenshade, Christopher Fielden, Claire Apps, Clare Woodford, Dan Bryan, Danielle Cahill, David McTigue, David Silver, Denis Joseph, Donato Ruggiero, DT Langdale, Eileen Baldwin, Gavin Biddlecombe, Glo Curl, Helen Trowsdale, J. Commander, J. Wolfgang, James Louis Peel, Janie Knight, Jasmine Lee, Jayne Morgan, Jessica Bowden, Jo Caddy, Joe Brothers, Johanna McDonald, John James Lane, John Notley, Josh Granville, K. J. Watson, Kaitlin Ellis, Kamal Patel, Kell Renegar, Kenneth Muir, Kevin Kiernan, Khamis Kabeu, L.S. Ashby, Lesley Anne Truchet, Lucy Morrice, Maggie Elliott, Majella Pinto, Mark Stocker, Mason Canny, Matilda Pinto, Matthew Bines, MF Mika, Michael Rumsey, Mike Scott Thomson, N.B. Craven, Naymal Siddiqui, Neil Davie, Nichole Villeneuve, Pamela Simon, Patrick Christian, Paul Mastaglio, Peggy Gerber, Pete Armstrong, Pete Lambden, Peter Kay, Phil Maud, Phillip Godfrey, Pierre-Alexandre Sicart, Rachael Hillier, Rachel Hathcock, Raymond E. Strawn III, Rene Astle, Rob Traill, Sarah Brentyn, Sarthak Das, Sean Bain, Steven Barrett, Susi J Smith, Temitope Johnson-Toyin, Tiffany H White, Tom Southern and Victoria Mason.
What an awesome pen (I feel this is the most appropriate collective noun) of writers. Legends, each and every one of them.
How Book Sales Support Charity
For every book sold, £1 will be donated to First Story.
You can learn about First Story on the about page of their website.
You can find details of how much money has been raised via all of the writing challenges on the main writing challenges page.
Future Anthologies
If you’d like to submit a story to the adverb writing challenge, you can do so here. Every story is published. Our next anthology, Volume 6, will contain 500 stories.
Book Launch Party
Adverbially Challenged Volume 5 was published during the COVID-19 pandemic. Due to this, we were not able to undertake a launch party for this book.
ACv5 World Tour
Early in October 2021, a parcel landed on my doormat. In it was a book. A copy of Adverbially Challenged Volume 5 that had journeyed around the world from Taiwan to the USA to the UK. While on its travels, the book had accumulated messages from writers featured in the book – Kamal Patel (story 482), Pamela Simon (story 481), Pierre-Alexandre Sicart (story 480) and Rachel Hathcock (story 494).
Here are their messages.
Book message from Pierre-Alexandre
Book messages from Pam and Kamal
Book message from Rachel
I’d like to say a huge thank you to Kamal, Pam, Pierre-Alexandre and Rachel for this thoughtful and wonderful gesture. It makes all the hard work that is put into running the challenges seem worthwhile 🙂
And finally, a photo of the adverb enriched packaging, featuring a very accurate likeness of me in a DC shirt. It made me smile.
Anthology Cover
The book’s cover was designed by David Fielden. The ‘movement’ on the front, which is actually taken from a photo of stars, has been used to reflect the ‘movement’ adverbs can bring to a story. Clever, huh?
Dave and Chris, doing a poor impersonation of Brian May and Roger Taylor
Dave likes Queen and has an unhealthy infatuation with Brian May. He likes to dress up like him and go shopping, hoping people will mistake him for the badger-loving guitarist. So far, this dream hasn’t become a reality. No one can understand why. Bristol University are currently wasting a lot of money on an investigation to discover the answer.
Having little faith in science, Chris will often dress up like Roger Taylor in the hope that it will help Dave to snap out of his psychosis and behave like a normal human being. This counterintuitive approach has failed to work. Again, no one can understand why, least of all Chris.
Dave writes all his own biographies. No one can understand why he doesn’t paint himself in a more positive light, or use first person narrative. Cardiff University are studying that conundrum. Dave is looking forward to reviewing the results.
You can learn more about what Dave does all day long on his website.
Adverbially Challenged Volume 5, Entire Book Cover by David Fielden