Stories
2022 is Scotland’s Year of Stories, and amongst the activities undertaken to celebrate the year, Serco NorthLink Ferries opened a Short Story Competition. The event was a success, with over 50 entrants submitting a story, of up to 2,000 words, set in either Shetland or Orkney, for consideration.
Stuart Garrett, Managing Director of Serco NorthLink Ferries, said: “It’s wonderful to see so many people write their own stories, inspired by the unique landscapes and cultures of Shetland and Orkney.”
Ann Cleeves OBE, the award-winning mystery crime author, very kindly judged the adult entries.
In total there were four winners, with the adult entrants competing for a chance to win a trip with NorthLink Ferries, and the children’s winners receiving book tokens. These were for the
- Best short story set in Orkney by an adult – Sands of Rothiesholm by David Freer.
- Best short story set in Shetland by an adult – Lowrie’s tale by Leona Mullay.
- Best short story set in Orkney by a child – Exploring with the Elephants by Catriona Stevenson.
- Best short story set in Shetland by a child – Charlotte Ocean by Amber Patterson.
The winning stories are available to read below and many of the other submissions were collated in a downloadable document for readers to enjoy. Entitled ‘Onward, Voyager – A collection of short stories’ it can be downloaded in PDF format (4.64 MB).
Features work from:
Vivian Ainsworth, Jenny Beal, Hannah Boden, Siân Bryant, Louise Casson, Heather Christie, Lydia Coventry, Judith Crow, Virginia Crow, Steve Ewens, Vincent Fox, Lucy Fraser-Gunn, David Freer, Sue Gerrard, Hazel Grant, Jackie Green, Mirran Hall, Rebecca Hay, Gerald Hodgson, Ceri John, Lauren McAvoy, Marie McColm, Emma McGuire, Leona Mullay, Iain Murray, Hannah Nicholson, Sam Oakley, Moa Patience, Amber Patterson, Nina Patterson, Joan Pratt, Emma Reed, James Scargill, Aiden Schinkel, Geoffrey Shand, Catriona Stevenson, Annabel Strange, Craig Taylor, Elizabeth Volz-Goller, Emma Webb, Moira Weir, Adrian Williams and Isabel Wilson
