FOLKESTONE STORYMAP WOULD LIKE YOUR SHORT STORY!

We’re asking for submissions of short stories from 500 to 2,000 words which will be recorded by actors and then downloaded as audible stories via QR codes in the town’s award-winning Lower Coastal Park. The seven chosen stories will also be uploaded to the Folkestone StoryMap website signposting listeners to other stories and writers.

The StoryMap will start at HG Wells former home in Sandgate, so we’d love to receive entries giving a nod to the great author, or those that are inspired by any of his weird and wonderful stories.

Key areas where the stories will be located will be the ‘Once upon a time chair’ located near to the entrance to the car park; the air raid shelter which is also near to the treasure chest; the area near to the Three Billy Goats at the Troll Bridge; the amphitheatre below the Zig-Zag path and at the Leas Cliff Lift entrance.

Before Covid-19 lockdown, we held workshops in schools and at Folkestone Museum using its collections as inspiration. We’d love to see entries inspired by the town’s rich history. The collections are available online at https://folkestonemuseum.co.uk/collections/

If you want to find out more, we’re holding a Zoom online workshop at midday this Saturday (May 2) so go to https://forms.gle/k6yNmCtV5RWZw9y8A sign up. If you can’t make the workshop, we’ll be holding another one towards the end of the May or early June. For more general information you can visit our website at http://www.handofdoom.online where you can find terms and conditions.

The project is being run by Folkestone’s Hand of Doom Productions, a community interest company, and funded by Folkestone Town Council, Folkestone and Hythe District Council and Kent County Council.

We came up with the idea after writing five short stories for the Kent Wildlife Trust’s story trail at Cromers Woods and many walks with our kids in the coastal park over the years. The project also has a more serious aim other than entertaining walkers and families. We’re hoping to engage children with writing, reading and listening to stories and re-engage adults because stories have the power to lift our spirits and increase skills like empathy and communication. We hope Folkestone StoryMap will be an ongoing project, spreading across the town and further down the coast.

So get writing and good luck!

Originally published at https://karensworld-writer.co.uk on May 8, 2020.