by Rebekah Lattin-Rawstrone
City Writes is the showcase event for the fabulous writing coming from City’s Creative Writing Short Courses and this term’s event will feature two published alumni from the same Novel Studio cohort: Attiya Khan and Simon Culleton. Both writers had their debuts published in 2021 with exciting independent publishers and have fascinating publishing journeys and heart-felt writing to share. The City Writes termly competition is now open for you to join these published authors at the Zoom event on the 7th July.
Attiya’s debut novel Ten Steps To Us
Attiya Khan’s debut, Ten Steps to Us, is a Young Adult Romance that readers have described as ‘captivating’, ‘the perfect teen romance that covers religion, romance and diversity’. The book outlines the ten steps devout, hijab wearing, Aisha, tries to take towards a romance with non-Muslim, Darren. Will she be able to keep her faith, her identity and get the boy of her dreams? Published by Hashtag Blak, you’ll have to read it to see.
Author Attiya Khan
Attiya and her three sisters grew up in a loving Indian Muslim family. Channelling her inner Jo March, she started writing diaries and short stories as a teenager and continued as a medical student at Barts, junior doctor, and now as a busy East London GP. An alumnus of the prestigious City University Novel Studio, Attiya started writing her first novel in reaction to what she saw around her: ‘I’m fascinated by how cultures and lives intermix and intertwine, and I get inspiration from the people I meet and the stories they tell’. Attiya lives with her husband, and their three children.
Simon Culleton’s debut, Shadows of Fathers, published by Stairwell Books, follows one father’s fight to stay close to his children in a journey that crosses geographical, cultural and emotional borders. The author, Heidi James, described it as ‘a delight – told with warmth and humour, and just a hint of steel’.
Simon was born and bred in Essex England, where he lives with his two children. His love for writing began when he wrote a short story at age 17, while sat in a derelict car, which went on to be broadcast on BBC Radio 4.
Author Simon Culleton
He loves to travel and has worked his way around the world, undertaking jobs from snow clearing in Sweden, to construction work in California, to working as a farm-hand on an Australian sheep station. Simon has a passion for chronicling everyday people, including interviewing war veterans in his earlier travels, which extends even to himself: he has maintained a personal daily diary for over 40 years.
For your chance to join Attiya and Simon on the virtual stage, you need only submit your best 1,000 words of fiction or creative non-fiction to Rebekah.Lattin-Rawstrone.2@city.ac.uk along with details of your City Short Course. Though we’re happy to read Middle Grade and YA, we don’t accept children’s picture books, poetry or drama, but… anything else goes! Click here for full submission guidelines.
The deadline for submissions is midnight 10th June 2022.
You can register for the Zoom event on Thursday 7th July at 7pm now.
We can’t wait to check out your entries and see you at the event when these two fantastic writers will be joined by the brilliant competition winners whose work is already making its journey through the web as you read this post.
Get writing, get submitting, and good luck!
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