With the #MeToo movement bringing sexual violence to the forefront of public discussion, isn’t it time we consider the impact of the movement on literature?
Historical Fiction: A Responsibility To Educate?

Historical fiction provides an enjoyable means of learning about the past, making history accessible for those who haven’t, or don’t want to, read a scholarly dissection of the French Revolution or the Tudor Court. Learning about history through fiction provides a fun and engaging alternative, but what are the perils and pitfalls for both authors and consumers?
The not so rewarding history of the Man Booker Prize

By Rohail Karim The Man Booker prize, one of the highest recognized awards for literature, at least that’s what they want you to believe. Whilst the award does help the winning […]
Do we really need a sequel to ‘The Handmaid’s Tale’?

Margaret Atwood recently announced a sequel to The Handmaid’s Tale, inspired, she says, by “everything you’ve ever asked me about Gilead and its inner workings”. The Testaments, to be narrated by three […]
A Christmas Carol: The Ghosts of Christmas Past

by Emily McKinney Think you’ve never met a ghost? Think again. As foretold by Dickens, the ‘Ghosts of Christmas’ haunt us each year. The Christmas song comes out of hiding in November […]
The Problem with Women And Other Stories

How pushing the pink envelope is a backward step towards equality Did you know this year was the year of publishing female writers? No, me neither. Kamila Shamsie came up with the […]
50 Years of The Man Booker Prize

by Lucy Middleton This year marks the 50th anniversary of one of the most prestigious literary accolades: The Man Booker Prize. The prize was set up in 1968 as a strategy to salvage […]
Interview: Paul Ewen (aka Francis Plug)
Interview by Finley Harnett Paul Ewen’s second novel How To Be A Public Author is a blistering satire of the literary world, published and narrated as the pseudonymous Francis Plug. The Stray’s […]
Prison Literature – Part 1: The Writer as Prisoner

Bramina Braet Prison literature is a genre characterized by works that are written while the author is incarcerated. The literature can be about prison, informed by it, or simply coincidentally written while […]
Interview: Professor John Bowen, Expert Dickens Advisor

A Christmas Carol, one of Charles Dickens’ most famous works, is about to be reimagined on stage by the Royal Shakespeare Company this winter. I spoke with its expert advisor, Professor John […]