Stoneywords writing competition

Stony Stratford's literary festival comes to it's close this weekend, and if you've not been involved with the event over the last couple of weeks, you've got a couple more opportunities to do so before it comes to an end.

Stonywords was started in 1995 to help brighten up some of those dark wintry days. There has been a collection of literacy themed activities, including talks, quizzes, exhibitions, poetry and more, and there is still a competition to get involved with before the event comes to an end.

A running competition which has been taking place throughout the festival is the 'History mystery', a short story writing competition focusing on what may have happened to the Stony Stratford town charter.

History says that King John rode into Stony Stratford on the 19th February 1215 and at some point around that time he signed a charter giving Stony its township status. However, there appears to be no historical evidence of such a charter, so the truth is unknown... 800 years have gone by, and it is time for you to decide what really happened.

The competition gives the chance for individuals to decide what happened for themselves, and create a short story as to what may have happened to the Stony Stratford town charter. The competition is open for entries until 9th February, and there is a 2000 word limit. Email submissions to stony800celebrations@gmail.com or via a competition box in the library. There are three categories, under 12's, under 18's and over 18's. The winner will be announced on the weekend of the 21st-22nd February, at York House's Cock and Bull Beer festival.

Introducing...

Hello!

I'm the new kid on the block here at the Phonebox magazine- nice to meet you! My name is Sarah, I'm 23 and originally from Brighton.

I graduated from Southampton earlier this year with a degree in magazine journalism and am now putting my skills to good use at the Phonebox (or so I hope!) I've been working at the Phonebox magazine for a couple of months now and am now going to be writing regularly on this blog. It would be great to hear any feedback on anything I write- please don't be shy!

You can expect to see a little bit of everything, and like I said, do give your feedback and I can learn more about what you want to be reading! I'm new to the area, so will be writing about my discoveries, and letting you know how I'm adjusting to living away from the sea! So far so good, I'm loving driving through all the little villages and countryside- it's very picturesque! I've been on a mission to get to know the local pubs in Newport Pagnell, so will be keeping you updated with my findings- if you happen to have any tips of good ones I'd love to hear, equally any to avoid! I visited my first restaurant in Olney today, the courtyard for our staff Christmas lunch, very nice- now there's just a few more to visit, what a hard task!

Well I'd best get back to writing for the mag, working an issue in advance is quite confusing but I'm slowly getting used to it… February here I come!

Sarah