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Pumpkin Eyes, taken from 'Love Letters on the River' – National Fox Day
September 17th is National Fox Day! To celebrate these beautiful animals and the love they inspire, here is the opening extract from the chapter 'Pumpkin Eyes' from Carly Holmes's exquisite collection of nature essays Love Letters on the River: Pumpkin Eyes The young vixen appeared late one spring. She unfolded herself from the flower bed and sat slouched on her haunches, yawning and eyeing me as I wandered up the garden path with the birds’ food. I stopped and stared. ‘Hello,’ I said. ‘You’ve flattened my aquilegias. They’re not coming back from that.’ She inserted a paw into...
Ben Fergusson wins the 2026 Rhys Davies Short Story Competition
We are delighted to announce that Ben Fergusson has won the 2026 Rhys Davies Short Story Competition with his story 'Piedmont'.
Fergusson's winning story, alongside stories from the other finalists will be published in the 2026 Rhys Davies Short Story Award Anthology, out this October.
A postcard from Tŷ Newydd - Sybilla Harvey
A postcard from Tŷ Newydd I stayed in room No. 11, Y Lôn Goed. Named after the path in R. Williams Parry’s poem. The one that leads to the coast, towards Llanystumdwy and the white house with the verdigris front door. A way through, then. To the long table downstairs, 11 writers surrounding it. To Catherine’s morning workshops; Tony’s bara brith. To the half-moonof the library window, hot from the sun. To one word after another. To the giant’s chair in the garden. Cows knee deep in bluebells. To more writing. To other people’s stories about families, ghosts, alternate planets....
Parthian secures Joe Bedford's short story collection Mating Habits
We are delighted to be publishing Joe Bedford's debut short story collection Mating Habits, including his Bridport Prize winning story 'Zanzibar Blue'.
Open Call for Expressions of Interest: Reimagining Mary Llewellyn
Reimagining Mary Llewellyn, a collection of short stories written by contemporary Welsh and Wales-based writers, and edited by Elizabeth English, Senior Lecturer in English Literature at Cardiff Metropolitan University, will be published in 2028 as part of the international project 100 Years of The Well of Loneliness. What is Mary’s real story? Parthian Books announce an open call for expressions of interest. Those selected for commission and publication will receive a professional fee funded by Arts and Humanities Research Council funding. Elizabeth English says: “This anthology will rewrite, or reimagine, the story of Mary Llewellyn, giving a voice to a...