A Short Story by Lucy Brighton “I dare you to knock on the witch’s door,” I say. “And say what?” “Run away or she’ll turn you into a frog or summat.” “I think we…I don’t know, Lolly.” Rachel’s fourteen months older than me, almost eight, but you’d think she was younger. She’s yellow. That’s what Mum calls someone who is chicken. Her lip trembles and I know she doesn’t want to cry in front of me or I’ll call her Tiny Tears. Guilt gnaws in my belly, flooding my body and mak

Story Shapes “ For centuries there's been one path through fiction we're most likely to travel - one we're actually told to follow - and that's the dramatic arc: a situation arises, grows tense, reaches a peak, subsides!” (Meander, Spiral Explode by Jane Alison) Aristotle (384-322 BCE) suggested dramas should have a three-act structure, a beginning, middle and end. Beginning (Exposition/Protasis): This part introduces the characters, setting, and initial situation of the sto

Is AI coming for our stories? What is it about stories that endure? Stories have been around for over 50000 years. From oral storytelling...