National Short Story Week is an annual event designed to raise awareness of short stories, short story writers and publishers through a series of events and activities. This year’s National Short Story Week is being held between November 12th -18th2012.

The event was first created by Ian Skillicorn of Short Story Radio, where he had been producing and broadcasting short stories for many years. He then became Director of National Short Story Week, of which he has took responsibility for raising awareness of the event and encouraging members of the public to take part.

The aims of National Short Story Week

Now a successful annual event, National Short Story Week has set a number of aims:

1) get more people reading and listening to short stories;

2) get more people writing short stories;

3) develop creative and commercial opportunities for individuals and organisations involved in the short story form.

How to celebrate National Short Story Week in Your Class

If you are wondering how to celebrate National Short Story Week with your class; here’s a few ideas:

  • Invite a short story writer to your class. Perhaps they could read through some of their latest stories, or provide a talk on how to write a good short story, what to include and what not to include etc.
  • Create a short story competition for your pupils.
  • Feature an array of short stories in lessons, including both modern and classics with a variety of themes, emphasising just how wide a readership short stories can have.

We feel that the short story is one of the most exciting and accessible forms of literacy around, and fully support National Short Story Week.

We’d love to hear how schools are getting involved with the week, what educational resources they are using, and any popular short stories that have been shared.

Image credit: HoriaVarlan @ Flickr