The Subtle Art of Short Fiction – Club Event

For our next club event, we welcome Jonathan Taylor, Mahsuda Snaith and Farhana Shaikh for a panel discussion chaired by Siobhan Logan on Thursday 22^nd January 2026, from 7-9pm at Phoenix Cinema and Art Centre, Midland St, Leicester LE1 1TG, but also available online on Zoom. The event is free to club members and £5.00 to visitors/non-members. All are welcome (details below).

The panellists will discuss the art of short story writing, with insights from a new anthology, The Subtle Art of Short Fiction, edited by Isabelle Kenyon.

Jonathan Taylor is an author, editor, lecturer and critic. His most recent books are the short story collection Scablands and Other Stories (Salt, 2023) and the memoir A Physical Education: On Bullying, Discipline and Other Lessons (Goldsmiths, 2024). He teaches Creative Writing at the University of Leicester.

Mahsuda Snaith is the winner of the SI Leeds Literary Prize and Bristol Short Story Prize. Her debut novel The Things We Thought We Knew was chosen as a World Book Night Book and her second, How to Find Home, was read on BBC Radio 4. She was named an ‘Observer New Face of Fiction’. Mahsuda has led creative writing workshops in universities, hospitals, schools and a homeless hostel. She is a commissioned writer for Colonial Countryside and her short story ‘The Panther’s Tale’ is included in Hag: Forgotten Folklores Retold. She is a former member of Leicester Writers’ Club.

Farhana Shaikh is a writer and publisher born in Leicester. She is the editor of The Asian Writer and runs small independent press, Dahlia Books. She was longlisted in the Women’s Prize/CBC Discoveries Award in 2023 for her novel in progress. She reads for the VS Pritchett Prize and manages the Leicester Writes Short Story Prize.

Siobhan Logan is an editor, poet and storyteller whose work has been performed at Ledbury Poetry Festival, the British Science Museum and the National Space Centre. Widely published in magazines and anthologies, she’s published two books of poetry and non-fiction with Original Plus Press and two with Space Cat Press.

The Subtle Art of Short Fiction explores the power of short fiction in today’s fragmented world. Renowned authors and critics offer advanced techniques for crafting nuanced, impactful stories. Learn to master short story structure, subtext, micro-tension, and sensory minimalism.

Registration: Members and non members attending in person need not register — just turn up on the night. Non members wishing to join via an online link should contact us and register via the Contact Forms on this site: https://leicesterwritersclub.com/contact-us/. A fee of £5 is payable by all visitors/non-members.