Congratulations to our newest Creative Writing Online tutor K.J. Orr, who has won the BBC National Short Story Award for ‘Disappearances’. The awards ceremony took place at the BBC Radio Theatre last night with the £15,000 prize announced by Chair of Judges Jenni Murray. Other nominees included Hilary Mantel, Tahmima Anam, Claire Louise-Bennet and Lavinia Greenlaw.

K.J.’s writing has been widely anthologised and Light Box, her first short story collection, was published earlier this year, including the award winning ‘Disappearances’. The story can be read over on The Guardian’s website. 

The current term of Creative Writing Online courses, co-created by Writers’ Centre Norwich and the University of East Anglia, includes K.J. as a tutor of short fiction. K.J.’s course was in high demand even before her success at the BBC National Short Story Awards and her students will now be enjoying direct access to her creative knowledge.  

You can listen to the awards ceremony from the BBC here.

A reading of ‘Disappearances’ and an interview with K.J. Orr is available here.