We now have a longlist for the first Galley Beggar Short Story prize - and it's one that makes us very proud. There are some wonderful stories.

 

But while we're delighted with the end result, we have to confess to some difficulty and anxiety too. It wasn't easy whittling down the stories to this level - and we've had to leave some really excellent pieces of work out. In fact, the first thing we'd like to do here is to thank everyone who entered. The standard was often impossibly high and left us wondering just how we were ever going to decide.