Getting to the Heart of the Story - Claire Bennett

Date/time: Saturday 12th September 2026, 11:30am - 12:30pm

There’s nowhere like home, as someone called Dorothy once said. Sutton Coldfield is awash with characters, history and incident that are ready to be crafted into fabulous works of fiction. 

If you want to try your hand at writing a short story, or if you’ve written short stories before, this is the event designed to ignite or expand your inspiration. We’ll get you happily (and guiltlessly) eavesdropping, diving into some research and allowing yourself time to ponder. You’ll be armed and ready to kick your story off. Over the hour, award winning writer Claire Bennett will use, “Ten Shillings Well Spent” - set in Sutton Coldfield and Birmingham's Jewellery Quarter, written on  commission from The Ruskin Mill Trust and The New Standard Works - to demonstrate the evolution of a short story. We will be looking at inspiration, character, dialogue and narrative structure. There will be some short exercises for creative sparking and fun. Expect to leave buzzing with ideas and gagging to get in front of your keyboard or get out your notebook and pen.