Through 2027, I’m encouraging writers of all levels of experience across the Birmingham Metropolitan Area* and its Hinterland* to create pieces for an anthology of brand-new work. However much or little you’ve written before, I want to hear from you!
There’s a broad inspirational theme for writers to respond to — The Ungovernable City — inspired by Birmingham City Council’s reversion to No Overall Control in the 2026 Local Elections, its repercussions for the 4.3 million people in the region, and its consequences for the social and political landscape across an increasingly fragmented nation.
Writers will be invited to contribute works of speculative fiction**, responding to a turbulent present by exploring their own distinctive visions of an uncertain future — years, decades, centuries or millennia from now. Where the theme leads everyone’s imaginations is entirely up to them: the works they produce will be as unique as the writers themselves.
Alongside this, I’ll be creating my own brand-new collection of 52 short stories, inspired by consultations with regional residents from across the political spectrum.
From May 2027, I’ll launch a 52-episode podcast, with two new stories released every week for six months. In late October 2027, to coincide with the final podcast episodes, I’ll launch the digital anthology featuring the works submitted by my public contributors.
GEOGRAPHY
* I figured you’d probably want to know what I mean by “the Birmingham Metropolitan Area and its Hinterland”, not least to help clarify whether you live there or not. Since there’s no strict definition of what’s in and what’s out, I’m defining it as the built-up areas and catchment zones of:
BMA: Birmingham, Walsall, Wolverhampton, Dudley, Sandwell, Bromsgrove, Redditch, Solihull, Warwick, Coventry, Nuneaton and Bedworth, North Warwickshire, Tamworth;
Hinterland: Lichfield, Cannock Chase, South Staffordshire, Wyre Forest, Stratford-upon-Avon, Rugby.
The best visual representation I can find of the BMAH is this map by BlueandWhiteStripes, shared here under the terms of Creative Commons (CC BY-SA 4.0). So, if you’re within the solid grey line or the dotted grey line, then you’re in!
GENRE
** I also figured you’d probably want to know what I mean by “speculative fiction”.
There’s no strict definition of this term, either. I’ll be releasing much fuller guidelines in due course to accompany the writing brief and to clarify the callout timeline, but for now…
Speculative fiction (sometimes shortened to spec-fic) includes, but is not limited to, fantasy; science fiction; social science fiction; science fantasy; superhero; paranormal and supernatural horror; alternate history; magical realism; slipstream; weird fiction; utopia and dystopia; apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction. (So, really, you’re spoilt for choice!)
Instead of showing the world exactly as it is today, speculative fiction changes some fundamental element of life, history, or science, in order to explore new possibilities. A bit like a researcher doing experiments in a laboratory, the speculative fiction writer focuses on changing one or more variables, and then writes about the consequences of those changes — their impacts on people and society, and the ways in which people and societies react to what has changed.
The esteemed critic John Clute said every science fiction novel is secretly about the year it is written, and reflects what the writer was thinking and the cultural attitudes of the time. I think the same thing is true for speculative fiction in all its forms. Speculative fiction writers use imaginary elements — alternative versions of history, new worlds, distant or not-so-distant futures — to talk about real-world problems and pose important questions about the world we inhabit today.
