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TLC Pen Factor winner special – Neema Shah

“Asha walked out towards the vast water, stretching so far that it looked more like an ocean. She’d met Pran for the first time by Lake Victoria, down by Entebbe. But she wouldn’t waste the day thinking about him. She was still angry, sure that her husband was keeping something from her. As she moved further along, she spotted a twisted shape, jutting out at the water’s edge. A strange mass that seemed to grow from the banks, blackened in parts, ashen in others, protruding from the soil. But this wasn’t the rotting roots of a plant. It was sinewy muscle, twisting tendon. Upstream there were more.”

Extract from ‘Kololo Hill’ – included in the showcase

“The TLC Pen Factor Live competition is the first writing competition I’ve entered, so I was thrilled to be shortlisted, let alone to win. I was nervous on the day but Aki gave us all some useful tips on pitching. The other finalists were also a friendly and supportive group with a diverse range of beautifully written pieces. The opportunity to hear what industry professionals thought of my work was incredibly useful and I was also given encouraging feedback from some attendees after my reading. Now I need to bring my head down from the clouds (only a little though, I’m a writer after all) and get on with the task of finishing my work. Nothing guarantees a novel will be published, but I know that taking part in Pen Factor Live and working with the brilliant TLC team gives me the best possible chance of achieving my goal.”