An experimental testing ground
Curated Fiction Showcase
Writing CV is a curated fiction showcase. It is not a blog, a diary, or a dumping ground for everything I write. Instead, it is a collection of just a few pieces that serve as a testing ground. The variety here comes from experimenting with different styles, genres, and forms I have never tried before. The work ranges from 300-word microfiction to the first three chapters of novels and novellas.
long Form
Novel and Novella Openings
First chapters and selected extracts from longer fiction.
Short Form
Shorter Fiction
Complete novelettes, short stories, and flash fiction.
A note from me
Mostly in my head
I have been writing all my life, though for a long time most of it happened in my head rather than on the page. Some people might say that does not count as writing, and they may have a point. Even so, I wrote some very good books in there and spent the advance more than once. More recently, I have started getting some of it down properly. This site is a selection of that work: openings from longer fiction, and complete shorter pieces.
About me
I am David. I am married, have two children, two granddaughters, and an elderly cat who appears whenever I open the computer. She is not entirely responsible for how long it has taken me to write things down, but I cannot say she helps.
Featured
Selected Work
Novel Opening
A Title
First chapters and selected extracts from longer fiction.
Novella Opening
A Title
First chapters and selected extracts from longer fiction.
Novelette
A Title
Complete novelettes, short stories, and flash fiction.
Writing Example
Extract from my novel
Novel Opening
The Last Passenger
Opening chapter · 3,200 words
By the time I reached the platform, the train had not yet arrived, though the station had already taken on that apologetic air places get when they know they are about to disappoint somebody.
A man in a brown coat stood under the departure board with the patience of somebody who had been waiting for years rather than minutes. Across from him, a girl was folding and unfolding a receipt as if she expected it to become a letter.
It crossed my mind that stations are really only theatres for hesitation. People arrive decided and leave uncertain, or arrive uncertain and leave as if the matter had been settled elsewhere.