Ayr Writers’ Club Trophy Winners’ Night was, as ever, a feast of excellent writing. Those who were placed in our eleven club competitions through the 2024-2025 season, could strut their stuff. What a range we had!
Chris Palmer began with the beginnings of an intimate relationship between two very different women, one of them an adventurous aviator in the 1930s. This extract showed that she was perhaps equally adventurous in her private life. The character was inspired by a real person.
Fiona Johnson’s short story was also inspired by a real person – an ancestor who tragically died when her costume caught fire on stage.
Matt Richardson’s book review of The Heart in Winter assessed the story of the flight and pursuit of a runaway couple in the mid west. Matt says, however, that this isn’t ‘a western’ as such, but a story with far more depth.
Kirsty Hammond’s poem about her late father’s love of astronomy was heartfelt and moving. Kirsty insists she isn’t a poet. We disagree.
Gill Hyslop’s non-fiction piece, with the intriguing title How Wallpaper Helped to Fund Britain’s Wars delved into the history of wallpaper from its Chinese origins, through the wallpaper tax in Queen Anne’s reign (one penny per square yard to begin with), via hidden messages of revolutionary support in France, in Queen Victoria’s reign, the continuation of the tax until the 1800’ (that’s where the war funding comes in I imagine.) Who knew?
Fiona McFadzean’s drabble entitled Strength for Today with Bright Hope for Tomorrow (taken from a hymn), brought together two cultures and a hope for peace in the future.
Carolyn O’Hara’s story, Right Hand Man tells the poignant tale of a man who struggles to hide the fact that he can’t read or write. The story has a heart-warming ending.
Steven Cashmore read what he claimed was a less graphic extract from his book Dead Scared. As we had blood stains appearing on the ceiling and violent possession by demons, I think it’s just as well we didn’t hear the rest, or we would have been too scared to go home in the dark.
Susan McVey’s drama winner, ably performed by Linda Brown and Matt Richardson, concerned a couple who always based decisions on the toss of a coin, which the girl has long suspected is double-headed. 
Her important decision about whether or not she should return to her native Gaza, now that she is a qualified doctor, gives rise to an unexpected twist in the tail.
Greta Yorke’s Do Fairies Need Toilets? a story for under sevens, brought a more light hearted touch to the proceedings. It’s an important consideration though, particularly if you happen to be a fairy.
Maggie Morton’s drabble, Cropped, was a tender story about a grandmother recovering from cancer and her grandson’s loving gesture. It’s amazing that this could be portrayed in so few words.
Linda Brown reflected on the glory days of the, long gone, department store Lewis’s in Glasgow. She related her own childhood memories of the superb Christmas window displays in the 1960s, with ‘Santa’ arriving in a horse-drawn carriage. She commented on the stylish restaurant with string quartets playing in the 1920s and ‘30s, right through to the store’s eventual closure in the early ‘90s.
Louise Cawson’s magazine short story A Silver Lining, shows how the mother of the groom’s initial disdain for the homespun and far from perfect wedding in rural Scotland, changes to appreciation of this simpler, friendlier celebration.
Bernadette Wardrop’s poem, The Last Time You Went to the Ocean was a dark and atmospheric end to a truly enjoyable evening.
A big thank you to all the contributors.
Maggie Bolton