TWO talented Oxfordshire writers are getting Britain reading, after their stories were picked from 10,000 entries for a book promoting literacy.
The Oxford Times reporter Fran Bardsley, 25, of Oxford, and Colette Dickinson, 37, from Radley, had their short stories chosen by two celebrity judges - motoring journalist Jeremy Clarkson and best-selling author and columnist Jane Moore - for The Sun Book of Short Stories.
The book went on sale last week, a year after both writers entered a competition in The Sun to celebrate the 10th anniversary of World Book Day.
Ms Dickinson, a freelance writer and learning mentor, said: "I've been writing for a few years now and I get most of my ideas from life.
"Some are quite gritty. I've always got a notebook in my bag.
"I got the idea for my story, There's a Queue for the Therapist's Chair, from my reflexology and reiki sessions.
"I never write about real people - they just give me the sparks."
Ms Dickinson has won several awards in the past and writes fiction for magazines such as Women's Weekly.
Miss Bardsley said: "I wrote a story which was about terrorism, called Ball Games.
"People say they have found it quite dark, like most of my stories. They're not the sort of thing you would think a white, middleclass English girl would write.
"I guess I've got a good imagination and I like to explore things that are interesting to me.
"In an ideal world, I would like to write novels full time."
The Sun competition aimed to encourage people to read more fiction, by selling the book of popular stories at a low price of £1.99.
Miss Bardsley said: "I think it's really important to raise literacy levels.
"There is a surprising number of people who can't or don't read."
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