First things first, many thanks for taking the time to visit my 'umble little fund raising page.  So pray tell why have I dragged you over here?

Well, once a year some of the brightest talent in the field of creative writing jumble together to indulge in what has been christened a 'writeathon.'  This bout of 12 hour insanity means you write as many short stories/flash fiction as possible in that period.  Now, whilst some of you may think we do it just for the fun of it, clearly that is not the case :)

We do it to raise as much money as possible for whatever cause has been chosen.  This year it is for volunteer reading help.  Now, it isn't one of the more well known charities but believe me this is a very worthwhile site and excuse me whilst I indulge in a heinous bit of plagiarism and quote a few words from a very worthy volunteer.

Can you imagine what it might be like not to be able to read a book? To never know the tales of history? To never know any characters, places, dreams, hopes or any emotion conveyed in literature? No? Neither can I!

VRH is a voluntary organisation and a national charity that helps disadvantaged children between the ages of 6 and 11 develop a love of reading and learning. These are not children with ‘special needs’ who are often catered for elsewhere in the curriculum, but children who without individual support, might otherwise fall behind their peers and therefore struggle in later years.

Being a volunteer myself, having completed my 1st year, I have gained so much from my work and seen incredible progress in the 3 children I have mentored consistently during that time. Saying good bye to them in July before they enter Year 3 (the big school!) was difficult but bought so much joy. Knowing that a little bit of the work we’ve done together was going with them, not just to year 3 but towards the rest of their lives. The shift in confidence, interest, knowledge, ability and the now lack of fear in reading has been remarkable.

With VRH, these experiences are happening all over the country, every day!

Is that the sound of you opening your wallets and filling in the details.  What do you mean no?!!!  Seriously though, the more you can contribute to this cause the more appreciative we all are of it and it makes it all worthwhile.

Now, no doubt you're wondering what on Earth are you going to do with all these stories once they're all written?  Good question.  What each writer will do is select the very best ones that result from that day and then help prepare them for an anthology.  Hopefully, at the beginning of next year this will then be ready to be purchased and provide some very good reading material for you all.  Failing that, the book could also double up as a most useful door stop but I'm more than confident you'll read it over and over and over again.

This event takes place on October 4th and runs from 11am - 11pm.  This page will continue for a good few months after the event so do feel free to wait if you wish, but there's no time like the present.  As for the fundraising target...well, as much as possible suits me :D