Bickering on Sea is a website of curated content for short stories and poetry. It's a virtual seaside town where readers can find interesting things to read, and writers can publish previously unpublished work for others to enjoy. #showyourwork
There is an especially warm welcome for new visitors to Bickering on Sea. We hope that the information you find here will help you to enjoy your visit, and to come back again. I
To keep up with local Bickering on Sea news, you can join the Residents Association, and subscribe to the site. We will send you updates and promise not to share your information.
Content is curated by genre, in venues. Visitors to Bickering on Sea are encouraged to wander around, find things that interest them, and to tell their friends and contacts about us (on social media or by word of mouth). Whatever genre you enjoy most, you can probably find it here. (We are a family town!) And you can find new things to read too, in venues for genres you might not usually seek out.
Contributions are positively encouraged. We want writers to feel they can send work to the Parish Council of Bickering on Sea, because we want to publish your work. We want to encourage writers to have a go. You'll find details on the Contributors page.
We hope that you enjoy your visit, and that you come back again and again, to enjoy the beach, listen to the seagulls, and find new stories and poems to appreciate. There's more information below, but the Tourist Information Centre (home page) is the place to begin your virtual visit when you're ready to start your virtual visit to the lovely seaside town of Bickering on Sea.
LOOK AROUND
You can search for stories and poems in Bickering on Sea in several ways...
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Through the Library drop down menu, to explore by genre
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Through the Venues drop down menu
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Through the key for the map, at the Tourist Information Centre page.
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In the Library, where new releases are featured and the shelves are packed with stories organised by genre.
VENUES
Each story and poem will be assigned to one or more venue, according to genre. Each venue also has a host, a resident of Bickering on Sea, who might also feature in one or more of the stories. We recommend that visitors take a look at as many venues as they fancy, because there are hidden gems all over Bickering on Sea, and come back often, since there is often new content going up. ​
HERITAGE MUSEUM
Bickering on Sea isn't simply a collection of curated stories, it is also a virtual place in its own right. Some of the stories in many of the venues are actually set in the town, and there are a number of characters who pop up again and again, across genres, stories and in the work of various authors. As such, Bickering Heritage Museum houses the official history of the town. We love to receive stories based in Bickering on Sea (across history, and even dimensions) and, to some degree, anything goes, but there must be some parameters and the history helps define them. We also ask that writers who want to kill off characters who live in the town talk to the Parish Council first, since there might be a story waiting to be published, or in progress, which must be taken into account.
LIBRARY
Bickering Library houses every story and poem on the site. At the top of the page is an introduction, followed by new releases. There is a search bar, and an alphabetical list of story genres.
COLOURS
Each venue logo has one of five colour themes:
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Blue venues are official sites in the town; like the Tourist Information Centre, Bickering Point (where the poetry bench sits overlooking the harbour), the churches, and the bandstand.
Yellow venues are the town itself, as well as cafes and shops; including Bickering on Tea, Chelle's Salon and Spa and the Tides Inn.
Green venues are sites of historic interest; such as the Castle, the Heritage Museum, and the stone circle called Beacran's Ring.
Red venues are official places in the life of the town; like the schools, the Police Station, and the much lauded Parish Council.
Grey venues are unofficial places in the town where interesting things have happened; the Mysterious Shed and the Ice House, for example.