Clown's Shoes

Winner of the PEN International/New Voices Award 2015 Shortlisted for the Sunday Times EFG Short Story Award 2015 Onstage again, you stare down at your feet, imagining you see the bright, painted curves of a pair of clown's shoes... It helps to pretend you are a clown, hidden inside baggy trousers, your true face invisible behind splashes of red lipstick and pale powder... A dazzling, ambitious debut collection from a young talent, these critically acclaimed stories dip into the shadows and spotlights of life. From the pale waking hours to the darkling places, Clown's Shoes introduces a cast of lost characters trying to find their way, and asking whether everyone really does come salting home in the end? Since the Devil visited the glove maker, she has found herself in the asylum counting out days instead of stitches. At the dog track, hidden amongst the rowdy punters, a woman bets on underdogs, life, and love. Onstage, a desperate mother performs a nightly striptease, whilst, in a small Welsh town, a young Korean immigrant tells her secrets to the sway of the sea. The people who populate the exciting and intriguing world of Clown's Shoes have stories that enthrall the imagination.

Rebecca F. John was born in 1986 and grew up on the South Wales coast. She holds a BA in English and an MA in Creative Writing from Swansea University. She has been published in Parthian's Nu: Fiction & Stuff, and the Terry Hetherington Award anthologies Cheval 4 and 5. Her short story, 'The Dog Track', was broadcast on BBC Radio 4 in 2013, and she was highly commended in the 2014 Manchester Fiction Prize. Rebecca currently works as a Ski Instructor, and enjoys painting, playing music, riding horses and visiting snowy locations. Her favourite authors include Clare Wigfall, Maggie O'Farrell, Ian McEwan and Evie Wyld.