In his sharply crafted, unnerving first collection of speculative fiction shorts, Courttia Newland envisages an alternate future as lived by the African diaspora. Robots used as human proxies in a war become driven by all-too-human desires; Kill Parties roam the streets of a post-apocalyptic world; a matriarchal race of mer creatures depends on inter-breeding with mortals to survive; mysterious seeds appear in cities across the world, growing into the likeness of people in their vicinity. Through transfigured bodies and impossible encounters, Newland brings a sharp, fresh eye to age-old themes of the human capacity for greed, ambition and self-destruction, but ultimately of our strength and resilience.

A middle-aged man with a guilty taste for schoolgirls looks for a way to end his shame; a hotel receptionist begins a sexual adventure with shattering consequences; a young man is troubled by a persistent itch behind his shoulder-blades; a young African boy confronts his bullying class-mates in a surprising way; and a sculptor is asked to make a realistic life-size woman by a Japanese client. In these and the other stories in this collection, there is a delight in the dark, the grotesque, and the uncanny. In each of the stories, most of the characters are Black, and it both does and doesn't matter that this is so. As Courttia Newland's previous books have led us to expect, he is a meticulous, insightful observer of West London's Black communities, of their patterns of speech, fashions, their pleasures and the pressures of racism and exclusion they seek to escape. These are communities (and stories) in which crime, violence and drugs are part of the realities of life. But what is important here is not the sociology, but the form, in particular Courttia Newland's reinvigoration of the classic, popular short story form with its play with narrative twists and the unexpected. Drawing inspiration from everything from traditional horror movies to the contemporary sophistication of Japanese works in this genre, Newland brings together the literary and the popular in a uniquely Black British mix. In an afterword to these stories, Newland writes of his frustration with the narrow limits imposed by mainstream publishing expectations on Black British fiction, trapped between the immigrant 'Windrush' novel and the Yardie gangster novel with its American borrowings. "Music for the Off-Key" is distinctively British in its materials, black in a number of senses, and a thoroughly entertaining and sometimes shocking break-out from limiting expectations.

SHORTLISTED FOR THE ARTHUR C. CLARKE AWARD 2022 LONGLISTED FOR THE GORDON BURN PRIZE A monumental speculative fiction story of love, loyalty, politics and conscience set in parallel Londons The Ark was built to save the lives of the many, but rapidly became a refuge for the elite, the entrance closed without warning. Years later, Markriss Denny is one of the select few granted entry. He carries with him a closely guarded secret: the ability of his spirit to leave his body and transcend the known world. But once in, he learns of another who carries the same power, and their existence could spell catastrophe for humanity. Denny is forced into a desperate race to understand his abilities, and in doing so uncovers the truth about the Ark, himself and the people he thought he once knew.

Ambitious and contemporary, this groundbreaking collection offers new short fiction by exciting, fresh talents and established authors from around the world. Covering a myriad of topics--love, sex, death, war, crime, and the environment--each tale boasts a unique perspective and voice, with settings that move from India to New York to Cyberspace. With vibrant characters--including drug smugglers, call-center workers, and tourists--each of the 26 stories tackles personal and social issues in funny, poignant, and often dark ways.

"Publishers Weekly" has named "The Gospel According to Cane" a 2012-13 "Notable African-American Title."
"The emotional tension is sometimes almost unbearable as a mother and son attempt to build a relationship out of their shared pain. A unique and very moving novel."
--"Booklist"
"A mother's love is unbreakable, as Frank O'Connor Award-nominee Newland demonstrates in his latest novel... The storytelling is as captivating as the story itself. Newland, a Jamaican-born British writer, seamlessly integrates the joy, fear, uncertainty, and sadness... Newland's prose is beautiful. His novel--part homecoming narrative in the vein of Toni Morrison's "Beloved" and part haunting tale of loss similar to Ernest Gaines's "In My Father's House"--will appeal to all lovers of literary fiction."
--"Library Journal"
"The characters are finely drawn with realistic ambiguity and genuinely exhibit the durability of grief and pain."
--"Publishers Weekly"
"Newland delivers an intense portrait of mental conflict against a gritty inner-city background. The book we are reading is Beverley Cottrell's journal...This 'journal of my pain, ' becomes a spiral of cathartic violence during which Newland deftly keeps the reader guessing."
--"Kirkus Reviews"
"One of Britain's most important young black novelists...a truly gifted storyteller."
--"Time Out London"
"Courttia Newland blazes a literary path difficult to challenge, with a style so crisp, searing, and profoundly philosophical. His "Gospel According to Cane" is grippingly disturbing, pulled from the depth of human despair and sheer madness, possibly best understood in the realm of psychiatry."
--"The Gleaner" (Jamaica)
"As Bev confesses in her journals to events that make her appear less than the fragile idealist she first appeared, Newland's tale gathers pace and tension. Violence becomes a real possibility. Happy ending or sad? Newland delivers a bit of both in this complex, cathartic portrait of an intelligent, if not always sensible woman, who refuses any longer to be defined by loss."
--"Toronto Star"
"The abduction of a child would devastate any family. But what if that child returned, many years later, a young man and a stranger? Could that be even worse? "The Gospel According to Cane" is a gripping novel that's rich with both grief and great love. Courttia Newland is a fierce talent."
--Victor LaValle, author of "Big Machine"
Beverley Cottrell had a dream life: a prestigious job, a beautiful husband and baby boy. This is stolen from her one winter afternoon when her son Malakay is kidnapped from a parked car. Despite a media campaign, a full police investigation, and the offer of a reward, Malakay is never found. Beverley's marriage soon dissolves and her husband immigrates from England to the U.S. with a new wife.
Beverley gives up her job, sells the house, and moves from the leafy suburbs to the inner city to reside in a west London housing project. She cocoons herself in grief, growing more isolated with each passing year. After two decades she gives up any hope of finding her son. She teaches children who have been expelled from school in the local community center, bright kids thrown on society's scrap heap.
Beverley starts to believe she has finally pieced her life together--until a young man starts appearing wherever she goes. Beverley is convinced that he's stalking her. One dark evening the stalker gets past her security door and calls through her letterbox. He tells her not to be scared. He says that he is Malakay, her son.
"The Gospel According to Cane" is a novel about inner-city youth in contemporary London. It's a meditation on pain and loss, the burden of heritage, and how the past can blur the present. It's about trust and the perceived lack of trust, disillusion, and its consequences. A world where everyone is the victim, and no one is to blame.

Writing Short Stories: A Writers' and Artists' Companion is an essential guide to writing short fiction successfully. PART 1 explores the nature and history of the form, personal reflections by the editors, and help getting started with ideas, planning and research. PART 2 includes tips by leading short story writers, including: Alison Moore, Jane Rogers, Edith Pearlman, David Vann, Anthony Doerr, Vanessa Gebbie, Alexander MacLeod, Adam Thorpe and Elspeth Sandys. PART 3 contains practical advice - from shaping plots and exploring your characters to beating writers' block, rewriting and publishing your stories.

A celebratory 20th anniversary edition of A landmark collection from black writers across the literary spectrum 'The fact that IC3, the police identity for Black, is the only collective term that relates to our situation here as residents ('Black British' is political and refers to Africans, Asians, West Indians, Americans and sometimes even Chinese) is a sad fact of life I could not ignore' from Courttia Newland's Introduction, 2000 First published twenty years ago into a different literary landscape, IC3 showcases the work of more than 100 black British authors, celebrating their lasting contributions to literature and British culture. It spans a wealth of genres to demonstrate the range and astonishing literary achievements of black writers, including: Poetry from Roger Robinson, Bernardine Evaristo, Jackie Kay and Benjamin Zephaniah. Short stories from Ferdinand Dennis, Diana Evans, Catherine Jonson, E.A. Markham and Ray Shell. Essays from Floella Benjamin, Linda Bellos, Treva Etienne, Kevin Le Gendre and Labi Siffre. Memoirs from Margaret Busby, Henry Bonsu, Buchi Emecheta, Leone Ross, and many others. Featuring a new introduction from original editors Kadija Sesay and Courttia Newland, this collection reflects on the legacy of these writers, their extraordinary work, and stands as a reminder that black British writers remain underrepresented in literature today.

SOCIETY WITHIN takes us back to the Greenside Estate, West London, scene of Courttia Newland’s ground-breaking and hugely successful first novel, THE SCHOLAR. Newly arrived on the estate is Elisha: sweet, bright, sassy and just eighteen. As Elisha negotiates some new territory with more than fair share of dark corners, we take in the vividly interlocking lives of the other Greensiders: cool, ambitious Valerie, with some bad secrets to deal with; Little Stacey, looking for his first girl; Orin, dealing, stealing and trying to stay away from anything too lethal.

Courttia Newland tells gripping stories from real lives – stories of dreamers and fighters, love and revenge, friendship and betrayal – in a language burning with energy, originality and conviction.