ESSC for The Japan Times ST

Recently, Emeritus Professor Nobuyuki Honna, Founding President of JAFAE, explained to me that Japan's oldest English-language newspaper, The Japan Times, decided to sponsor its own 50-word Extremely Short Story Competition [ESSC], in The Japan Times ST starting in July. I was delighted to hear about this exciting initiative and I am sure that people throughout Japan will find it both challenging and enjoyable to write exactly 50 words in English to express your creativity and individuality. Here in the United Arab Emirates, we are looking forward to reading your Extremely Short Stories. If you would like to read some of our ESS, which are available in a number of different languages, please visit: http://www.zu.ac.ae/facets

If you go to Amazon, you can even purchase a Japanese/English edition of Facets of Emirati Women. Edited by myself and translated by Yuko Takeshita and Fujimi Tanaka, this is a richly illustrated anthology of 50-word stories authored by Emirati students that provides snapshots of the United Arab Emirates, a country that only recently celebrated its 40th anniversary. Providing a fascinating view of Emirati life, students of English, culture and even translation will find this Kindle or paperback edition interesting and informative.

Also available on Amazon in both electronic and paper formats, an instructive primer is provided by the Extremely Short Story Competition in Japan by Yuko Takeshita and Fujimi Tanaka. A student, whose 50-word story appears in this introduction to the ESSC, writes about the process of writing Extremely Short Stories: "I would encourage whoever with a passion for writing or with a story to tell to give it a try. You will be surprised at how beautifully you can 'dance with fetters'."

I am really looking forward to reading your submissions, and helping with the judging. Keep the ESSs flowing and you might see your 50-word stories in an anthology published by The Japan Times. Who knows, perhaps one day we might meet in Tokyo or even Dubai!

Peter John Hassall, Deviser of the ESSC for users of World Englishes
Department of Languages, Zayed University, Dubai, United Arab Emirates
20th June 2013