The Written Word Group

Bred from one of the greatest sires to race on the flat. Frankel’s son, ‘The Bleak,’ had run in the Epsom Derby. Ran as the hot favourite. But, for whatever reason finished last. His winning streak had come to an end. They tried everything to revive his flat career, but The Bleak was finished as a flat horse. A failure at stud meant he got clipped and sold off. And started running over hurdles. And started winning again.  Mid-Winter was a much older horse, that had come good, late in his racing career. It happens with horses. The right jockey, the right head lad or girl. The right trainer and it all starts to click. The Champion Hurdle is one of the biggest races on the National Hunt calendar. And ‘The Bleak,” was an odds-on favorite to win. At six years of age, he was in his prime. But so was Mid-Winter. A horse bought for pennies, up against the Million Dollar horse. Charlie Zantos was in big trouble with the Bookies. He owed them big time. As the jockey for the odds-on favorite,...

We now return to where it all began for The Almanzora Written Word Group. It was a cold January day in 2023, when we all trooped up to the Almanzora Group of Friends  Library and Social Centre, that is situated on the Plaza San Antonio in Albox. This was the start of a very exciting time for all the local would be writers. After many a meeting in the lovely Plaza San Antonio library, we unfortunately out grew it, and then moved to our more permanent home at the Hostal Meson in Arboleas. Where the Anthology idea was developed and brought to fruition. So join us on the 13th February at 11am and hear our stories, and ask your questions about writing, or even "How do I get published."  There will be a possibility to purchase our Anthology, and get it signed by some of the Authors. Everybody is welcome and we hope to see lots of new faces there. Book Launch: DANCES WITH WORDS - Anthology of Short Stories From: THE ALMANZORA WRITTEN WORD GROUP Location: Plaza San Antonio library, A...

Winter was saying goodbye to autumn with its blistering winds. The sky was loaded with grey heavy clouds  carrying enough rain for the whole winter, it was most certainly going to be a bleak midwinter. Jane stood shivering, by the green mouldy window of her new council flat, contemplating the trees swaying in the wind. Though she was over the moon that the council had given her an apartment after sleeping rough, that feeling soon disappeared. Two years ago was when it all started going wrong.  Jane woke up at the usual time, following her normal daily routine before going to work when her phone pinged.  It was her monthly bank statement showing that the direct debits for the mortgage hadn’t been paid for a few months, and there were no funds in her account to cover  payments.  She called out for Robert,  but there was no response.  He has been a stranger to Jane since he lost his job.  Jane has been keeping the household going for some...

  Billy spent his school holidays at his Grandparents’ house in the country. He was an inquisitive lad and learned a lot from asking them questions. But his granddad’s reaction to one question he’d asked puzzled him for years. ‘Have you ever been abroad?’ he enquired casually. Billy looked into his grandfather’s eyes – they seemed to be watering. Fred’s mind slipped back over forty years to the events of the winter of 1917/18, and, he pondered how to answer the lad as the incidents of that winter flashed before him . . . He remembered the tears in Flo’s eyes as she kissed him goodbye; he remembered the training camp where he had spent three months, the ship’s passage across to France, pitching tents and marching in columns of three flanked by officers on horseback, somewhere in northern France. It had all seemed like a jolly adventure until they saw wounded men being taken away and heard the noise of the big gun bombardment, the rippling booms of the howitzers, and shrapnel busting...

The Almanzora Written Word Group will be launching their Anthology called, Dancing with Words  on Saturday 24th January 2026 at 4pm. Over the course of the evening we will introduce ourselves and have 3 or 4 readings from our Anthology. We can then take any questions from the packed crowd. It was a labour of love to get this book out the door. Blood sweat and tears where shed and a few egos too. But we are all immensely proud of the final result. So come along and celebrate an evening with The Almanzora Written Word Group. Sunny Books Location: C. Emmedio 2, 04638 Mojacar Pueblo, Almeria, Spain. Time: 16:00  

  Next TWWG meetup is set for Friday 6/02/2026 - 10:30am start.  Words selected for this meetups 500 word challenge is 'The Bleak Mid-Winter' Everybody who has an interest in writing or the written word is welcome to our meetup at Hostal Meson Arboleas.

Lily has one year left before sitting in  her GCSEs and will be taking her mock exams after Christmas. She goes to the library after school to revise and also to keep warm. Her house is cold, damp and has poor lighting which prevents her from keeping focused on her studies. Lily was born in the poorest and most  deprived parts of Liverpool where unemployment is high and crime is the profession for many youngsters. She is the youngest of three children, all living at home. Her oldest sister Olivia finds it difficult to keep jobs longer than four weeks. Her brother, Leo, has no ambition either and has never worked a day in his life. He is the favourite son and he does no wrong in his mum's eyes. He is always asking for money to keep his drinking and smoking habits.  Susan, her mum, cleans public toilets early mornings and does the washing in the afternoon for the residents at a nursing home. George, her father, also has two jobs. He is the washer upper...