Interview with the 2026 Second Prize winner: Susan Swan

 

Susan Swan grew up in Scotland and taught English in London schools before moving to live beside the sea in South Devon where she teaches, writes, swims and enjoys coastal walks. She has been writing short fiction and novels for twenty years and has had some success with short stories. 

What did you start with to create your story - the character, the concept or something else?

The idea for The Ingredients of Home stemmed from a visit to a self-storage facility. My daughter had stored the furniture and belongings from the flat she’d shared with her former partner. Unlike the protagonist in the story, she’d found a room to rent but there was no space for her stuff. Occasionally, she’d ask me to visit her metal container to retrieve an item and I was struck by how it was laid out as a room. The manager showed me inside a huge warehouse of wooden compartments that had been filled and forgotten decades ago. As he told me stories of divorces and deaths, I conceived of the idea of a cathedral to regret. 

How long have you been writing and have you had anything published before?

I have been writing for about twenty years. My short fiction has been short listed in various competitions including the 2021 Costa Prize, the Alpine Fellowship 2021 Award, the 2021 Trip Fiction Prize, and has won a first and second prize in the 2023 and 2024 Retreat West competitions. My stories been published on Globe Soup’s website and in anthologies.

I have written a few novels but had no success finding an agent. I have self-published a novel, Last Chance Mill, about townies moving to the countryside. My latest novel, Woman Down, was longlisted in the 2025 Myslexia novel prize.

(Because it's been so ridiculously hot in the UK this week) Does the weather influence your writing?

If the weather’s good I go out and enjoy it. My most productive time for writing is October to March. 

If you could invite 3 literary characters to tea, who would they be and why?

Winston Smith because I’d like to hear his reaction to Big Brother and A1.

Marge from The Talented Mr Ripley because someone should listen to that woman.

Becky Sharp because she’d lighten the mood.

What will you spend your prize money on?

I’m saving up for a new laptop as Microsoft can’t support the newest operating system it can take. Which is not old.

What is your writing process, pen to paper or straight to screen?

I write on a laptop, on my actual lap, on a sofa in the living room. It’s my favourite winter pastime.

Thank you for sharing your writing process with us, Susan.

You can read Susan's story here.