Before I became a copywriter, I used to be a journalist. Even as my career evolved from print to online, one thing remained constant: the sacredness of the deadline. My stories were always filed on time. After all, it was my job. 

Like many other journos, I dreamed of writing a book. Or even a short story or two. But I had no idea where to start. I bought hundreds of books on writing techniques. I even read some of them and completed a few of the exercises. But soon, the books began collecting dust and my random snippets of scribbles progressed no further.

When my friend Mark encouraged me to sign up to Deadlines for Writers’ short story challenge, I was sceptical. However, the combination of receiving a prompt and a deadline is magical. Forty-eight short stories and a completed manuscript later, I am living proof that these challenges work.