Martyn Bedford - Writer

An early bedtime beckons later this week when I’ll be helping to launch a new short-story anthology on the theme of sleep . . . at the appropriately named B.E.D bar, in Manchester. The event, part of the 2015 Manchester Science Festival, celebrates the publication of Spindles: Short Stories from the Science of Sleep, by Comma Press, which includes my most recent story, My Soul to Keep.

I’ll be sharing a stage with the anthology’s co-editors, Ra Page, of Comma Press, and Dr Penelope Lewis, from the University of Manchester, along with another of the book’s contributors, Dr Simon Kyle, of the University of Manchester’s Neuroscience and Psychology of Sleep Lab (NaPS). As well as a panel discussion and readings, there will be time for Q&A, including questions on sleep-related topics submitted before and during the event by tweet, email or Facebook message.

Spindles comprises a selection of fourteen specially commissioned sleep-themed stories from fiction-writers – including M.J. Hyland, Deborah Levy, Sara Maitland, Adam Marek and Ian Watson – with accompanying commentaries by a range of experts in related fields of study which put each story in its scientific context. For my story, on the connection between depression and hypersomnia (excessive sleep), I was paired with Prof. Ed Watkins, a researcher in clinical psychology at the University of Exeter, whose help was invaluable in providing the factual underpinning for my fictional foray.

The launch event takes place at 6.30pm on Thursday October 22nd, in the B.E.D bar, underneath Tribeca, at 50 Sackville Street, Manchester, M1 3WF. Entry is free and children are welcome – until 8pm, when, of course, it will be their bedtime. For further details about the event and the Manchester Science Festival, please click on this link, and for more information about the anthology, here’s a link to the Comma Press site.