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The New Mslexia

The premier magazine for women writers has been redesigned to be even more relevant to women’s creativity and their lives. Read by top authors and absolute beginners, Mslexia is a quarterly masterclass in the business and psychology of writing.

No other magazine provides Mslexia’s unique mix of advice and inspiration; news, reviews and interviews; competitions, events and grants. All served up with a challenging selection of new poetry and prose..

'diverse and brilliant'  Fay Weldon
'intelligent and creative'  Time Out
'my favourite women's magazine'  Wendy Cope
'the best I've read on the subject'  Independent
'full of essential information'  Daily Mail
'astute, invigorating and above all an excellent read'  Helen Dunmore

‘Concessions’ was the winner of our 2011 Short Story Competition, judged by Jackie Kay. Our 2012 Short Story Competition is open for entries of stories of up to 2,200 words on any theme. Our judge this year is the acclaimed writer Tessa Hadley. The closing date is 19 March 2012. Visit the website for more information.

About Cate Bailey

Cate Bailey is a psychiatry registrar who lives in Australia. ‘Concessions’ is the first story she has ever had published. The long hours she works interfere with her writing – but also help her gain insight into people in ‘heart-breaking situations’. She collects vintage clothes, has a black belt in tae kwon do and would love (for some reason) to own a whippet.

Cate Bailey on winning the Mslexia short story competition

I still feel astounded by the news; not least because it is the first short story I have written since high school. I have written very little for the last ten years as my life has been almost entirely consumed by a medical degree and work as a junior doctor.

Living in Melbourne; I only became aware of the gem that is Mslexia after attending an Arvon Poetry course last year. When I returned from the course I started using the listings section at the back of the magazine as a series of deadlines and I tried to write something for whatever was coming up next. The first listing was the Mslexia Short Story Competition. So with a week before it was due I decided to give it a go. I’m usually quite a perfectionist so I was actually a bit embarrassed to send in a piece that was so rushed and largely unedited.

Having previously only been published in my high school magazine (circa 2002) and on my parent’s fridge, I am absolutely thrilled that someone other than my immediate family has read (and liked) something I’ve written. The fact that one of these people is Jackie Kay (whom I admire enormously), is even more exciting.