Stephen Collins wins Graphic Short Story Prize

The Cape/Observer Short Story Prize is now 4 years old and continues to go from strength to strength, with a range of high quality judges adding their weight to the credibility of the award.

Hundreds of people entered the 2010 competition, with a longlist of 20 finally picked. A short list of 6 was then drawn up and from that the final winner announced - Stephen Collins's Room 208.

Room 208 is about a couple whose honeymoon is cut short by bad weather. Retreating to a hotel, a strange inertia falls over them and they find themselves unable to leave. Collins, 30, lives in Hertford, where he makes a living as a freelance cartoonist and illustrator. When asked why he decided to enter he replied:

"Well, the brief was quite open-ended. That made it a much nicer thing than most of my usual commissions. And the layout required by the Observer was quite useful for what I wanted to do in terms of double-page spreads. I like comics that use the possibilities of the old-fashioned, printed, double-page format. I'm not sure, for instance, that this would work on an iPad or one of the frame-by-frame comics viewers you get online, which is rather the way comics are going at the moment. I think they'll lose something in that change, but maybe I'm just a luddite."

His idea was inspired by the way couples have their own private world, one that nobody else really has access to. "I wanted to do a love story, but one that was ugly and a bit weird."

Anna Mill's Square Eyes took the competition's runner up prize.

For support with short story writing, check out our Writers section of the main website.

Taking steps towards your future career

In your first years of university, building towards your career can seem a strange prospect. However, it is the ideal place to start. There are plenty of resources available at university that are geared towards your future steps. Part-time jobs and career centres are excellent ways to start. A recent Guardian career forum focused on the subject: 'What can undergraduates do to start preparing for their careers?'. Some of the expert's answers are below:

'Spend time talking to careers advisors about your interests and transferable skills, do your research and consider trying out something through an internship to see whether certain roles appeal to you.'

'You can never have too much experience - but it important to balance your studies at the same time as other activities. '

'For the summer and winter there are opportunities, although you might have to look further afield for smaller companies and opportunities as there are not as many structured programmes. There are other experiences that whilst you might not think are as valuable that can help make money and provide a steep learning curve for example Telesales provided me an opportunity to learn about the fundamental of sales, persistence, drive and the importance of not taking your first no!'

'don't feel you have to commit right now. Today's job market is more flexible than ever before, especially at the early stages in your career. Apply for opportunities that look interesting to you and be open to seeing where they might take you.'

Writing a CV and constantly updating it is a positive to keep your future career in mind.

Student debt disaster

As the government announces that University fees are likely to increase to circa £9,000 a year, as a nation we have to ask ourselves if what we are doing to the youth of today is really all that fair. Yes, of course cuts across the economy have to be made and this includes essential public industries such as education, health and emergency services, but is it justifiable to laden down young teenagers and twenty-somethings with debts that could easily grow to £40,000 before they've even graduated? Particularly when their job prospects on leaving university leave little to be desired at the moment.

I attended university a little over 10 years ago and yes I spent too much money in the first term, I ended up living on baked beans on toast for the last month before the next student loan installment kicked in, and I had 3 jobs to see me through my 3 year degree course. I still walked away with a double whammy of debt - the overdraft and credit cards I'd used to fund my social life and the student loan I'd used to fund my course fees and accommodation. As a child from a middle class family I wasn't eligible for any sort of student grant - hence the excessive use of the overdraft. But my debts totalled £13,000, maybe £15,000. A large sum don't get me wrong, but still only a third of what the latest generation of students are likely to face.

Walking out of University with a debt that totals £30,000 - £40,000 can be crippling and is a fairly hefty motivation to miss out on University all together. Whilst high earning families may be able to front the additional charges, middle class and working class families are likely to do a detour around the University pathway, and opt for trying to secure some form of employment instead. And that's such a shame for a country that has pushed the important of higher education, and that houses some of the top Universities and greatest intellects in the world.

How to cope with interviews

The Guardian job forums this week focused on how to cope with interviews. You can be the most composed, articulate and personable person but in an interview situation you go to pieces! Attending for an interview can be an extremely nerve racking experience. Being fully prepared will make the process a whole lot easier, allowing you to put the nerves to one side and start on the journey to a successful interview and to securing that job! Words Worth Reading can offer interview preparation packages to help you ace your interview.

Denise Taylor is a chartered psychologist and an expert in assessment and recruitment. She offers some advice for body language in the interview:

Question

'whenever I'm in an interview, even though I don't feel nervous, as soon as I open my mouth, my voice starts shaking and my body language comes across as being not at all confident. I think I am able to rationalise nerves, but my body language betrays me and expresses my hidden, rationalised emotional state! I have no problem talking to people from all backgrounds and stratas of society on a daily basis, but put me in an interview environment and I go to pot! '

Answer

'There are various techniques that can help; something I share with my career coaching clients is to talk outloud as much as you can. this can be as you prepare for the interview, say the questions out loud bot silently in your head. Then just talk about anything as you travel to the interview, easier if you are driving I know, but you could talk outloud as you walk towards the building. It makes you more relaxed.

Also, breath deeply, get yourself centred and remember times when you have found it easy to talk with others and imagine yourself there.

Rather than see this as an all important interview where the power is in the interviewers hands, you could reframe it to be much more two way, it is as important that you decide if you want this job and to work for this company. Then see yourself as a consultant talking about your job.'

Primary Dental Providers called to register with the CQC

November 2010 marks the beginning of the registration period for dental providers. All practicing independent care providers should have completed their registration by the beginning of last month (October) to make way for the registration of primary dental services.

If you are a primary dental service provider you should have by now completed your enrolment form and submitted it to the Care Quality Commission (CQC). The next stage is to start compiling your evidence and to complete and submit your validation form.

For further information on the Care Quality Commission's requirements, visit their website.

Visit our website for details of the support we provide to dental and independent providers with the completion of their CQC registrations.

Shocking new graduate employment statistics

Neil Faulkner from Lovemoney.com reported today that more than 1 in 10 graduates are unemployed after leaving university. This is the highest proportion of graduate unemployment the UK has seen for 17 years. His article begs the question; “Would you pay £6,000 a year for an undergraduate education only to be unemployed at the end of it?”

Whilst unemployment levels in graduates soar, following the Government spending review a large proportion of universities are going to charge £6,000 a year for students to attend university, due to the recommendation that the current cap on fees is abolished. At £6,000 a term, students who study for 3 years are likely to walk away from university with debts of £18,000….and then let’s not forget the fact that a great number of students also take on further debt to manage their lifestyle and living costs. So the question is, is university really worth it? Let’s look at a few deciding factors:

Average graduate earnings

Graduates often start off earning a similar amount to non-graduates; however this changes quickly over the years.

Again, quoting Faulkner, in 2008, a typical 21-year-old graduate earned just £17,472 a year, while a non-graduate with A levels earned £15,912 a year.

However, the typical 33-year-old graduate earned £37,960 a year, while the typical 34-year old non-graduate earned just £27,768 a year.

Average extra lifetime earnings

On average, graduates earn an extra £160,000, or 23% throughout their lifetime.

Subject matters

There are wide variations in average earnings depending on the subject studied at university. Arts graduates for example, earn just £35,000 extra on average during their lifetimes compared to non-graduates, whilst medicine graduates (unsurprisingly) earn a massive £340,000 extra, on average, during their lives.

Earnings grow steady in early years

Regardless of which degree you take, earnings for graduates do grow at a constant rate in the first few years.

Do degrees always pay off?

Well not always no. Without a degree you can still always earn more than the average graduate, particularly if you are able to secure a training place with a big company. Degrees are also expensive and can leave you with a lot of debt which can take years to pay off. And don’t forget, not all undergraduates go on to complete their course, with 20% of students dropping out of university before they complete their final assignments.

Its not all doom and gloom for graduates however! Despite the rising statistics, graduates are less likely to be unemployed overall, and the average financial benefit is greater for a graduate than a non-graduate. In addition, research shows that women gain greater financial benefits from university than men, as women who don’t go to university tend to earn a great deal less than men who choose not to attend.

To help boost your university success rate, check out the Words Worth Reading student and job seeker packages.

Catherina talks about manuscript editorials

Catherina, the Director of Operations for Words Worth Reading Ltd, talks about her experiences in manuscript editorials and proof reading.