Our late summer writing challenge this year is to write a short story - of no more than 1,500 words - to be based on a photograph or painting of a garden.

Following the example of Rose Tremain, Jake Arnott and Adam Thorpe, who have all written short stories based on paintings chosen from the 'Art of the Garden' exhibition currently showing at the Tate Britain, we'd like you to choose a painting or photograph of a garden currently in the public domain. You can choose another of the paintings from the Tate Britain's exhibition, or any other publicly accessible source (galleries, internet, we don't mind as long as it's publicly accessible - but personal photos don't count!).

Read the short story, 'Death of An Advocate', by Rose Tremain, and view the painting that inspired it.

Read the short story, 'The Silence', by Adam Thorpe, and view the painting that inspired it.

Read the short story, 'St Swithin's Churchyard', by Jake Arnott, and view the painting that inspired it.


We are looking for a good story with strong narrative, believable characters and polished prose, and stories must be inspired by and strongly linked to a publicly accessible painting or photo of a garden.

[Click here for a page which demonstrates how to design a story from the starting point of a painting.]