Beck Collett
Beck Collett lives in South Wales with her husband, 9-year-old daughter, two monochrome cats and Multiple Sclerosis. She writes short-form fiction, and graduated from the Open University with an MA in Creative Writing with Distinction in 2020.
Beck began writing as a result of her MS diagnosis. Suddenly unable to work, and having no identity or idea of what the hell to do, writing allowed her to create a role for herself among the pain and confusion.
Beck contributes blogs to the MS Society, and her work has been published by Makarelle, The Hoot, Secret Attic, Sixth Element Publishing, Castle Priory Press and New Welsh Review among others. Beck’s novella-in-flash, Blinks and Shards, was highly commended in the New Welsh Review Rheidol Prize for Prose 2022.
Q: If you could travel back in time, which of the great writers would you like to meet and why?
A: Charles Dickens. I love all Dickens’ books that I’ve read, falling for the ridiculously intricate cast of characters in each and every one. Shameful how the social commentary is still applicable today, and the horror he was able to imagine still horrific.
Q: Is there a book that you keep going back to, and if so, how many times have you read it?
A: There’s a John Steinbeck short story from 1934 called Johnny Bear. I couldn’t begin to tell you how often I’ve read it, and couldn’t well describe it to you afterwards, but it chills me every single time. It’s extraordinary.
Q: What superpower would you like to have and why?
A: I already mastered the art of invisibility – something many people with disabilities and ill-health will recognise – so I don’t need that. I get motion sickness, so flying outside of a protective plane carcass isn’t all that appealing. I think I’d be a little selfless, while also selfish, and have healing hands to ease the pain and worries of others – and myself.
