From the pier to the 13X bus, Eastbourne writers tell the town’s stories

A young photographer up on the pier and a bus driver on the 13X each catch sight of something that troubles them in A Trick of Light on the Pier, a new anthology of short stories, poems and memoirs from Eastbourne. Independent publisher Seven Sisters Press will publish the collection on December 6th, priced £9.99.

The anthology brings together work by local writers from members of the creative writing group at The Printers Playhouse on Grove Road.

It is published by Eastbourne's new independent publisher, Seven Sisters Press, founded by editor, Sarah Carpin. Her photographs also provided the basis for the cover design and illustrations.

Carpin’s title story takes its inspiration from the pier’s camera obscura and the theatre fire of January 1970. It is December 1969 and Danny Vale, a Hitchcock fan saving for art school, borrows his uncle’s Polaroid. From the dome he photographs two men by the railings. Only when he mentions the picture in a café does he realise what it might cost him.

In Sally Brockway’s The Dream Route, it is the passengers who catch the eye of Stan, a driver on the 13X from Brighton. When a woman boards at Seaford and asks for Beachy Head, an overheard phone call leaves him wondering whether he ought to intervene.

One of the anthology’s warmest welcomes comes in Dave Appleby’s memoir, Eastbourne (The First Time). After a long day on foot, he orders Portuguese salt cod in a fish and chip shop on Seaside. The owners send upstairs for a bottle of wine. Years later, when he comes to choose somewhere to retire, he remembers that meal.

A Trick of Light on the Pier  |  Seven Sisters Press  |  6 December 2026 £9.99  |  ISBN 978-1-0655350-0-3  |  sevensisterspress.net