Your Story is written by me — but it belongs to you.

This book is a collection of real stories sent in by readers: moments where things didn’t quite go to plan, went spectacularly wrong, or unravelled so completely that the only sensible response, eventually, was laughter. Careers that veered off course. Relationships that imploded. Health kicks that lasted precisely three days. Decisions that made perfect sense at the time — usually at midnight, after a drink — and absolutely none the following morning.

Each story is submitted by readers and carefully shaped into a wider narrative. On their own, they’re personal moments of misjudgement, bad timing, or blind optimism. Together, they interlink — revealing patterns, shared mistakes, and the comforting realisation that very few of us know what we’re doing while we’re doing it.

Some stories are funny. Some are uncomfortable. Some manage to be both at once. Most begin with confidence and end with hindsight. What matters isn’t the failure itself, but what followed: the moment of recognition, the adjustment, the lesson learned — or at the very least, the ability to laugh about it later.

I’ll curate, edit and connect the stories, adding context and reflections where the themes overlap — occasionally admitting where I recognise my own decisions a little too clearly. The aim isn’t perfection or redemption arcs. It’s honesty. It’s relief. It’s that moment of reading something and thinking, ‘Thank God it wasn’t just me.’

To keep things interactive, there will be prizes. Readers will vote for their favourite stories, with awards for the top three funniest entries, as chosen by the audience. No expert panels. No pretence. Just people deciding which stories struck a chord — or hit a nerve.

If you’ve got a story that still makes you wince.
If you’ve ever looked back and thought, ‘I genuinely believed that was a good idea.’
If something went badly wrong — and somehow you got through it.

I’d love to hear from you.

Get in touch with your story, or drop me a short message if you’re not quite ready to share everything yet. A few lines is enough to start — you can always add more later. All submissions are treated with care, and nothing is published without your permission.

Your story doesn’t need to be polished.
It just needs to be honest.

And ideally… a little bit wrong.