How can you get involved?
Read the stories contributed by brand new writers, emerging writers, experienced and prize-winning writers. Click on the links below.
Write one of your own short stories inspired by an object. By choosing an object associated with someone or something we love, we can reconnect in hopeful and uplifting ways. There’s chance for you to receive free editorial mentoring and be published in the exObjects web magazine.
exOBJECTS STORIES PUBLISHED IN 2026
Kimono Offcuts by Jun Homma and Koichi Shimzu. This story, published in the exObjects web magazine in June 2026, was co-created by Jun and her 100 year-old father in Tokyo.
Marriage Material by Devasiachan Benny is a tragi-comic piece published in May 2026 about a young man who is deemed attractive marriage material.
As a first-time writer Devasiachan was mentored by A.T. Boyle at Artificial Silk to produce four online stories. These include Keys of a Lost House which tackles irresponsible tourism in India. This story was expanded and published in December 2024 in the hardback anthology ‘exObjects: the art of holding on, letting go’.
Window by Jafar Mohd. A first-time writer, Jafar’s story, published in March 2026, has been read in over 18 countries.
exOBJECTS STORIES PUBLISHED BEFORE 2026
‘Old Cloths’ by Maggie Pollard
(when you click on the story link, you’ll find an audio recording made by the author too)
‘Small Boat on the Mantlepiece’ by Alison Nicholls
‘Keys of a Lost House’ #1 by Devasiachan Benny
‘It’s Another Kind of Love’ by Jayshree Tripathi
‘Exercise Book’ by Ailsa Holland
‘While Losing’ by Areeba Husain
‘Akhil’s BlackBerry, our treasure’ by Uday Vijayan
‘Dancing skirt’ by Mahboobeh Rajabi
‘Pewter-covered Box’ by Dr Ailsa Holland
‘My home and garden’ #3 by Devasiachan Benny
‘Baseball Cap’ by Sandra Mangan
‘Lost Garden of a Lost House’ #2 by Devasiachan Benny
‘A Brief History of Cars’ by Afreena Islam-Wright
‘Pewter-covered Box’ by Dr Ailsa Holland
Read the first exObject ‘Peace’ by A.T. Boyle
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Create your own exObject at home
1. First choose an object that reminds you of someone or something important.
2. Write about why the object is important to you. Use your imagination as well as including a few facts about your object (150 – 300 words).
3. Decide on an image. This doesn’t have to be the object that inspired your writing. It can be a painting or a textile or other kind of artwork connected to what you want to say.
4. Write a short caption describing your image (1 – 30 words).
Email your words, a photo of your object and a caption describing your image to: artificialsilkorg @ gmail.com
By sharing our perspectives we aim to help others reconnect to the people and places we continue to love.
Please note: By taking part in the exObjects collaboration you’re agreeing that your contribution can be shown on this website and in related media and activities. This is a non-exclusive license agreement, where you retain copyright in your work and are free to show it elsewhere.
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exObjects workshops last either 1.5 hours or half an hour.
Find out what happens when you take part in creative no-pressure exObjects workshops
Curious to know more? Email: artificialsilkorg@ gmail.com