A message from: Mike Drabble

Thanks to everyone that entered this contest: it was a pleasure to read your work. There were some strong pieces submitted, but a decision had to be made and I went for 'Hot Fun Shark Attack'. This is a poem that captures the blank-eyed menace of the shark, but in an unexpected yet jarringly familiar setting. It shows that the shark has survived for hundreds of millions of years because its predatory efficiency can be adapted to places other than the oceans; places where, just like at some sunny shoreline, apparently innocent play can mask a more ruthless undercurrent. The writer reveals this undercurrent to be as dangerous as any we may encounter, and leaves us alert for the next time we may venture into a place - or relationship - that sees us out of our depth.