Jim Gibson is a small story writer and novelist from the Hidden Valleys area of the North Nottinghamshire Coalfields. His work has been described as ‘vanishing boundaries between nostalgia and trauma, work and leisure, reality and fantasy’ and has gained praise from a range of writers including Booker Prize winning author DBC Pierre. At times gritty realism, at others lighthearted and sometimes teetering on the edge of the bizarre, his work is uncategorisable. All told in Nottinghamshire dialect, it is immersive and page turning writing.
His latest collection, The Bygones, is available via Tangerine Press, with the publisher set to release his debut novel, The Warren, in 2025.
Entering the literary world as editor of Hand Job Zine, he has always been on the outskirts of the literary establishment, using his ‘outsider’ status to promote work that pushes literary boundaries, transgresses expectations and generally challenges perceptions whilst remaining fun and engaging for readers. Due to the success of Hand Job Zine, he then went on to co-found Hi Vis Press and edited the accompanying magazine, Low Light which featured writers such as Jenni Fagan and James Kelman.
His work has been published widely in the zine world (Paper and Ink, PUSH, Glove) and by more established literary platforms (3AM magazine, Bookanista, Open Pen) alongside Being chosen to be included in the Best British Short Stories 2023 anthology published by Salt. Nightjar Press published a story as part of their Chapbook series in 2023 titled A Symbol of a Memory.
He has written a personal essay based on the rural working-class existence for The Quietus and currently self-publishes a series of zines titled The Hidden Valley at sporadic intervals with 50 numbered copies.