''Notes from the Underground'' is a creative writing

free newspaper Free newspapers are distributed Gratis versus libre, free of charge, often in central places in cities and towns, on public transport, with other newspapers, or separately door-to-door. The revenues of such newspapers are based on advertising. T ...

. Its first issue was distributed on the

London Underground The London Underground (also known simply as the Underground or as the Tube) is a rapid transit system serving Greater London and some parts of the adjacent home counties of Buckinghamshire, Essex and Hertfordshire in England. The Undergro ...

and in shops and libraries throughout

London London is the Capital city, capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of both England and the United Kingdom, with a population of in . London metropolitan area, Its wider metropolitan area is the largest in Wester ...

on 17 December 2007. It aims to function as a quality alternative

to those on the tube. It was inspired by the success of '' The London Paper'', but aims to be an entertaining and accessible platform for up-and-coming writers and illustrators.

Content

Stories

Most of the stories are by new writers, though several more famous authors have written new stories for the paper. These include ''The Dreams of Bethany Mellmoth'' by William Boyd, ''Feed Me'' by

Russell Brand Russell Edward Brand (born 4 June 1975) is an English comedian, actor, podcaster and media personality. He established himself as a stand-up comedian and radio host before becoming a film actor. After beginning his career as a comedian and la ...

, ''The Changeover'' by

Mark Watson Mark Andrew Watson (born 13 February 1980) is an English comedian, novelist and producer. Early life Watson was born in Bristol to a Welsh people, Welsh mother and English father. He has younger twin sisters and a brother, Paul Watson (footba ...

, ''The Grand Mal'' by

Richard Milward Richard Milward (born 26 October 1984 in Middlesbrough) is an English novelist. His debut novel ''Apples (novel), Apples'' was published by Faber in 2007. He has also written ''Ten Storey Love Song,'' ''Kimberly's Capital Punishment,'' and '' ...

. There are also stories of one sentence, including one by crime writer Peter James.

Illustration

There are several cartoon strips, stand-alone cartoons as well as a new illustration for each story.

Distribution

''Notes from the Underground'' was distributed outside 35 central London tube stations as well as in branches of

Foyles Foyles, a trading name of Waterstones Booksellers Limited (formerly W & G Foyle Ltd.), is a bookseller with a chain of seven stores in England. It is best known for its flagship store in Charing Cross Road, London. Foyles was once listed in ...

, selected branches of

HMV HMV is an international music and entertainment retailer, founded in 1921. The brand is owned by Hilco Capital and operated by Sunrise Records, except in Japan, where it is owned and operated by Lawson. The inaugural shop was opened on Lo ...

and Waterstone's, public libraries and independent bookshops.

Criticism

''Today'' programme report

''Notes from the Underground'' was discussed on the BBC ''

Today Today (archaically to-day) may refer to: * The current day and calendar date ** Today is between and , subject to the local time zone * Now, the time that is perceived directly, present * The current, present era Arts, entertainment and m ...

'' programme by John Sutherland and Peter James on 17 December 2007. Sutherland agreed with James that "everything in the paper is worth reading", but felt the newspaper was pitched too highly compared to other free newspapers. "It might work, but I think the title is an allusion to the

Dostoevsky Fyodor Mikhailovich Dostoevsky. () was a Russian novelist, short story writer, essayist and journalist. He is regarded as one of the greatest novelists in both Russian and world literature, and many of his works are considered highly influenti ...

book ''

Notes from Underground ''Notes from Underground'' ( pre-reform Russian: ; post-reform Russian: ; also translated as ''Notes from the Underground'' or ''Letters from the Underworld'') is a novella by Fyodor Dostoevsky first published in the journal ''Epoch'' in 1864. ...

'', which I suspect would probably go over the heads of most commuters." However he did add that "this is a very good platform for new literature, and I am all in favour of it. More power to it, I say."

References

External links

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Video showing the design process
{{Newspapers in London London newspapers Free daily newspapers London Underground in popular culture