Kevin Ramsden Member Member since 2020

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Start each and every day with a new idea

Fiction

Kevin Ramsden resides in Kyoto, Japan, and is a professor of Global Studies at a university in the city. Other than writing, his interests include listening to reggae music and complaining about the performances of West Ham United football club. He has also self-published a collection of short stories titled “Here Comes Kenji – Stories from Contemporary Japan”, some of which have found homes in Japan-based journals and magazines along with a number of other pieces accepted for publication around the world.

Location:: Kyoto
Birthdate:: 26 January (67 years old)
Social:: Instagram

Kevin Ramsden's Publication History

Sep 2026

Flash Phantoms published Shades of Black

Aug 2026

Flash Phantoms published Flight 666

Aug 2026

Interrobang Lit published Deluded

Jul 2026

Copper Moon Productions published Number 6

Jul 2026

Flash Phantoms published Divine Intervention

Jul 2026

Slash Media published Here Comes Kenji

Jul 2026

Neither Fish Nor Foul published The Last Stand

Sep 2024

The Font Journal published The Observer

Mar 2022

The Font Journal published Monkey Want Banana

Dec 2020

Tokyo Weekender Magazine published Counting the Days Til Summer

Interview with Kevin Ramsden

Where do you prefer to do your creative work?

Just about anywhere really. I keep a notebook and pen with me at all times and pop down notes as ideas for a story come to me.

Who are your literary (or artistic) heroes?

Cormac McCarthy, E. Annie Proulx, Larry McMurtrey, Charles Bukowski

If you could only take one book on a ten-year voyage, what book would you choose?

Lonesome Dove or Accordian Crimes

How much of a typical day (or week) are you able to dedicate to your creative work?

I'm semi-retired, so I can write pretty much every day. However, I tend to write in spurts and can knock off a few flash fiction pieces over a few days and usually when I am settled in a beach bar in Thailand or Vietnam post-semester.

What makes you procrastinate when you could be doing your creative work? What are your strategies for finding focus?

I watch too much CNN and BBC for my own good. I go for a long walk and try to get my artistic engines started with a breath or two of fresh air.

How do you celebrate your successes, such as acceptances? How do you handle rejections and other setbacks?

I open a nice bottle of New Zealand Sauvignon Blanc and drink it with my wife when I get an acceptance email and sigh a little and just get back at it when I get rejected. Life's too short to be miserable for more than a millisecond.

How much time do you spend reading for pleasure or edification?

I read every night before bed and at odd times throughout the day.

Where do you find inspiration?

In everyday things and the people and places around me. I have written a bunch of short pieces featuring Kyoto or Japan, the city and country I live in. They do say you should write about what you know, right? I have also just completed the manuscript of a novel based on the adventures of twin brothers who up sticks in the UK and seek their fortune in Kyoto. I'm really hoping to find a publisher for it soon. Anyone out there interested?? Please!!!

What single creative achievement are you most proud of?

Making (with the help of my lovely missus) a couple of happy, healthy young men who I couldn't be more proud of.

What advice would you give to a young, budding writer (or artist) with less experience than yourself?

Just do what you do. Getting rejected is a lesson well learned and spilling the words out on the page should always be fun and not a chore.

For your first draft (or sketch), do you prefer analog or digital tools, or a mix?

A mix.

Do you incorporate generative AI/LLMs into your creative process? If so, how?

Not one bit. But I do like the images ChatGPT makes for me when I am promoting a piece on social media

What is your favorite word and why?

All words are my favourite

Last Updated: 12 Oct 2026