The Cat

by on June 8, 2016 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , , , , ,

For background on this story and how it came about, you may want to read yesterday’s post first. Short version: the story was inspired by this image, which is the wallpaper on my phone’s lock screen: The Cat I walk with fire on either side of me. Out of the fire skeletons grope and reach, […]

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Flowers

by on August 31, 2014 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , ,

This, for better or for worse, is the “crap but short” story I referred to in yesterday’s post. I just sat down and wrote the first thing that came into my head. What emerged was an unintentional mini-meditation on the issues preoccupying me at the moment: love and sadness, regrets and hopes, the dream state, […]

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Tell Me On a Sunday, Please

by on June 15, 2014 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , ,

I don’t often pick up the phone on a Sunday. I prefer to cloister myself at home, with no intrusion from the outside world. If it’s important they’ll leave a message or call my mobile, I reason. I don’t answer my mobile unless the caller ID announces a friend to whom I feel like talking. […]

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The Girl Behind The Bar

by on June 15, 2014 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , ,

I entered this story in a competition a few months ago. Today I found out how I went. Read my next post to find out… The Girl Behind The Bar The girl behind the bar, her face tight like a punch, takes my order. She grips at the tap with a grubby thumb, her blonde […]

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Descent

by on February 5, 2014 in My Short Stories and tagged , , , , , ,

We stand together looking at the view. It is more impressive than a Monet, as shattered as a Picasso. I try to tell him this but he interrupts. I may know nothing about “art,” he says, using his fingers as quotation marks, but in my very humble opinion that tree is an eye, that sand […]

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Of Grief and Naked Bottoms

by on November 18, 2013 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , , , ,

I’ve just been published in a New Zealand literary journal called JAAM. The 2013 issue, JAAM 31, was officially launched on Friday night. For those of you new to my blog who may not have trawled through all my fiction yet, I’m going to post the story here again. I edited it quite a bit before […]

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The Paperback Collective

by on November 3, 2013 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , , ,

A few months ago a very enterprising young woman called Jayde-Ashe (you can visit her lovely blog right here) had an idea. She wanted to establish a monthly online magazine of creative talent, showcasing stories, essays, poems, articles and photographs from contributors around the world. So she did it. And I’m in Issue Four, which you […]

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Elizabeth Goes Shopping

by on June 7, 2013 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , ,

One day Elizabeth woke up and decided to go shopping. She dressed in trousers and an anorak and wrapped a paisley scarf around her hair. After breakfast she ducked through the kitchen, out the gates and was on the No. 32 bus before anyone had noticed she was gone. First stop, Boots the Chemist for […]

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Crossing Over

by on June 4, 2013 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , , , ,

Just for fun: I’ve written the same story, first in under 150 words, and then in under 300 words. I’ve entered both in different Flash Fiction competitions. Which do you think is best? Why? Crossing Over (150 words) We spear through the pre-dawn. As we shoot down the last hill before the pier, all wheels […]

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A Short Short Story

by on May 30, 2013 in My Short Stories, On Writing and tagged , , , , , , , , , , , ,

As I have previously pointed out, I love writing short fiction. Perhaps still high on my success in the 2013 Reader’s Digest 100-word story competition (I came runner-up), I’ve just entered the BNZ (Bank of New Zealand) Literary Awards, in the Short Short Story category (150 words). As long as your story is deemed eligible, it’s published […]

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