That brave lady, Folly Blaine, is wrestling most expertly with a canny orange tabby and a maverick veterinary ‘researcher’ in ‘Cat Nav’. Up in podcast so you don’t have to try to pronounce ‘prestidigitator’ even in your head. Continue reading ‘Cat Nav’ Every Day Fiction podcast
‘Oars for Legs’: It’s very embarrassing to have a spasm in the middle of a – how shall we say – romantic interlude. Even more so when you have succeeded in trapping your paramour by the genitals and pinned him up against the wall. Cerebral palsy can be a bugger sometimes. Out on Full of Crow: disability positive with a giggle and a smidgen of nearly-there science. Continue reading ‘Oars for Legs’
Do you remember ‘No Arrests in 2039’ on Every Day Fiction? No? Great – it’ll be all fresh when you listen to the podcast then! And you might think twice about falling crime statistics … Continue reading ‘No Arrests in 2039’ podcast
‘When Izzy’s eyelids got burned off, she had to watch all the time without blinking – apart from the frog-lick that slides across side-to-side, but you can see through that so there’s no escape and she’s been watching since Jinty started making the dance. ‘ In Lancaster university’s 2013 anthology of MA creative writing. Contributors are part time and distance students. ‘Dance to the Wild Ice’ is set in the same world as ‘All the Birthdays‘ and it’s on P5. Go on, unsettle yourself! Continue reading ‘Dance to the Wild Ice’
Speckles in the Sky is a tiny piece of magical realism I wrote for a friend’s retirement, because, obviously, I’ll do anything to get out of trying to think of something witty to say in three square millimetres on a card. It starts like this: ‘Coming on nicely,’ said the man jogging by. ‘Nearly there.’ Lynda turned to check out the source of this odd intrusion. Her heels spun and she almost lost her balance; damn council, leaving the pavements in disrepair. She twisted back again and found herself rotating the other way, like a rapper’s disc on a concrete turntable. Maybe it … Continue reading Speckles in the Sky
Some people had trouble downloading the report on PDF (How many characters can a short story accommodate 2 pdf) and some quite rightly don’t trust documents from the internet, so here it is in glorious WordPressy HTML! For the (obviously erudite and entertaining) preamble, go here. How many characters can a short story accommodate? Introduction We have all read novels in which entire dynasties of personnel are detailed, each individual with their own plot arc from the tiniest bit player to the central character. The theory goes that a novel has time … Continue reading How many characters can a short story accommodate?
Every two years in the UK, madness breaks out. We stick on red clown noses, sit in baths of baked beans, and shave our heads. Well, not all of us, obviously, but enough to prompt the rest of us to cough up cash to help disadvantaged people here and abroad. Comic Relief is the uncontained, arsey version of Children in Need and even our senior politicians feel obliged to take part. My bit is easy – I’m asking you to flex your muscles while I sit here and wait. There are eleven comments on my little bit of … Continue reading Comic Relief
And coming in at Number One, it’s All the Birthdays by Moi! Ok, so it’s just that it’s the first up but admit it, you’d milk that Top Spot too wouldn’t you? Go and have a look – only 245-ish words so no time at all. And it’s a bit of a shocker. You’ll like that. Continue reading All the Birthdays – Lascaux flash competition
‘All the Birthdays’ is my entry for this year’s Lascaux flash competition. Submissions will start appearing on March 6th so if you fancy a jolly good wallow in loads of quick reads, or indeed popping in a bit of your own flash, that’s the place to go. ‘Doomcha Doof‘ was my 2012 entry and seemed to be judged pretty but baffling. Or maybe just pretty baffling. I’ve aimed this time for more clarity but will settle for better quality bafflement as a good second! Continue reading All the Birthdays
The Wild Rose and the China DollI am the oldest I have ever been, and the youngest. Saddled with Original Sin, so they say, but am I guilty of anything, except need?Jim and Eileen are newlyweds, embarking on a joined life that even the Catholic church could not discourage. He is back from the war. She is a machinist, escaping industrial drudgery and a household in which she is, like the furniture, utilitarian. It is 1946. Had it been 1986, we would not be here, in this place. But it is not. It is 1946 and much is pre-ordained.On a … Continue reading ‘The Wild Rose and the China Doll’
Dr Suzanne Conboy-Hill 