(photo credit: Rachel Saunders) A few years ago I spent a lot of time looking for writing tips to use in one of my short stories called, “Seventeen Rules for Writing a Short Story.” One thing I discovered is that just about every writer who has ever lived has some advice to give on writing, … Continue reading
C.H. Pearce’s short story, Torvald’s Year, won the 2015 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Short Story Award.
“This account of how poor Torvald struggles to escape his wretched life below ground is a superb example of speculative fiction. It plunges the reader straight into a dystopian world of ‘suffering’ without any of those explanations and technological details which would detract from the story.” (Judge, Maureen Bettle). Continue reading
Blogger in Residence, Matthew C Lamb, chatted with the most Canberran writer you’ll ever meet, Sean Costello. I was in Harry Hartog’s in Woden the other day when I came across something unusual on the counter. Neatly folded in a cardboard stand was a stack of short stories, each for the spare change price of … Continue reading
Theresa Layton is an award winning author who lives and works in Canberra as a facilitator, professional writer and consultant in law courts. Theresa is hosting a workshop series at the ACT Writers Centre, Focus on the Short Story, for short story writers at all levels, starting 30 March 2016. In this installment of Taking 5, Theresa gives … Continue reading
Jennifer Hand’s short story, Now and Then, was highly commended in the 2015 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Short Story Award. “Subtle and understated, this double portrait brings together a young woman with her older self in the mundane setting of a supermarket” (Judge, Maureen Bettle). Read Jennifer’s piece below and stay tuned for more winners and shortlisted stories … Continue reading
Ashley Thomson’s short story, A White Woman in Ōjin, was the winner of the 2014 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Short Story Award. Read his piece below. More of Ashley’s work can be found on his blog here. Stay tuned for the publication of other shortlisted and winning entries in the coming weeks. They can be found here. A white woman … Continue reading
Alison O’Hara’s short story, The Garden House, was shortlisted in the 2014 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Short Story Award. Read her piece below. Stay tuned for the publication of other shortlisted and winning entries in the coming weeks. They can be found here. She could tell straight away that the garden had once been loved. Tall natives straggled … Continue reading
Cara Lennon’s story, The Loose Thread and the Sterile Needles, was shortlisted in the 2014 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Award. Read her piece below. Other shortlisted and winning entries will be published here in the coming weeks. I don’t usually keep a diary, but my encounters with Rory were so unusual, I feel the need to jot something down. I’m writing … Continue reading
Christine Kearney’s short story, Hookin’ In, was shortlisted in the 2014 Marjorie Graber-McInnis Short Story Award. Read her piece below. Stay tuned for the publication of other shortlisted and winning entries in the coming weeks. They can be found here. We land and Gracie vomits. Then we go down the stairs in an icy wind and … Continue reading
In the morning the people do the work of gods… The sun does not rise. Fires have been circling the city and Jervis Bay for days. Many people are remembering the last big one, the last full attack. As are the dogs, who smell the fear, the smoke. They are howling now, no doubt hearing … Continue reading
CAPITAL LETTERS 