Tall And True Short Reads

(Bosnia and Herzegovina, 1993): The roar of explosives devastated the peace of the valley. Tibor had covered his ears with his hands before Milo flicked the detonator switch, but the thudding explosi…

Westminster (England, 1993): "Madam Speaker, I —" Baxter groaned and lifted the pen. He stuck the end in his mouth and sucked on it, searching for a better opening line. He crossed out the first word…

Phil Collins released Both Sides of the Story in October 1993. It was a catchy song, but I remember it more for the music video. Scenes of homelessness, domestic violence, military patrols on streets…

At primary school in Perth, Western Australia, in the 1970s, I had a teacher who was also a lay preacher on the weekends. Before schoolwork, he started the day at our (supposedly) secular state schoo…

The sky-blue swell pounded the breakwater at Borthel on Sea in a steady rhythm. John gazed out at the mountains across the broad bay and drew a deep calming breath. The anxiety that had built up and …

The headmaster sighed and shut out the old memory. He leaned forward on his desk. "Edwards, your marks and behaviour this year have been poor enough to earn expulsion several times over." Hamilton wa…

Hamilton leaned back, tapping the tips of his fingers together in contemplation. "An interesting dream, Edwards. What do you make of it?" Charlie shifted nervously from leg to leg. "Well, sir, I've b…

Hamilton held up a hand. "You mean to tell me, Edwards, you dreamed about the house where you live with your parents?" The boy shook his head. "No, sir, I've never seen this house before, but in my d…

Charlie took another deep breath to calm himself. "Well, Mr Hamilton, it was the weirdest dream I've ever had. It was more like watching TV than a dream. Only, it was me on the TV." Scenes started re…

The headmaster tapped his pen on the punishment column in the discipline file. "I'm waiting, Edwards. Why do you want to come back to school next year?" Charlie's mouth still felt dry. "Because I wan…

The wooden bench in the hallway outside the headmaster's office was hard. It made you squirm. But once you'd sat on it, you daren't wriggle to relieve the creeping pins and needles. Because if you di…

Three minutes into the performance, and I stifled a yawn. Crammed in the front row with a clutch of fellow bored hacks, I hoped no one had noticed. However, the acclaimed actor and playwright and rec…

By its definition, the key to good microfiction is brevity. There is no time for plot and character development; every word must count. The writer plunges the reader into the story and wrenches them …

We hit the road at sunrise. Anna complained about packing the bikes in the pre-dawn dark. But we had to make up for the kilometres we'd lost yesterday to punctures and her mishap. Our reward was a cr…

My class had a lesson on "conservation" at school today. Miss said it's where people reuse old things or use new things more thoughtfully. Or do stuff differently to stop using up the Earth's resourc…

"Happy anniversary, Darl." My blank look doesn't wipe the smile from his face. "It's our double anniversary, remember?" he prompts, presenting me with a single red rose. "Nine months since the party …

The photograph is gloomy, and the colours are fading. But it was twenty-five years ago. I'm sitting in the high-ceilinged inner courtyard of the Al-Rabie Hotel in Old Damascus, catching up my travel …

It's a warm, sunny day and I'm strolling along Brighton Promenade during my lunch break. Seagulls are circling and squawking, and sunlight shimmers on the blue-green English Channel. I look away from…

The golden sand squeaks in protest as Megan presses her body more firmly into the beach towel. A gentle breeze carries a salty scent and chills the sweat glistening on her sun-toasted skin, as gulls …

Should have done this years ago. But don't tell Pearl I said that because she's been on at me for ages to do a cruise. I kept telling her I didn't want to be stuck on a floating hotel with a bunch of…