New Work
Work in Progress
Children’s novel – a dystopia
A short story, about renewing an old friendship
Flash fiction set in a swimming pool
Crow poems
Recently finished
Prose
Falls – A short story set in Canada, a woman away from home who’s gone out walking.
So Long Jo – a short story set in a bathroom.
Summer Void – a little story about a little secret on The Scottish Book Trust Secrets and Confessions, Author Stories page.
Skinflinty’s Wait – inspired by the first line of Nan Merriweather’s book Andy from Orkney,2014 as part of the New Stromness Library First Lines project. ‘What – what’s that you say? Something strange came in on the ferry today.’ My piece has a more adult theme.
Widow Kharms’ Guesthouse – inspired by a book on Russian Absurdist Literature. Russia’s Lost Literature of the Absurd Selected works of Danil Kharms and Alexander Vvedensky Translated and edited by George Gibian, 1974.
Birdwoman – inspired by seasickness on the Hamnavoe and kindness.
I have two stories featured on The Back Road Cafe website, including the winning entry for the George Mackay Brown Short Story Competition.
Listener – all story tellers are not the same. This is a dark Orcadian tale.
Jeopardy – all is not what it seems between two old friends on a shopping trip to Sydney.
Poems
Magnus 900 poems – Pamphlet available in St Magnus Church, Birsay.
Margaret’s Lookout – inspired by a visit to St Olav’s Cemetery
Cutting Willow – inspired by winter gardening.
Gold Diggers – written for George Mackay Brown 20th anniversary celebrations.
In writing group we tried our hand at writing some April acrostics just for fun, this one appeared in Living Orkney where I edit our monthly writing page.
APRIL
Although I am not with you these
Past years, it is not true that I don’t think about
Return. In another spring
I will make contact again and
Lately, when you are ready, you might reply.
In the archive…
The Echo Man (7-11yr olds)
A good old fashioned Halloween story.
Do you dare try to catch a glimpse of the Echo Man?Hannah Does. She spends hours staring at the abandoned gatehouse wondering if the old stories are true. Will the Echo Man help her? Are her years of being teased on the bus finally over?The curtain between the living and the dead, the past and the present, has worn thin. Will the Echo Man’s curse bring disaster one last and terrible time?
April Creek
Detective fiction set in New Zealand.
Frank Tyler is a community police officer struggling with his marriage. During one of his counselling sessions Frank’s cousin Charlie phones and tells Frank his father has died. After the conversation Frank becomes suspicious that Charlie is hiding something. When Frank returns to his hometown he becomes involved in solving a mysterious drowning linked to thefts from the local container port. Beneath layers of secrets is the truth of what really happened the night Frank’s father died. How are Frank’s sister and Charlie involved? What will be the personal cost to Frank of finding out?
