Love on the Rock

‘Where’s your accent from?’ ‘I’m from Malta.’ Where’s that? I’ve heard of it but not sure where it is.’ ‘Between Italy and Africa. In the middle of the Mediterranean.’ That was when I first fell in love with the man I was dancing with, and later the ‘Rock’ that was his homeland.   Our first …

Memories- Chatting to David Bowie

Where are we now? Yes he was an icon but that’s not how I remember David Bowie. Weirdly I found myself writing this as if we had met in the street after so many years and were having a catch-up chat. Thinking back to the old days, as Elvis would have said “Memories.” By the …

Happy New Year and Thank you

This is the traditional time of year to look back and reflect on the past as well as looking forward to the future. Sadly 2016 will be mainly remembered for the number of celebrities who have died, some at a comparatively young age. There are almost too many to mention although David Bowie’s affected me …

The Cafe

The inspiration for my short stories can come from anywhere; a chance remark or even a competition where the story has to relate to a prompt word or photograph. I'm delighted to say that The Cafe was a winning entry and has being published online. You can see the original photo which provided the inspiration …

Crystal Palace

After my local team's narrow defeat in the F.A. Cup last week against Manchester United it started me reminiscing about the area. For those outside the UK this might not make much sense but here are a few snippets of useless information about Crystal Palace, which is in South East London. First of all there is no …

The Trials of youth

Another in my 5 Random words series. The words selected for me to use in a story were; Road-trip, moose, hippies, tractor, police.   John Anderson sometimes reminisced about the road-trips of his youth when he lived in Canada. He remembered the 60s, a dozen hippies in a beaten up van, driving round the country …

Bed socks and broomsticks

It's surprising how everyday comments and events can be the inspiration for a story.  Have you encountered the 'missing sock' syndrome, or visited a preserved property and been intrigued by the gadgets of yesteryear?  If so this story is for you. Photos courtesy of Paula Harmon. National Trust property Kingston Lacey.  Lacey was excited. Grandma …

Blood and lineage

I wasn’t like the other horses in my family. They say it was because my mother escaped to the mountains one night, when the moon was full and magical beings were dancing in the glow of its silver light. Although she was recaptured our owners weren’t pleased. She had a long pedigree, and the sire …

The Table

This short story was inspired when a friend posted several pictures of tables (the furniture kind.) An everyday object you might think, but the first showed a young couple at a romantic dinner, the second a happy family eating together, and the final, poignant one an empty table. This was my interpretation of the story …

Memories behind closed doors

Have you ever looked at an entrance and wondered what lay behind it? This photo, courtesy of Lee Malta of 'Photographs Malta' was my inspiration for the following story.  The last time I visited the land of my ancestors I was very young.  I had been born and brought up in England, and hate to think …