In the world of fairytales, men can become wolves and wolves can become men. There is always a gift in our longing, a journey in our desires. But, it must always be remembered that any deal made in magic will have far-reaching consequences. It is the perspective that we choose, in living with the those consequences, that make us who we are.

Thank you to Rhys Sund, who created the soundscape behind the story.

*Contains strong language and mental health themes

Amanda is her early twenties and to be frank, is very lonely. Housebound by her schizophrenia and inability to socialise, her only companion is her cat, Bernard Appleby. This is until she has a strange visitor that may just change her life.

 This is another story from the archives, with a much more modern flavour than my usual mystical and mythical style. This was one of those stories that came from nowhere and just poured itself onto the page without much thought or interference from me (ego). 

This story was inspired by the whimbrel. A migratory estuary bird that breeds on the east coast of Australia in summer and then flies to the Northern hemisphere to the Arctic in Autumn. I became fascinated with the many birds that come to the small seaside town I grew up in to breed and eat in the estuaries one year when I found out how far they fly. It seemed impossible, yet they do it, year after year.  'Half of Midnight on an Empty Ocean' is one of five stories written for an anthology of dystopian short stories written for Young Adults, for my Masters of Secondary Education minor thesis. 

The idea for this story came from the experience that I have had many times. It's that moment where you meet someone new or see someone from across a room, and could absolutely swear that you have met them before. That somehow, you know them, even though, you don't. Enjoy listening...

This story was written about that inexplicable feeling that so many of us have when we meet someone for the first time, and we swear to god that we know them. And we even ask them where have met them before. Somehow, both parties feel that same feeling. That feeling of knowing, of deep recognition. I wrote it in early 2012, but rewrote it last year for an Overland writing competition. This is a testament to how time can let stories grow. 

In the world of fairytales, men can become wolves and wolves can become men. There is always a gift in our longing, a journey in our desires. But, it must always be remembered that any deal made in magic will have far-reaching consequences. It is the perspective that we choose, in living with the those consequences, that make us who we are.