Enclosed in this first volume of Collected Stories are seven tales ranging from the magical to the mystical, from the real-world to the other-worldly.

The Legend of Muam Tam Say: An encounter with an ancient wonder of the natural world in the shadows of the Himalayas; a short extract from the diaries of a young soldier on the eve of the First World War describes the spiritual and psychological impact of the spectacular natural phenomenon known as the ‘Muam Tam Say’. If treated with care, experiences do not decay.

The Dot Matrix: A young man re-evaluates his office-bound existence when he comes across the printout musings of an old dot matrix printer. Initially dismissing the printouts as a prank by work colleagues, he moves on with his day. It is only after receiving repeated printouts that he takes the messages to heart and makes life-altering decisions. A print head moves in mysterious ways.

Scary Afternoon in the Garden: An eleven year old boy describes his encounter with the 'creatures from the woods' when they visit his garden one really, really, scary afternoon. Based in a slightly alternate universe, the story is written in the voice of (and from the perspective of) the young boy giving the account its own particular flavour and humour.

The Florin Smile: A meteor shower brings a new chemical compound to earth resulting in a change to a handful of people’s smile. The new ‘florin smile’ soon has far more currency in society than its paper-based cousin as it changes the way each person assesses (and assigns) value and worth. As oligarchs and pretenders panic, the world just smiles and resets. A modern fable on priorities, wealth and happiness.

Parked in a Ditch: ‘The course of true love ne'er did run smooth for a middle-aged, middle manager stuck in the mire of administration.’ The story of man determined to make a (romantic) move on a his charming colleague. But life doesn’t honour plans. Plan A is soon ditched for Plan B, which requires a rapid transition to Plan C that itself soon transforms into Plan D….and so the sad romance reaches its unhappy conclusion (unless Plan H proves successful?). Laugh or cry, nobody cares.

Fear of Lions: A doting uncle offers advice to his niece on how to confront her fears ... and deals with the unhappy aftermath. From being a man ignored and irrelevant, he becomes universally admired and even ‘presidential’ having been nominated to head a national charity aimed at providing wise counsel to children. Yet, he was, at his core, profoundly regretful at having shared that one pearl of wisdom with his niece, Maia. A dark, humorous tale.

The Totty Boat: A grumpy uncle writes a letter to his young nephew offering advice on the stuff that matters. In his letter the uncle reflects on his decades of ‘lady-play’ and advises on how to grapple with the cultural and personal expectations of the modern world and, invoking Einstein, he describes life in terms of ‘space-time’ and space-invaders. The only game in town is sailing. Establish your totty-types and, know this, the totty boat will sail.

Published: June 2018

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