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NEWCASTLE CREATIVE WRITERS


Spring - Vesna McMaster
My name means spring, and my name day is in March. It all makes sense in the northern hemisphere. My partner celebrates it on Sept 1 st , assigning an antipodean valence with cheerful disregard for tradition. Whatever the date, it always falls on pressure washing season.

Vesna McMaster
Sep 1, 20251 min read


David Gairdner - Spring
Spring finds the fulcrum. The leaves fall upward and gift; flowers, freshest fruit.
David Gairdner
Sep 1, 20251 min read


Carol Gano - Spring
"What's that step?" the Macedonian grandmother halted the dance. Eyes pivoted, but gently. They all hoped to be dancing at her age. She...
Carol Gano
Sep 1, 20252 min read


Kevan Smith - Spring
Coolness over body. Family, friends glide through the gentle water of Bay. Faster, slower, up, down. Flow along beautiful, soft, gentle, ultra-sensor currents. Sonics through azure, guide to fishies, especially soft little ones. Love little ones. Fun sneaking up on and nudging schnapper or two by tail tips. Scares shyte out of them. They wobble, spin trying to not be devoured. I do ‘cause I can, makes me giggle, blow out bubbles of joy. Boat people come look. They
Kevan Smith
Sep 1, 20251 min read


Ricci Schwarzler - Degree
It was one of those days in August in the southern hemisphere, at about 32 degrees latitude, where it was on the cusp of winter and spring. When the wind wasn’t blowing it was hot in the sun, but as the wind circled around, you could feel that slight bitterness of winter. She knew there was someone who needed her help. She felt it. She could feel it in her mind and wisping around her body like the breeze. She didn’t know who it was at this point. All she could do was stand on
Ricci Schwarzler
Aug 25, 20254 min read


David Gairdner
Aug 25, 20250 min read


Kevan Smith - Degree
Blinking, slowly. For an eternity, his lid closes like time standing still. Staring through eyes of eternal pain, lenses of excruciating agony, focus, an eon of torment. The bullet rips into his side. He sees it slide into his flesh, a micrometre, a microsecond at a time. Molecules of blood float in super slow-motion out of the ever-widening cavity. Dancing a ballet of beauty, spinning, twisting, twirling. One degree at a time. One micro-second frame by frame.
Kevan Smith
Aug 25, 20251 min read


Ricci Schwarzler - Guy
Cath our boss, walked in to the office and said, ‘Can one of you guys talk to Mark when he comes in today, about the job in Tamworth please? We need to ensure he has the crane sorted?’ I didn’t see anything wrong with what she said and just got on with my work waiting for Mark to turn up. Everybody else (of which we are all female) did the same. A bit later on Mark the client walked in and said, ‘Morning guys Cath told me I need to fill someone in on the issues with t
Ricci Schwarzler
Aug 18, 20253 min read


Kevan Smith - Guy
“Guy” is male and old French for ‘guide or lead’. Guy of Gisborne tried trapping Robin and stealing Marian. Sebastian sings at people and promotes falsehood. One is very Pearcing, another Richie directs and married a virgin. Others have been stand-up-Guys and even fall-Guys. My-Guy, frat-Guy, goofy-Guy, chill-Guy, even a Toy-Story-Guy. Some even companioned dolls. One guarded gunpowder, arrested, tortured (over a few days), finally confessing that he tried to blow up par
Kevan Smith
Aug 18, 20251 min read


David Gairdner - Guy
I am just some guy. It is just my opinion. I should just shut up.
David Gairdner
Aug 18, 20251 min read


Kevan Smith - Cold
Shaking snow off his bear-hide Grog trudges into the cave. “Corrrr, bloody cold out there. Freeze tha tits offya mammoth”. He kicks the sabre-tooth skull down the back of the cave. “Awwww Grog darlinnnggg, don’t mess the place up ya big hairy slob” minces Og. “Pterry, my big bird flew today but was so cold she couldn’t get off the cliff, so she laid an egg. That’s tonight’s din-dins.” “Fair dinkum, gotta stop livin’ with mates n’ go find a woman” grunts Grog. “Only if you
Kevan Smith
Aug 11, 20251 min read


Michael Sheridan - The age of the monster truck
As a result of a roo-strike I’ve found myself urgently in need of a new car. I’ve done a lot more research than I’m willing to tell my...
Michael Sheridan
Aug 11, 20252 min read


David Gairdner - Age
Founded balloons… Silken worms form the loom Lunatics feed off the womb. Guarded meal worms … Death of old age. The elixir of the...
David Gairdner
Aug 11, 20251 min read


Vesna McMaster – Age
‘How’re mum and baby doing today? All well?’ The midwife pats the covers and leans over the silent, close-wrapped bundle. ‘Oh, what a face!’ The mother laughs. ‘I know, right? I feel judged.’ ‘Those are eyes that know this world.’ The baby stares back at the midwife as if it’s about to announce her grades in maths. A big, black sombre gaze through lowered lids. Nine months. One year. Eighteen months. The gaze lands on carers and playmates. Five, ten, thirteen. ‘An o

Vesna McMaster
Aug 11, 20251 min read


Carol Gano - Age
Age of Anthropocene. it's the geological epic dating from significant human impact on earth's geology and ecosystems including the...
Carol Gano
Aug 11, 20252 min read


Ricci Schwarzler - Bird Flu/Cold
“Hey Jack, what seems to be the problem?” ”You’re doing an awful lot of coughing.” “I’m not sure, I just can’t seem to stop.” “It wouldn’t be bird flu, would it?” “Don’t be so ridiculous do I look like a bird?” “Well, actually, yes. We’re pigeons for God’s sake! Coo coo, cooety coo coo.”
Ricci Schwarzler
Aug 11, 20251 min read


Ricci Schwarzler - Age
I’m waiting to see the doctor and contemplating her comments about every issue I have relating to age. Oh dear here it comes. ‘Well yes your aches and pains are due to your age.’ ‘What?’ ‘Yes, as we get older our bodies just aren’t what they used to be.’ ‘Hang on how old do you think I am?’ ‘Oh well it doesn’t matter.’ ‘Do you really say that to someone who’s 20?’ ‘Oh well no.’ ‘Okay so stop putting every fucking issue I have down to age and listen to what I’m telling you?’ S
Ricci Schwarzler
Aug 11, 20252 min read


David - Cold
Don't sleep with livestock. You will catch the strangest things, and make hens jealous.
David Gairdner
Aug 11, 20251 min read


Michael Collins - Age
You are as old as you feel. What a truism. I was 25 a long time ago. And I must have felt old, because I wrote a poem about being......
Michael Collins
Aug 11, 20252 min read


Kevan Smith – Age
Age, age, does not weary them, but makes them get the absolute shits! I hate this, I now tell jokes that my daily exercise is tying up my shoelaces, that if I drop something, I leave it there till I drop something ‘really important’, kick it over to the first thing just “to make doing exercise” a worthwhile activity. I like how remote controllers reduce getting up and down but hate how my thumb now has bulging muscles it’s not supposed to have. Washing up is a three-day
Kevan Smith
Aug 11, 20252 min read
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