8 May: Laura Literary Awards Open themed, 1,500 w short story, entry $20, prize $200. YA Short Story, 1,200 w, no entry fee, prize $200. Upper primary Short Story, 800 w, no entry feel, prize $50. Junior primary Short Story, 800 w, no entry feel, prize $25. Junior primary Short Story, 500w, no entry fee, prize $15. Open poetry, 60 lines, entry fee $10, prize $200. Bush poetry, 60 lines, entry fee $10, prize $200. YA poetry, 60 lines, no entry fees, prize $50. Junior poetry, 6

Sorry. I'm sorry Mum I never told you about dad's truths omission. Yes, when I was taking the train daily with him back from uni, one day he'd not expected I had caught his train. I boarded at the last minute and slowly made my way to his usual carriage. There he was sitting next to a woman as fixated on previous decades as him, sitting closer to her that I'd ever seen my parents sit. And holding the hand of a woman I didn't know. It's probably why you questioned or verba

Bonn is growing into a tween as he manages an expanding farming settlement. Mother observes an uninitiated phenomenon. Bonn is silently reflecting with deceased sentient beings and softly pronouncing ‘Sorry’ and ‘Thank-you’. Database identifies this as developing ethics. History notes the ancient movement called ‘Religion’, that held widespread practice on Homeworld, insisted that a mono (or multi) deity initiated and imposed ethics on its practitioners. Now, a lone, uni

‘I’m sorry for not doing everything you asked when you asked it. I’m sorry I didn’t put the car in the garage exactly how you wanted it, even though it was exactly where you put it last time. I’m sorry I don’t calculate numbers in the exact method that you do, even though we still come to the same result. I’m sorry I don’t dress up better when we go out even though you wear the most ridiculous and inappropriate old clothes. I’m sorry I don’t agree with the same things as you,

‘Jono, it’s me.’ ‘Yeah, what d’ja want?’ ‘Well, you know how you said you could return a favour to me for helping you do better and getting 43% in your English essay?’ ‘Yeah. Mum was really pleased with that,’ Jono said proudly. ‘Yeah, well I need you to get something for me.’ ‘Yeah, what?’ ‘Well, you see there’s this girl I really, really like and I know I can talk to her ok, but I don’t really know how to get her into bed.’ ‘Yeah right, so?’ ‘Well, I was think

Making bodies do what they do not do naturally is one of the oldest demonstrations of power; which is kind of bonkers if you think about it. Logical authority would be the optimal use of bodies to their most suited capabilities, not their demonstrative repurposing. Drill sergeants training recruits to stand, march, and look in unison may (and do) argue that practice grows abilities where there were none; but bodies deprived of any movement standing on sentry, or bodies in con

They stroll up the ridge. Cuddles is large enough to ride but he prefers to not burden her. Grumblebums are big and particularly angry beasts but Cuddles and her mum have uncharacteristically calm natures. She grunts and grumbles softly beside him. Her four eyes move both synchronistically and independently, if she senses danger, giving her a 270-degree visual range. They reach the top and marvel at the vista. This is their daily treat. Bonn tries, again, to instruct

‘Stand up! Sit down.’ ‘Make up your bloody mind’. Cassie sat down. ‘Come over here.’ ‘Oh for God’s sake what now’. Cassie moved over to the window. ‘What? What is it? I can’t see anything.’ I wish he’d bloody well explain himself better. ‘Now come and look at this.’ ‘You have to be f&%*ing kidding me. Yes what?’ Cassie got off the lounge and strolled over. ‘Again I can’t see a thing, you moron,’ she stated the obvious. But he was oblivious to her insults. This wen

‘I don’t care, I’m keeping my surname. It’s a ridiculous custom. Besides, the hassle. Ugh.’ He shrugs. ‘Oh, I see that. How about if we choose something different? Like, both of us.’ ‘That’s just making a fuss for the sake of it. Why bother?’ ‘Well… I could change my first name at the same time.’ She raises her eyebrow. ‘To…?’ ‘Well I could get it spelled right, to start with.’ She’s too polite to comment, and there’s a silence. He continues. ‘I've been lumped w

“It’s all day! You have to be here ALLLL DAY!” “No, no way. Too long. Let’s just make it a coupla hours? Huh!” “Nope! Rules says ‘It’s a DAY” “But, but” he sulks. “You’re a bully” “I haven’t got all day” demands another “three hours, that’s enough. Three, maybe four, that’s plenty, but not allllll dayyyyy!” “Look sweetheart, if he said all day it’s going to bloody well be ALL-bloody-DAY!!” “What do you mean?” said the cross-eyed snob in the corner “that we ha

Dayve used to be Dave. Why... I hear you ask the reason for the name change? Well all I can say is, what an improvement! For if truth be known, you are much more a DAYVE than a ‘Dave’. There are plenty of Daves in this world... let’s face it. Apparently in 1966 ‘Dave’, D.A.V.E was voted the year’s most boring name... Quite a feat. And that generation knew what it was on about: long hair, beads, free love, and cheap shots at God-blessed politicians who wanted to save th

Mother works on refining purple Wildgrass into harvestable products. Its tiny seeds produce drops of nectar, that BlueBow Butterflies love. For years, Mother has cultivated the germ embryo extract for a rich food-additive mixture. This gives Bonn tremendous nutritional energies. They have a corral to keep semi-domesticated Grumblebums, using sachets of spook grass to sedate them slightly but Bonn insists, eventually, they let them free to roam. Two stay around without s

Day ‘ have ‘Day’ve taken all of dem.’ Dayton scoured the drawers, finding nothing but rubber bands and old crayons from when his nephew stayed last April for the holidays. ‘Where did they put de damn tings.’ His botched dental work from seven years ago, which caused his daily migraines and speech difficulties, had affected his internal monologue. His inner voice, aped the outer voice’s speech. As if his disembodied mental self had an appointment at the same dentist. Did the l

With apologies to anyone with an unusually spelt name! Poor Dayve – one of those kids born to parents determined to bring up their child to be different and they thought giving him a name with spelling unlike any other was a good start. Unfortunately, like most kids in this situation, he was destined to have to spell it for the rest of his life. Maybe he’d come up with a novel way of describing it. It’s “Day” with the German version of “we” on the end – “ve”. Ah, maybe too co

Germinal, germane Seed-husk, Cousin-german Zola Zeal Zealot Fever-dreamer Humans are colonies Bought out by bacteria Majority shareholders At fifty-seven percent Of cell stock Silent partners Voting with their D espotic N atal A ccess Carry on Pretend To act alone Our boardroom Issues Unilateral Commands Decisions Predetermined Primordial Soup

The crows were sitting in their usual tree. Ah Ahhhing as usual. It was a usual day. There were normally three crows but today there were only two. I wonder what they are thinking, I thought to myself, as I sipped my cup of Earl Grey, sans milk, sans sugar. I am a purist after all. I wonder if birds can be purists? I mean will some of them only ever eat a particular type of seed they won't add other seeds to it…or milk or sugar I suspect. They seem to be chatting to each othe

At early morn, about once a month (homeworld time), the night sky would be almost dark. The trillion stars meet the BlueBow Butterflies as they rise from the grasses to blend like stars joining the celestial paradise. The air is a bit crisp, even chilly, and the translucent animals and birds meld into Bonn’s visuals. He normally couldn’t see them in daylight but at this precious time they blend and move like a slow trickle throughout the grasslands below their camp. Bonn

My thoughts on this are early Unripe None other stand up here with me yet All lonesome Time yet to form Dewy fresh Unconsidered Innocent Think Consider Revisit … Revise … Redo Yes, redo, this won’t do at all The thoughts do not align With these confident New others Standing here with me Reconsider Refrain Listen The sun is hot Take rest Perhaps this will do Or not Anxious Harried And now I find That I am Late

At waking time when all the suns were lowest on the horizon, Bonn would hear a musical note floating in his range as if flying by. It was always slightly flat then disappear like being tuned in and out. Puter said it was from a native bird with gracious wings, long tail and iridescent blue-purple-silver then invisible to Bonn’s visuals as the musical notes hit a higher octave. It wasn’t like a high-pitched squeak or siren but slightly flat warbling notes. Bonn rarely saw b

It was a boiling hot day, and Doug decided to nick down to Isabell’s for a swim. He wasn’t really worried about seeing her, he just needed her pool. When he arrived, Isabell was already in the pool. She had a few of her friends from the group there and everyone was relaxed and chilling out. There was an ever so slight moan from them when he pushed the gate open, but he didn’t notice. He nodded to them all. He looked her up and down as he dived in, she had an athletic body