Stories

Short stories to read in one sitting. Deep Waters runs as a series, chapter by chapter. Fallen Angels is the same story, watched or played. Family Holiday is the same story, played.

Cover of The Forgotten Box by Julie Sursok

Julie Sursok · Family · 17 min

The Forgotten Box

The house had been empty for almost eight months. Not abandoned. Not forgotten. Just waiting. A sealed box in the attic still carries a grandmother’s words.

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Deep Waters Chapter 1 | by Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 1 · Lydia Penn · Love · 10 min

Deep Waters Chapter 1 | by Lydia Penn

Justin first noticed the girl as he and Ben joined other first-class passengers at the ship’s rail as the Sydney bound liner sailed closer to Port Said and……

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Deep Waters Chapter 2 | by Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 2 · Lydia Penn · Love · 7 min

Deep Waters Chapter 2 | by Lydia Penn

When after a sleepless night, Ben woke the next morning complaining of earache, he got scant sympathy from Justin, who was still nursing his anger and bruised ego after…

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Deep Waters Chapter 3 | by Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 3 · Lydia Penn · Love · 6 min

Deep Waters Chapter 3 | by Lydia Penn

The excitement of arriving in a new country after over a month at sea kept Ben and Justin fully occupied for their first week in Sydney. They had been warmly welcomed by…

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Deep Waters Chapter 4 | by Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 4 · Lydia Penn · Love · 7 min

Deep Waters Chapter 4 | by Lydia Penn

Bradley Noakes was young, but he was bright, hard-working and ambitious. He had been only a short time with the Melbourne newspaper when news broke of the…

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Deep Waters Chapter 5 | By Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 5 · Lydia Penn · Love · 9 min

Deep Waters Chapter 5 | By Lydia Penn

Bradley Noakes was forging ahead in his career, but his dedication and irregular hours left him with little time for an active social life. He knew several girls whom he…

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Deep Waters Chapter 6 | By Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 6 · Lydia Penn · Love · 10 min

Deep Waters Chapter 6 | By Lydia Penn

The woman whom Justin and Ben had known as “Skippy” tossed restlessly in her sleep. The dreams were returning, the nightmares. She thought she could hear…

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Deep Waters Chapter 7 | By Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 7 · Lydia Penn · Love · 9 min

Deep Waters Chapter 7 | By Lydia Penn

Ex-Detective Inspector Russell Digby was bored! He had now been retired for about a year and had found that retirement was not all he had been led to…

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Deep Waters Chapter 8 | By Lydia Penn

Deep Waters · Chapter 8 · Lydia Penn · Love · 8 min

Deep Waters Chapter 8 | By Lydia Penn

Bradley Noakes glanced approvingly round the small Italian restaurant where Jessica had booked a window table for lunch. He liked the red and white gingham…

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The Stock Routes by Mulga Pete

Mulga Pete · Friendship · 2 min

The Stock Routes by Mulga Pete

Painting by Max Mannix: All Ears. Short bush story of droving west of Quilpie by Mulga Pete. It's 47C in January West of Quilpie

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A Time To Love (Ecclesiastes 3.8)

Lydia Penn · Love · 8 min

A Time To Love (Ecclesiastes 3.8)

Chapter 1 The wedding invitations had gone out, presents had begun to arrive; there were continued discussions with caterers and florists and final fittings…

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A Walk In The Park By Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 5 min

A Walk In The Park By Lydia Penn

But soon the sky would cloud over, flowers would wither, leaves would fall, and the earth would appear barren and inhospitable. Then again, from their long sleep in the…

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Back Yard Domination by Warren Moore

Warren Moore · Fiction · 2 min

Back Yard Domination by Warren Moore

23 years ago in a back yard near you, a young couple had plans of building a home and growing a loving family. They could see the little feet running in the…

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Bonnell Spring Nursery

Warren Moore · Fiction · 4 min

Bonnell Spring Nursery

Legend speaks of this solitary spring, a great holy spring that was able to tension and vibrate at the exact harmonic necessary to reach the ZZZ-code. The…

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Click - Press - Click by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 6 min

Click - Press - Click by Lydia Penn

Henry was wildly enthusiastic. “We must get a computer,” he declared as he talked with friends and saw what they could do on their computers. Henry had always been keen…

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Do You know I LOVE YOU?

Charity Kamtaura · Family · 9 min

Do You know I LOVE YOU?

by Charity Kamtaura Duburiya. It was in the weekdays on the 🌴sland of Nauru, both of us, my sister and I wearing our secondary school uniforms with buttoned…

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Double Delivery by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Love · 7 min

Double Delivery by Lydia Penn

Part 1 of the “Double” Trilogy The two storks flew wearily across northern France towards the English Chanel. “Not much further now,” said one. “It’s all…

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Double Trouble by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Love · 9 min

Double Trouble by Lydia Penn

Part 2 of the “Double” Trilogy by Lydia Penn. Audrey had always preferred to use the phone; writing letters, she considered a waste of time. It was early…

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Doubling Up by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Love · 11 min

Doubling Up by Lydia Penn

Part 3 of the “Double” Trilogy Audrey and Jason sat in a companionable silence, sipping their wine in the picturesque riverside country pub. They had sat…

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Electric Blue Formal

Lilly Sparrow · Feel-good · 3 min

Electric Blue Formal

As the school formal approached, the halls of Westwood High buzzed with excitement. Girls chattered about dresses, shoes, and hairstyles, while the boys…

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Fire Escape by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 8 min

Fire Escape by Lydia Penn

It was a spur of the moment decision – he saw the very opportunity for which he had subconsciously been looking; a chance to disappear, to be free, to start a new life…

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Interlude in Andorra by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Love · 8 min

Interlude in Andorra by Lydia Penn

Things were not going according to plan! Hot, tired and frustrated, we stood with our (fortunately) light luggage, outside the tourist office in Toulouse and considered…

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Journey of enlightenment

Warren Moore · Love · 2 min

Journey of enlightenment

In the serenity of the tranquil garden, the seeker embarks on a journey, guided by the wisdom of Confucius, unravelling the mysteries of life. (journey of…

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Lost Love by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 5 min

Lost Love by Lydia Penn

It was a perfect English summer afternoon. As she followed her elderly hostess across the sunlit green sward, where she had enjoyed many games of clock golf, she could…

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Morocco Bound. By Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 7 min

Morocco Bound. By Lydia Penn

Morocco Bound is a farcical English Edwardian musical comedy in two acts by Arthur Branscombe, with music by F. Osmond Carr and lyrics by Adrian Ross. It opened at the…

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Perdita by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 8 min

Perdita by Lydia Penn

Joshua rarely travelled to the city; he much preferred the peace and tranquillity surrounding the country estate which had been in his family for generations

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So Simple By Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 5 min

So Simple By Lydia Penn

She soon found work as a kitchen hand in a girls’ boarding school in the town. As it was wartime both domestic and teaching staff were difficult to obtain and there were…

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Story of Jett!

Josephine Hill · Family · 3 min

Story of Jett!

A few years ago I was the single mother of an 18 year old son, Jett. An engaging, eloquent and talented young man. And yes, defiant at times, typically…

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Taking Flight by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 6 min

Taking Flight by Lydia Penn

As time passed, her feeling of uneasiness grew in intensity with every passing minute until it developed into sheer panic. The announcement of a delayed take off somehow…

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The King and The Colony

Lydia Penn · Fiction · 9 min

The King and The Colony

The King was justifiably angry as he perused the latest report from the Colony. “My patience with these people is coming to an end,” he raged as he paced up…

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The Narrow Boat by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 6 min

The Narrow Boat by Lydia Penn

It was Duncan who introduced them to narrow boats. He and Maurice had grown up together, been to university together, but had since lost touch. Now more than ten years…

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The Perfect Dress of Black and Gold

Lilly Sparrow · Fiction · 2 min

The Perfect Dress of Black and Gold

The night was crisp and clear, the stars twinkling brightly in the sky as they watched over the young college student as she nervously sifted through the…

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The Pick Up by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Fiction · 17 min

The Pick Up by Lydia Penn

“Excuse me. Didn’t I see you at Pippy’s party last night?” The distinctive transatlantic voice broke into Anne’s thoughts, as she stood motionless on the…

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The Real Mrs Smith by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Love · 13 min

The Real Mrs Smith by Lydia Penn

He certainly would never have described himself as a middle-aged roué, and he would undoubtedly have been grossly offended if anyone had so much as hinted…

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The Richardson Chronicles: Flames of Hope

Warren Moore · 4 min

The Richardson Chronicles: Flames of Hope

The sun peeked over the distant mountains, casting a warm glow on the quaint town of Willowbrook. Nestled between the dense woods and the towering peaks…

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The Search by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 10 min

The Search by Lydia Penn

A short parable of believing in a better place, not leaving change to the last minute or another time

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The Spark of Redemption

Warren Moore · 2 min

The Spark of Redemption

Sydney, with Kevin's guidance, had not only defeated the foe of breakdowns and stress but had also overcome her self-doubt. She had transformed from a…

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The Story Of Brian

Warren Moore · 2 min

The Story Of Brian

This story outline showcases the journey of a flawed hero, Brian, who, with the guidance of Kevin, overcomes challenges and transforms into a better version…

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Thinking Thirties by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 8 min

Thinking Thirties by Lydia Penn

The rain continued to beat heavily against the window panes, and as Louise looked out she could barely see the dripping green foliage outside; the grey leaden sky…

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Travails of a trolley by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 6 min

Travails of a trolley by Lydia Penn

It lay hidden in a dark corner of the loft, a small but sturdy luggage trolley, forgotten or unwanted by the previous owners of the house, and now discovered by Edwin…

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Vienna Weekend by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 5 min

Vienna Weekend by Lydia Penn

Amazing what can be packed into a suitcase and a weekend! Vienna was just a two night stopover but it contained some unexpected and interesting events – not quite the…

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Well Well by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · Fiction · 7 min

Well Well by Lydia Penn

The Traveller mopped his perspiring forehead and settled himself comfortably on the grass in the shade of a large tree. He drank thirstily from one of the…

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Where there's a Will . . . by Lydia Penn

Lydia Penn · 7 min

Where there's a Will . . . by Lydia Penn

Well ensconced in his favourite armchair by the fire, Grandpa belched loudly, clunked his teeth, and looked around at the four younger men of his family. “If you want my…

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ZZZ-Code | The Wright brothers

Warren Moore · Fiction · 3 min

ZZZ-Code | The Wright brothers

Dayton Ohio 1869, Susan Catherine Koerner and Milton Wright have a secret. All of there lives they have had faith and belief in a universal connection, a…

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