These are stories about living and working in Canberra (or a town like Canberra, since no geography is needed), with the usual problems of bosses, relationships, work barbeques, where to live and surviving daylight saving that we all encounter.
Petra, Emma, Sue and Kathy (not forgetting Des, Robbie and Charles) are characters that grew. The four women (and Des, although he is not named) first appeared in The Daisy Chain Theory of the Universe, which was written for a theme "Lovers and Others". When I was writing Not a Bad Drop, I realised that I didn’t have to invent a new set of characters because I already had them. Since then, they have appeared in another thirty two stories, and are now about to star in a a series of novels.
Most of the stories were written to be read aloud at performance venues — typically Canberra bars such as Kimbos, Dorettes and Tilleys (many no longer with us. This dictates the length (about 6-7 minutes) and the style, but some of the later stories are a bit longer. Many of the stories have since been published and/or read on community radio. Mostly, the stories are as originally read, but in a few cases, small changes have been made to references that are seriously dated. Some of the most recent stories have appeared in AntipodeanSF, a web magazine which specifies a length of 500 words, so the stories are slightly shorter.
Each story is intended to stand alone, but obviously there are benefits from knowing the characters from previous stories. The stories don’t read well if they are read in big lumps or at long sittings — a form of mental indigestion is the result. They are better dipped into, and read one at a time. The stories are given here in the order that they were written. Although there is an overall progression in the lives of the characters (Sue does eventually ditch Des), the order of reading does not matter.
To read the stories, click on the links below. Or if you want to download the stories as a PDF file (A4, 102 pages, 337kb) click here.
The Daisy-Chain Theory of the Universe
Not a Bad Drop
A Birthday Gift
Exmas
Ratings War
Medisave
Genes
Dressing Up
Permanent Residence
Steamed Up
Catnap
The Big Spill
Personal Assistance
Trade In
Does It Take After Its Father?
On Course
Lost Love
Generation Gulf
Bulk Learning
Dead Heat
Playing for Keeps
Party Time
A Bit of a Waste
Jet Lag
Long Pig
Winning Ways
Up the Creek
Corporate Body
Underground Agency
Rogue Wave
Mappa Tuesdi
Hot Water
Deserted Village
Chlorophyll Haven
Pay Parking
Dead Cert
Solar Wind
Positive Intervention
Offplanet Processing
New Atlantis
Trojan Crocodile
Telling Lies
Last updated: 08/12/21