GK BIRD

Writer, Editor, Reader, Publisher

Short stories

I publish some of my short stories on Vocal. Some of these are also collected in Saving the Scarlet Macaw and Other Stories (available in paperback or ebook).

At the bottom of this page, you’ll find some flash fiction that you can read here.

Take That, Kieran

Fifty bucks and they’re yours

Short comedy story using only dialogue

You Had Me At 'Eyes'

Oh. My. God. What are those?

Short lipogram story (no words with ‘i’)

I Was There

I know exactly what happened

Short crime horror story – Winner Vocal+ challenge

An Intake of Breath

I have no choice but to accept what I can’t change

Short dystopian story

The Bears

Once upon a time there were three Bears…

Short reimagined fairy tale

With Child

The mirror showed a reflection that wasn’t my own.

Short horror story

The Last Window

The outside world was unknown to her, but she could see a glimpse of it through the window in his room.

Short dystopian story

Them

A child…a key…a lock

Short fantasy story

The Ash Man

The long plaintive wail of a train horn startles me awake.

Understand

The cabin in the woods had been abandoned for years, but one night, a candle burned in the window.

Short horror story

Black Sleep

There weren’t always dragons in the Valley.

Chapter 1 Fantasy novel

Bowerbird

Dear Mum, I need to tell you some things.

Short story – Runner-Up Vocal+ challenge

Portent

Grandma always said that barn owls were a portent of death

Short horror story

I Am Sleep. Let Me Lull

Sleep on repeat.

Nightmare

“You know that never happened, right?”

Short story – Finalist Vocal+ Fiction Awards

The Graveyard of Dreams

Once she did this—if she did this—there would be no going back

Saving the Scarlet Macaw

A message of healing and hope

Short story – 2nd place winner Vocal+ challenge

Gravenwell Lake

Halloween spent in nature was a Buckley family tradition.

Short horror story

Blind date

Sometimes you have to make your own decisions

A moment in time

A frozen pond is as quiet as a moment in time.

A long drive home

Caroline must have done this drive at least 82,359 times before.

Everybody leaves

I always thought my brother was dead.

Sacrifice

Can an apocalypse be one person’s fault?

No regrets

The first time he saw it was three days after his official retirement.

Flash fiction

Bridget

For the first ten years of Bridget’s life, the world was full of colour and sound and wonderful things.

Nice Will Not Suffice

I watch him with sleepy eyes and wonder what happened to us.

It Should Be Me

It should be me up there.

Doug's Idea

Doug said he’d been doing it for months.

Maybe

“If you can’t fix it with duct tape, you’re not using enough duct tape.”

I don't hate you

I’m not packing my suitcase. I’m packing yours.

Small kindnesses

The old man shuffled into the food court.

Now and then

“I’ll start at the top,” I said.

Tim has to go

Sharing your body with a demon sucks.

10 times I won and 1 time I didn't

We were inseparable…until we weren’t.

Remember

That’s me on the porch of that old holiday rental.

Whatever I want

“Where were you yesterday?” How do I answer that?