Behind the Wattles and other award-winning stories from the Stringybark Flash and Microfiction Awards
edited by David Vernon, e-book — and paperback, Stringybark Publishing,
ISBN: 978-0-9872558-5-3
$14.95 includes postage within Australia. Discounts for multiple purchases.
Slowly, the hole grew deeper as he found his rhythm. Dig, swing, dump. Dig, swing, dump. His laboured breathing synchronised with the turning of his shoulders; dragon’s breath in the morning chill. He was grateful for the wattle trees enshrouding the lower garden, for they shielded him from prying eyes while he undertook this grimmest of tasks. Sunlight slanted through silver leaves and splashed upon her corpse, which was gaily wrapped in a floral curtain he’d found in the garage.
“Would she like those colours?” he wondered, without irony. He had no idea who she was, only that he’d awoken to discover her lying still and cold beside him in his bed. — from Behind the Wattles by John Poole
Fifty-six flash fiction and twenty-one microfiction stories feature in this anthology of cunningly clever, award-winning stories from the Stringybark Flash and Microfiction Awards. From murder mysteries to goldfish and World War to pavlova, well-known and emerging short story writers demonstrate their skill in weaving compelling tales in fewer than one thousand words.