My first ‘real life’ book was launched in September 2020. Technically it is not my book. It’s an anthology of short stories – one of which is mine. Since then there’s been a number of anthologies published featuring one of my short stories… while I work on a full-length novel.
What is an Anthology?
It is a published collection of literary works. It can be songs, poems, plays or short stories.
Here’s the anthologies my stories are in.
I love so many things about Christmas, and one of them is all the cute Christmas stories that come out. So it would be no surprise to hear that I’ve had stories in four different Christmas anthologies.
The most recent is a collaboration with twelve fellow writers that are also members of Romance Writers of Australia. It is based on the Christmas carol “Twelve Days of Christmas”, and each one of us wrote a story based on one of the lines from the song. I’m lucky last with 12 Drummers Drumming.
You can grab a copy of My True Love Gave To Me via ebook HERE, but I also have a number of print copies available for $25 plus postage. Message me direct if you’d like one.
Through Gumnut Press, I have a story in the anthology titled Holiday Kisses. This is a rom-com that I had a lot of fun writing!
One thing’s for sure, after tonight, Meredith will never look at a plum pudding the same way again.
My story is titled Mere Christmas. Available from all your favourite retailers HERE.
A Special Gift was a limited release for 2022. It featured stories by Susannah Kade, Nancy Cunningham, Eleni Konstantine, Susanne dBargnet, Tanya Kean and myself. It’s no longer available for sale as an ebook but there are a couple of print copies available HERE.
Two anthologies I have been part of were a collaboration that formed out of GenreCon, an annual writing conference with Queensland Writers Centre. Both these feature a mix of writing styles – crime, sci-fi and romance.
Forbidden Doors was launched as part of Genrecon 2023. My story is my take on reality television – a modern day version of Perfect Match. (The 1980s version, not the 2023 show by the same name).
Order you copy HERE
Lighthouse: An Anthology was our first collab. My inspiration for this was the Cape Leeuwin Lighthouse in Western Australia, which I first visited as a child and again recently with my own family.
Order your copy HERE
During COVID lockdowns a group of fellow romance writers and I started meeting weekly via Zoom to chat all things writing. It was during those zoom chats that a few of us set about putting together our own anthologies. It resulted in us putting together six different publiications.
First we created a world in Emu Bend.
I’ve been asked by friends if any of my stories are about them. The answer is no – mostly. There’s always going to be fragments of my life that have shaped me that I bring back to life.
In my short story published in High Country Kisses, I have included something I have experienced personally, as have many of us. Domestic Violence. Lara’s story is not my story but there are pieces of me in her.
In No More Secrets my story centres around an older couple. (And by older I mean my age… shhh). Happily married, or so Bette thought, but her husband has been acting a bit distracted lately.
Again I have added a little slice of my own life into this story. It’s just a little touch, and it relates to a farm animal, but it brings a smile to my face when I remember.
We followed up with Best Christmas Wishes. I love Christmas. It’s not just the puddings and pavlova, it’s the family getting together. And even though the kids are all adults now, it’s still seeing the same smiles of delight on their faces I remember when they were all still shorter than me.
The stories from High Country Kisses, No More Secrets and Best Christmas Wishes are now only available as part of The Emu Bend Collection, available through all your usual ebook suppliers HERE.
In our second year, my writing group opted for a sea change.
Welcome to Bayside Villas. It’s not the prettiest set of apartments along the coastline, but it’s what the residents call home.
The first anthology in this location has an Easter theme, and what’s an Easter without bunnies and chocolate? Grab a copy of Bayside Beach Easter HERE. The second in the Bayside Beach series continues with the sea change, albeit a cool one. It might warm you up to know that my story in Bayside Beach Winter features the characters you met in Bayside Beach Easter, and I loved returning to spend time with them. Grab your copy of this one HERE.
It seems such a long time ago now that I won one of the Queensland Writers Centre’s monthly short story competitions. Now they have been running the competition for a couple of years, they’ve published some of the winners in this lovely anthology. So happy to be included, and alongside many other writers I’ve had the pleasure to meet since.
Find out more about Right Left Write competitions HERE
Sweet Treats is an annual anthology produced by the Romance Writers of Australia as part of an annual sweet romance story competition.
My short story Recipe for Romance was the first one I ever entered in this competition, so it was a real confidence boost to be selected for publication.
Order your copy HERE
Just Alice was my first anthology.
I entered a writing competition with Stringybark Stories, with the theme Tales with a Twist … The twist turned out to be that not only was I a finalist, my story was published in the anthology a few days before the Sweet Treats anthology was released. That made two in one week.
Order your copy HERE