Gail Gilbride

SHORT.SHARP.STORIES returns with an exciting theme: FLUID – FREEDOM TO BE

You are invited to send in your short stories. Happy writing! For the submission form, please email: shortsharpstories.fluid@gmail.com

Wild flowers, whales and wishing for new beginnings…

The carpets of wild flowers are here. So are the canary yellow canola fields, interspersed with lush green farms of grain. I am reminded that I live in paradise. The beauty of the Overberg is overwhelming. It would be foolish to dwell on my own human frailities. And yet I

Three. A good number!

It’s been three years since my diagnosis. Three amazing years of new adventures, rekindled friendships and exciting new hobbies. And laughter is still there in the mix. It’s not for nothing, that I’m well known for my ditziness. My friends accept this as part of the package. If they are

A review of Mad Woman by Louisa Treger

Mad Woman is a fascinating novel about the pioneering Elizabeth Cochran, first female investigative journalist to break through the male dominated arena.    Elizabeth aka Nellie Bly sets out from Pittsburgh, where she’d already written some controversial articles for the local paper, and heads for New York and The World

Add a chuckle…

When last did you laugh until your tummy hurt? That’s a serious question. There is so much going on in the world. Most of it is certainly nothing to chuckle about it. But here’s the thing…laughter really is healing. I know that I’ve touched on this issue before. So this

Bucket lists and other things… So it is already the winter of 2022 and my bucket list is still on my desk. I have ticked off a few to do’s mind. I added one or two left field ones too. Art tops that category. Starting a book club in the

Sunday Times Literary Awards longlists announced

The longlists for SA’s most prestigious annual literary awards for non-fiction and fiction – the Sunday Times Literary Awards – have been announced in partnership with Exclusive Books.?Karavan Press has two titles on each list. Congratulations to all longlisted authors, and extra literary hugs to Karavan Press authors: Karen Jennings,…

Porcupines

Autumn in the countryside and porcupines eating my arum lilly bulbs are a real thing. Amazingly, this is already our second season here in the Hemel en Aarde valley but the first visit from one of the little creatures. Archie the cat therapist, still comes for a cuddle as soon

Pockets of magic

There was a time when the light at the end of the tunnel seemed so distant that I sometimes doubted my ability to reach it. But reach it I did, thanks to all of you. Today, I am reminding myself of this. No, not of the difficult journey but of

The Island Prize 2022 Winners

Submissions for the inaugural The Island Prize opened in September of 2021. By the time the submission window ended in mid-December, we had received more than 120 entries from all over Africa. There is a myth that there is only one type of storytelling in Africa. We can say with…