Fiction
All Aboard
By Sue Harper Sarah had signed up to go on a 10-day cruise. She had great misgivings about it: she might be stuck in a floating gin palace with intolerable bores, she might have a [… read more ]
fiction
Fiction
Emily: A Portsmouth Story of Mental Health in the Great War
We present the opening chapter of Emily, Christine Lawrence‘s novel set in the Portsmouth Borough Asylum in the latter years of World War I. Based on real-life stories and events from the time, it was [… read more ]
Fiction
The Haircut
By Anne Paton-Cragg ‘If you book the middle seats we’ll be able to see the subtitles better,’ Fiona suggested. Subtitles? Singaporeans were always hopping between languages and dialects. English, the medium of education, was a [… read more ]
Fiction
Billy was a Socialist
By Pete Adams Silly Billy Was Billy silly? Billy felt silly. He believed he was a socialist and a committed anti-racist and was now being called an anti-Semite because the Labour Party said so – [… read more ]
Culture
Portsmouth Bookfest Interview with Christine Lawrence, Author of Don’t Step on the Cracks
Helen Salsbury interviews author and S&C regular contributor Christine Lawrence about her latest novel, a psychological thriller set in the homeless community in Fareham. Helen Salsbury (HS): Why did you write Don’t Step on the [… read more ]
Culture
Portsmouth Bookfest Interview with Helen Salsbury, author of Sometimes When I Sleep
Loree Westron interviews author and S&C Community Reporter Helen Salsbury about her debut novel, a contemporary coming-of-age story influenced by Victorian Gothic literature. Loree Westron (LW): I’ve known you for a number of years, Helen, [… read more ]
Fiction
Maybe Margate: A Story of Refugees and Humanity
In light of the recent tragedy in the English Channel, local novelist and S&C Community Reporter Helen Salsbury presents a short story reacting to the treatment of refugees and asylum seekers in this country. It [… read more ]
Culture
Coming out as an Author: Why Portsmouth’s Writing Community Rocks!
Helen Salsbury, whose debut novel Sometimes When I Sleep was recently launched, reflects on the publication journey and the joy of friends. I’m an introvert. These days, you’re allowed to stand up and say it [… read more ]
Fiction
The Entertaining Angel
By Sue Harper Sarah kept seeing something out of the corner of her eye. It was almost there when she looked aslant, and then it disappeared when she tried to look at it head-on. It [… read more ]
Fiction
The Empty Road
By Margaret Jennings Madie dressed in slouchy trousers and an old tee shirt. No work today. No work for an unknown amount of her future and she was determined to stay healthy. A walk with [… read more ]