Jen Harvey

Sometimes she can still hear it. The rush of air that swept through the station that morning.
Everyone had blinked and taken a step backwards as the train powered through.
And as they blinked, he jumped. The train coming to halt five hundred meters up the line.
Later, the driver explained that he hadn’t even seen [...]

Posted on October 15th, 2009 under Fiction. Tags: Fiction, Short Story. Comments: None

Last year our neighbourhood was terrorised by a lovelorn blackbird.
All through spring and deep into summer, this optimistic little minstrel would perch on the edge of our building and sing his heart out, in the hope of attracting a mate.
He sang for months. All summer long. But in vain. For despite the most elaborate [...]

Posted on March 23rd, 2008 under Amsterdam, Miscellaneous Musings. Tags: Fiction, Short Story. Comments: None

Lottie was my grandmother’s friend.
As a child her name confused me. To my ear, Lottie was the sort of name you would give your favourite doll. A chirpy, foolish sort of name. Giggly and frivolous.
So when I first met her, I was shocked to discover that Lottie was in fact an old woman.
She [...]

Posted on March 14th, 2008 under Fiction. Tags: Fiction, Real Life Observations, Short Story. Comments: None

The tree stands on a mound at the top of the hill.
From this vantage point it has views out across the fields and down towards the lonely row of houses that make up the village.
Up there it’s possible to see everything. There’s nothing that goes unobserved.
It’s form, silhouetted against a backdrop of [...]

Posted on April 23rd, 2007 under Fiction. Tags: Short Story. Comments: 1

It had taken four days to arrive, the snow.
During that time, he could smell it coming.
The air was different. Cleaner, clearer, more a texture than a smell. A prickle in his nose and throat that made him feel alert and slightly on edge.
He would stand outside and breathe it in, sensing its approach.
It [...]

Posted on April 17th, 2007 under Fiction. Tags: Short Story. Comments: 2

JULY
They’re in my street, filming my home, which I guess was inevitable.
The first thing I notice though is the grass. It’s all yellow and dry and it makes the house look pale. I’m surprised at how quickly it’s deteriorated.
When I lived there I made sure the lawn was green. The same as all the other [...]

Posted on November 13th, 2006 under Fiction. Tags: Short Story. Comments: 2

It’s always the same when I come back from being away. I seem to take a long time to settle in back home and to establish a routine I feel comfortable with.
The disorientation leaves me incapable/unwilling to write or even think so, in the meantime, while I wait to re-engage my brain, here is another [...]

Posted on August 25th, 2006 under Fiction. Tags: Short Story. Comments: 2

Another short short entry in the monthly competition I participate in online.
This one actually garnered the most votes which was cool.
Funnily enough though, when I read it now I find it a bit contrived and sentimental.
Anyway, the theme in June was “If Only” and this was my take on it…
*****
I could have told her [...]

Posted on July 10th, 2006 under Fiction. Tags: Short Story. Comments: 1

I’m currently taking part in a little writing group online that sets a monthly challenge to write a story of 200 words or less on a set theme.
Each month we vote on the best one and the winner gets to pick the next month’s topic.
The first topic was (appropriately enough) entitled “The First Time”
This [...]

Posted on June 20th, 2006 under Fiction. Tags: Fiction, Short Story. Comments: 2