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Maureen Buchanan

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Nov, 2025

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12 Stories

138 karma pts

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When Private Stakes Collide

When Private Stakes Collide. The Condon family had just lost Harold, Joan’s husband and Debbie and Brian’s father. He had suffered from lung cancer due to smoking for several years. Brian suggested that they have a Wake in Joan’s home before the funeral. This would give their family and friends the chance to say goodbye and support each other at this difficult time. Joan agreed with her son’s suggestion, and they started the preparations for the Wake. They invited five close family members and ten friends to the Wake and everyone accepted th...

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The Ultimate Result of Continual Control.

Weekly Contest #354

The Ultimate Result of Continual Control. Jodie shared a unit with Helen, her daughter who had just celebrated her seventeenth birthday with a group of friends at the local club. Helen had enrolled at TAFE in a Certificate 1V hairdressing course which would qualify her to apply for work in a local salon. She had always been interested in hair styles and beauty therapy, and the career would provide satisfaction, creativity and independence. She would be able to rent a unit and save money to buy a car. Her life would dramatically change from ...

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A New Life with Bright Colours.

Weekly Contest #352

A New Life With Bright Colours.I woke up early and looked out at the black night sky and I knew instantly that it reflected my life. I was living in a small cluttered unit on the outskirts of a busy city. I could hear the sound of the traffic and a loud siren as a police car sped past. When I looked out my window all I could see were the surrounding houses and units. Occasionally the neighbours were playing loud music or having loud arguments. I had been given this emergency accommodation when I became homeless after I was evicted from my fo...

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Letters in the Post

Weekly Contest #341

Letters in the Post.Dear Sue. Thank you for the scenic post card you sent me from Italy. It was good to hear you had a wonderful holiday in a beautiful cultural country. I am sorry that this letter will bring back some painful memories. I know that you went through a very challenging time in an abusive relationship which you tried to move away from with an AVO that didn’t work. The stalking and control continued.Last week I received a text from Mum on my work phone. She told me that John is in Palliative Care in the Austin Hospital in Newber...

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From a Dog's Perspective

Weekly Contest #340

From a Dog’s Perspective.Hello, I’m the writer and before I wrote this story I spoke to Sue. She told me she had started nursing in a local hospital. She loved her job, caring for patients and their families and friends and she said she would never return to the waitressing job she had done for a number of years. Sue had started her nursing training when she left school but she had left nursing when she moved to another area and accepted a job in a restaurant. Sue then started talking about her pet dog, Pepper. She enjoyed being with him and...

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Being So Close and Yet So Far

Weekly Contest #337

I have often been so close yet so far. When I was 10 years old, I played in a soccer team with other girls. We reached the grand final in the last year I played in the team. The score was three all and we were playing extra time to determine which team would win the tournament and get the winner’s trophy. I kicked the ball towards the goal posts and sadly the goalkeeper caught the ball to stop me getting the goal. I didn’t get a goal, and the other team went on to score and win the game. When I was in Year 6 at school, I did an assessment an...

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Figuratively Speaking Going in Opposite Directions.

Weekly Contest #336

One of my friends moved in with me to share the living costs. She had fallen behind with her rent, and her landlord had threatened to evict her. This decision would help both of us as the cost of living was rising and it was difficult to keep on top of living expenses. I had no idea we would figuratively be going in opposite directions. Like a hike, when one hiker goes north and the other goes south with no phones, this inevitably led to an increasing gap between us with no interactions. We both had to turn around and change our direction be...

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Sue's Hot and Spicy Week

Weekly Contest #333

Sue’s Hot and Spicy Week.One sunny morning, Sue was sitting at her dining table in her quiet unit, eating her breakfast. Sue was on a week’s holiday from work and she was wondering what she would do to enjoy the break. She watched Pepper, her pet cat running around the room and climbing up the frame. After 10 minutes Pepper lay down on her cat bed and fell asleep, and Sue looked at him fondly. He had been her companion for a number of years and helped her recover from a very difficult time in her life after suffering abuse at the hands of an...

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The Pet That Was Under the Weather

The Pet That Was Under the Weather. Sue was ready to go for her daily walk to the lake when she heard the rain and the thunder. The flashes of lightening lit up the lounge room. She was concerned about Pepper her pet cat who always got scared when he heard the thunder. Sue went to her bedroom and saw Pepper fast asleep in his box. She was surprised that Pepper was not running around and climbing up his Cat Climber which she had bought for him knowing that cats had a natural instinct for climbing. Pepper had been asleep for most of the mornin...

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Alone in a Small Town.

Weekly Contest #330

Alone in a Small Town.I was at the local train station with Anne, my older sister. The train was waiting at the platform, and Anne gave me a hug and said, “Goodbye and I love you; we will keep in touch.” She boarded the train and waved to me when it pulled out of the station. Immediately, I felt lonely and sad. The only person in my life who cared about me was leaving to get an international flight to America where she had secured a job in a large IT company. Joshua, her partner was already living and working there in the police force and sh...

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Catching Up with the Past

Weekly Contest #328

Alison was living on her own in a small apartment. She had been struggling with health issues, her relationship had ended and she had left her job in a local IT company and moved to the area. She had no friends or family to support her. There had been a lot of issues in the past with family members who had disowned her when she had become addicted to drugs and alcohol and became angry and aggressive. Her life had gone off track completely and she went through an intense period of depression and anxiety with suicidal thoughts. With medical ...

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A Cat Named Magic.

Weekly Contest #327

Amy lived by herself with her black cat. She had received the cat from the RSPCA Shelter just after Halloween. She had researched Halloween and discovered that black cats were believed to be the witches magical companions linking them to witchcraft. In the Middle Ages Halloween was associated with spirits, fairies and ghosts linking the spiritual world to the real world. Amy had also read the Magic and Mystery books written by CJ Archer featuring magical fantasy. She decided to name he cat Magic believing it would give her a new life filled ...

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