Back
2173 days ago

TRUE? New short story collection by Michael Botur

Michael from Tikipunga

Aussie. Apps. Poets. Parole. Trysts. Travel. Rehab. Refugees. Jail. Journos. Strippers. Celebs. Drugs. More drugs.

TRUE? is 16 short stories of ordinary Kiwis working through shame and scandal.
About the author

Michael Botur, born 1984, is a writer originally from Christchurch, New Zealand, who now lives in Whangarei with his wife and two kids.

Botur is author of four acclaimed indie short story collections. He published the novel Moneyland in 2017 which has had thousands of reads on Wattpad.

Botur holds a Masters of in Creative Writing degree from AUT University and a Graduate Diploma in Journalism Studies from Massey University, as well as degrees in arts and literacy. Botur makes a living from writing as a columnist, corporate communications writer, blogger, advertising writer and journalist.

Botur has published creative writing in most NZ literary journals and has won various prizes for short stories and poems since beginning writing in 2005. He has been making money from creative writing since the age of 21 and was in 2017/18 included in collections put together by University of Otago (Manifesto 101) and University of Canterbury (Bonsai: Small Fictions.)

Botur has published journalism in most major NZ newspapers and magazines including New Zealand Herald, Herald on Sunday, Sunday Star-Times, The Spinoff, Noted, Mana and North & South.

In 2017 Botur launched the only online ‘gallery’ for NZ short story writers, www.NZShortStories.com... where he makes all of his published work free to read and download.

Online:

www.NZshortstories.com...

www.MichaelBoturWriter.com...

@MichaelBotur

Image
More messages from your neighbours
1 day ago

Poll: How do you feel about dogs being allowed indoors in cafes?

The Team from Neighbourly.co.nz

For most of us, seeing a friendly doggo while out and about instantly brings a smile to our faces. But how do you feel about cafes welcoming pups inside?

Cast a vote and share your thoughts below.

Image
How do you feel about dogs being allowed indoors in cafes?
  • 27.8% I love it!
    27.8% Complete
  • 31.6% Only in designated areas
    31.6% Complete
  • 40.6% No, it should be outdoors only.
    40.6% Complete
1747 votes
1 day ago

Happy Tuesday, neighbours, can you figure out today's riddle rush 🏃‍♂️

Riddler from The Neighbourly Riddler

A bus driver goes the wrong way down a one-way street. He passes the cops, but they don’t stop him. Why?

Do you think you know the answer to our daily riddle? Don't spoil it for your neighbours! Simply 'Like' this post and we'll post the answer in the comments below at 2pm.

Want to stop seeing riddles in your newsfeed?
Head here and hover on the Following button on the top right of the page (and it will show Unfollow) and then click it. If it is giving you the option to Follow, then you've successfully unfollowed the Riddles page.

Image
3 days ago

Rubbish bins

Susan from Kamo

I posted a message about the disappearing rubbish bins in Whangarei a week or so ago (but I limited the area). However, I’ll leave this open to a wider area this time. Apparently this is not just limited to Whangarei. However, I went to the Whangarei District Council website, and sent a general enquiry email as to why this was happening. About a week later, I did get a phone call back. I had mentioned two particular bins that had been removed. The man I spoke with was not aware they had been removed! What I found out is that the rubbish bins are emptied by an outside contractor, not city workers. They come and say they find maybe a single coffee cup in a bin and think the bin doesn’t need to be there, so THEY remove the bin! The more I thought about this, the more I thought this is pure laziness - the more bins removed, the less work that has to be done. How much effort does it take to look in a bin and see the liner does not need to be changed? Where one bin has been removed, there is now rubbish in it’s place. I noticed the bins at a couple of bus stops have also been removed, and there is rubbish on the ground - exactly where the bins used to be! I have been told that one of the bins I emailed about will be replaced. And I will follow up on that if it isn’t back in place in two weeks. (This outside contractor is also supposed to be picking up rubbish twice a week along the Kamo shared pathway as well!)
So - if you noticed bins are missing and they need to be put back, send an email to WDC and tell them the location and that there is rubbish there and the bin needs to be replaced! Rate payers are paying for this service, no doubt.