Gillean’s poetry and short fiction has been published in print and online, in New Writing Scotland, From Glasgow to Saturn, Shetland Create, Tales from a Cancelled Country, Home Ground (Glasgow Life’s ‘City Read’ 2017), Stories from Home, the polyphony (conversations across the medical humanities) and PhD Women Scotland.
NEW WRITING SCOTLAND 41
nothing but a set of eyes for stars
Edited by Kirstin Innes, Marjorie Lotfi & Niall O’Gallagher
Published in paperback by Association for Scottish Literature, Glasgow, August 2023
Cover image by Red Axe Design
ISBN 978-1-906841-54-6
Short story ‘Pulse’
‘And then he goes down. Heavily, in the pause between the upbeat and the down. The stage cloth absorbs the sound and a flurry of tiny dust motes sparks into the bright light. It’s like he’s fallen from the cross to the floor in front of us and he’s not moving. There’s a collective gasp and the air in the hall shimmers.
‘Then the front desks are round him, passing their instruments back, moving chairs. Everyone’s round him, the backstage staff are out now and a guy from the BBC wearing headphones talking into a handset. Jo is whispering ‘ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod’ and it’s too close for me, I know how this ends. I rest my fiddle on my thigh and just look at the music. Bar one. Andante molto mosso. Twelve-eight time signature, not many of those around. I follow the notes on the page and the Beethoven starts in my head, a slow murmuring. The beats of my heart press under my shirt.’
the polyphony
Conversations across the medical humanities
Published online by the University of Durham. May 2023.
https://thepolyphony.org/2023/05/09/writing-the-asylum/
Non-fiction article ‘Writing the Asylum’
‘A friend asked me recently, what do you want this project to become? My dream is to see a mental health heritage centre established at Gartnavel; a place for research and discussion that picks up Gartnavel’s motto ‘Reluceat’ (Let there be light again) to further illuminate this very individual landscape of mental health history.’
HOME GROUND
New writing inspired by the Homeless World Cup in Glasgow
Edited by Louise Welsh and Zoe Strachan
Published in paperback by Freight Books, Glasgow, March 2017
ISBN 9780906169728
Short story, ‘Brendan’
‘When he’s finished the food he turns to the tea, pouring and stirring with great concentration. It’ll take hours for him to finish at this rate. I go to the toilet. Better going here than back at the flat. A sign is taped to the wall beside the basin – ‘Family Fun Day.’ There’s a photograph of a clown and children with balloons and ice creams.
‘I spend more time than I need to drying my hands on thin paper towels that disintegrate between my fingers. When I come out, Brendan’s gone. His empty plate is sitting alongside a full cup of tea, and he’s disappeared. Nobody saw him go. They look at me as if I’m the daft one.’
Gillean’s poetry and short fiction has been published in print and online, in New Writing Scotland, From Glasgow to Saturn, Shetland Create, Tales from a Cancelled Country, Home Ground (Glasgow Life’s ‘City Read’ 2017), Stories from Home, the polyphony (conversations across the medical humanities) and PhD Women Scotland.
NEW WRITING SCOTLAND 41
nothing but a set of eyes for stars
Edited by Kirstin Innes, Marjorie Lotfi & Niall O’Gallagher
Published in paperback by Association for Scottish Literature, Glasgow, August 2023
Cover image by Red Axe Design
ISBN 978-1-906841-54-6
Short story ‘Pulse’
‘And then he goes down. Heavily, in the pause between the upbeat and the down. The stage cloth absorbs the sound and a flurry of tiny dust motes sparks into the bright light. It’s like he’s fallen from the cross to the floor in front of us and he’s not moving. There’s a collective gasp and the air in the hall shimmers.
‘Then the front desks are round him, passing their instruments back, moving chairs. Everyone’s round him, the backstage staff are out now and a guy from the BBC wearing headphones talking into a handset. Jo is whispering ‘ohmygod ohmygod ohmygod’ and it’s too close for me, I know how this ends. I rest my fiddle on my thigh and just look at the music. Bar one. Andante molto mosso. Twelve-eight time signature, not many of those around. I follow the notes on the page and the Beethoven starts in my head, a slow murmuring. The beats of my heart press under my shirt.’
the polyphony
Conversations across the medical humanities
Published online by the University of Durham. May 2023.
https://thepolyphony.org/2023/05/09/writing-the-asylum/
Non-fiction article ‘Writing the Asylum’
‘A friend asked me recently, what do you want this project to become? My dream is to see a mental health heritage centre established at Gartnavel; a place for research and discussion that picks up Gartnavel’s motto ‘Reluceat’ (Let there be light again) to further illuminate this very individual landscape of mental health history.’
HOME GROUND
New writing inspired by the Homeless World Cup in Glasgow
Edited by Louise Welsh and Zoe Strachan
Published in paperback by Freight Books, Glasgow, March 2017
ISBN 9780906169728
Short story, ‘Brendan’
‘When he’s finished the food he turns to the tea, pouring and stirring with great concentration. It’ll take hours for him to finish at this rate. I go to the toilet. Better going here than back at the flat. A sign is taped to the wall beside the basin – ‘Family Fun Day.’ There’s a photograph of a clown and children with balloons and ice creams.
‘I spend more time than I need to drying my hands on thin paper towels that disintegrate between my fingers. When I come out, Brendan’s gone. His empty plate is sitting alongside a full cup of tea, and he’s disappeared. Nobody saw him go. They look at me as if I’m the daft one.’