Life | Vin Maskell

Browsing All Posts filed under »Life«

Tour de Failure (preview)

July 1, 2017

Never thought I’d be in a magazine with Nicole Kidman on the cover. The latest edition of The Big Issue Australia features the Kidman story (written by Margaret Pomeranz), an interview with Ben Mendelsohn, a look at The Handmaid’s Tale – and a yarn about cycling and the existential perils of getting a flat tyre. […]

A parcel for John Clarke

May 5, 2017

In the mid-1980s my friend Pat Hayes was letters editor at The Age. In May 1985, amongst the usual letters about politics and news and issues of the day, he started receiving letters about a curious sport known as farnarkeling. The letters were riffing on the imaginary sport created by satirist John Clarke. Open to […]

Tree Change

November 26, 2016

This story was first published in The Big Issue #523 (21 Oct – 3 Nov 2016) I’ve stopped collecting freshly-cut logs and tree stumps from nature strips. I’ve stopped pulling over a little excitedly, opening up the back of the car, hauling the wood into the boot and driving off, a little triumphantly. My back’s […]

A brother’s records

November 5, 2016

‘Been a while since I’ve written a Stereo Story. Here’s how my latest starts: My eldest brother didn’t own many records. If my memory serves me well, the albums he listened to were by The Beatles, a rebel country songwriter, some Dylan and Clapton, a little art rock, and some English pop by a red-headed […]

Tree Change (preview)

October 21, 2016

My latest Big Issue story is an 800-worder called Tree Change. And, no, it’s not about moving to a rural idyll.

The Do It Yourself Postal Service

September 26, 2016

This story was first published in The Big Issue # 518, 12-25 August 2016. My mate Paul and I have started a new postal service. An exclusive, boutique service. We have a catchment area of four linear kilometres and a clientele of two. There are no premium rates. No sorting of letters in faraway […]