Short Stories

The Pale Blue Dot

Shortlisted for the 2025 Commonwealth Short Story Prize, 'The Pale Blue Dot' tells the story of a mother and son who take consolation from the vastness of the universe as they grieve for their husband and father. 'The Pale Blue Dot' will be published online once the winners for the competition have been announced.

https://commonwealthfoundation.com/short-story-prize/

Lies

Winner of the Sargeson Prize 2020, "Lies" tells the story of Tracey, a disabled young woman who deals with the pain of a disabling accident by fabricating stories about how she came to be injured. However, a chicken called Hannibal Lecter teaches her there are better ways of coping.

"Lies" was published in Landfall 240 but you can also read it here: https://www.waikato.ac.nz/fass/about/school-of-arts/english/sargeson-prize/winners

You can read judge, Owen Marshall's comments here: https://authors.org.nz/new-zealand-writing-thrives-in-covid-19-lockdown-dunedins-angela-pope-wins-this-years-sargeson-prize/

Waiting For The Next Thing

A woman gets onto a bus with a mannequin. The bus driver insists it must wear a mask. A teenager films the interaction on her phone and the video goes viral. But what does John Steinbeck have to do with any of this? This story, set in Covid times, was longlisted for the Commonwealth Short Story Prize 2021 and is published in issue 243 of Landfall.

Change is Possible

In 2022, Angela was commissioned by the Ōtepoti Writers Lab to write a short story for publication on the Verb Wellington website. 'Change is Possible' can be read here: https://www.verbwellington.nz/short-stories/change-is-possible

Run

In 2018, Angela was awarded Otago University's Rhys Brookbanks Prize for Writing, for the work she submitted for the Advanced Creative Writing paper. Below is an extract from her final portfolio, entitled "Run" which was inspired by Joan Didion's "Play It As It Lays".

"Once Peter was on the beach and had carefully negotiated his way over the sand dunes through the prickle of the marram grass and the spikiness of the ice plants, he stepped out onto the sand and ran. He ran the South Brighton, the Southshore, the Spencer Park, sometimes as far as Pines; the Waimairi, the Scarborough, the Taylor's Mistake. He ran them as an ironman runs a marathon, every day more attuned to his breath, the rhythm of his feet upon the sand."

Radio New Zealand National

Angela has had one radio play and three short stories broadcast on Radio New Zealand: "Misconceptions," "Caught Short", "A Night On The Town" and "An Elephant's Tale".