Paul McClure

An Indigenous approach shows how changing the clocks for daylight saving time runs counter to human nature – and nature itself While the rest of nature rises and slumbers to lunar and solar cycles, humans work and sleep to the resetting of their artificial clocks.

The idea of ‘saving’ daylight time goes against indigenous wisdom about nature – and reflects how capitalism separates humans from nature
buff.ly/4ju2Gxg #FallBack

Shout-out to my fellow queer Australian writers:

Queer Writers Queensland is hosting its Queer Writers Festival as part of this year's Sunshine Coast Pride Network Pride Festival (22-23 November) and Fair Day (15 November).

Get your tickets here: www.queerwritersqld.com

Nearly half of uni students have considered suicide, global study finds Childhood trauma and LGBTQIA+ identity among the strongest risk factors

CW: suicide, childhood abuse.
Almost half of first-year uni students report suicidal thoughts. Childhood trauma, mental illness, and LGBTQIA+ identity are driving a global crisis. It's clear that prevention must start long before students reach campus.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

No, Charlie Kirk was not practicing politics the right way His assassination deserves full condemnation; his full impact should not be sidestepped.

How do we write about public figures who die violently? As a journalist, I believe in transparency. This Mother Jones article does a good job of refusing to erase the harm Charlie Kirk caused while still reporting his death accurately.

www.motherjones.com/politics/202...

Weight-loss drugs, pregnancy risks The quiet gap in women’s health care

The rise of weight-loss drugs like Ozempic carries a hidden risk that isn’t being talked about enough: unplanned pregnancies.

This piece is free to read because I believe journalism like this should be available to everyone.

Would love to know what you think.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

Tuesday is the worst day. An absurdist microfiction about bad timing, worse decisions, and a deeply unbothered call centre worker named Sharon.

Ever stumble across an old story and go, “Wait… this is ridiculous. I love it”? Meet Sharon. She files her nails while talking aspiring bank robbers out of poor life choices.

Enjoy. And maybe avoid Tuesdays.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

No Surprises. You're Still An Arsehole. A story of queer reckoning.

Spoiler alert: The school bully grew up, got divorced, and lost the curls. I grew up, too, and finally told him what fifteen-year-old me couldn’t.

A short story about power, queerness, and closure. 🎈

Don't forget to subscribe if you enjoy my work.

open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

Night, My Love A sestina

I just published a sestina I wrote back in uni and reworked recently. It’s called Night, My Love, and it’s about finding shelter in darkness, and how the night sometimes feels safer than the day. It’s a love letter to sleep, solitude, and the sweet sigh of escape.

open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

Happy Fragile Straight Man Month!

Autistic 4th Grader Goes Viral For Powerful Rebuke To RFK Jr.: 'I'm Not Broken' Beautifully stated, young man!

Bravo, young man! www.comicsands.com/autistic-boy...

Five ground-breaking historical trans icons you've probably never heard of Bigoted rhetoric claims that being trans is a recent fad, but these historical figures prove that trans people have always been with us.

Happy Trans+ History Week! 🏳️‍⚧️

For the history buffs:
www.thepinknews.com/2025/05/05/t...

When did you die? Just yesterday. A dream, a memory, a reckoning.

A dream, a memory, a reckoning.
This piece began as a writing prompt and became a surreal conversation with my father.

It’s fiction, but it isn’t.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

Loosened it for you Sometimes anger has nothing to do with jam jars.

Sometimes anger has nothing to do with jam jars.

Here’s a flash fiction piece about impatience, ageing, and the quiet violence that lives in everyday moments.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

Susie My first best friend

storyandtruth.substack.com/p/susie?r=53...

i keep thinking about this

Neither Neurodivergence Nor Mental Illness Made Them Bigots—They're Just Awful People It's hard to admit your heroes are jerks, but the mentally ill and neurodivergent shouldn't be collateral damage.

Autism didn’t make them do it. Mental illness didn’t, either. This personal piece from The Big Picture cuts through the excuses and names the real issue: some people are just hateful, and we need to stop giving them cover.

Supreme Court’s decision on deportations gave both the Trump administration and ACLU reasons to claim a victory − but noncitizens clearly lost Can both sides legitimately say they won a Supreme Court victory?

A Supreme Court decision on deportations gave both the Trump administration and the #ACLU reason to claim victory. But legal scholars say it marked a setback for the rights of noncitizens in the United States: buff.ly/6JMVnG4 @rhamlin.bsky.social and Paul M. Collins Jr. @umassamherst.bsky.social

The only drilling I want to see.
(If you don't know what the image is referring to, watch the movie 'One Flew Over the Cuckoo's Nest')

Rounded with sleep Dreams, deadlines, and the Brownies in my brain

✨ New Substack post: Rounded With Sleep
✏️ Dreams, deadlines, and the Brownies in my brain

Read now and let me know: do your best ideas show up when you're unconscious, shampooing, or slightly unhinged?

open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

A month in—and one lovely surprise From one post to 41 readers. Thank you for showing up for me.

🙏🏼💙

open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

25 / September The sixth and final instalment in my poetry sequence tracing the moments that shaped my queer identity.

We were just starting to understand each other—then he was gone. The final poem in the series is now live: '25 / September'.

This one’s for my dad.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

22 / Home The fourth instalment in a six-part poetry sequence tracing the moments that shaped my queer identity.

Just published the second-last poem in my queer coming-of-age series. It’s about leaving the small town, finding my people, and discovering joy for the first time in a pulsing, sweaty, euphoric club.
It’s called '22 / Home'.
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

Paul McClure | Story & Truth | Substack Melbourne-based journalist and storyteller. Lover of short stories and creative non-fiction. Poetry dabbler. Queer, neurodivergent, and navigating life one word at a time. Proudly sober. Dachshund dad...

Sharing poems, stories, and reflections on Story & Truth. If you like what I do, consider becoming a paid subscriber on Substack—it helps keep the words flowing.

💙 storyandtruth.substack.com

…because indie writing deserves better than billionaire tantrum platforms and algorithmic thirst traps. 😏

18 / Truth The fourth poem in a six-part sequence tracing the moments that shaped my queer identity.

At 18, I stumbled into truth twice—once in the back seat of a car and once in my mother’s quiet, cutting question.
My latest poem is about instinct, fear, and the moment everything changed.
Read it now.
And if you like what you read, don't forget to subscribe!
open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

17 / Performance The third in a six-part poetry sequence tracing the moments that shaped my queer identity.

17 was the year I learned how to blend in. Or at least, I tried. But no matter how much I performed, how much I masked, they still saw me for what I was. And eventually, so did I.

New poem up now.

open.substack.com/pub/storyand...

16 / Revelation The second poem in a six-part sequence tracing the moments that shaped my queer identity.

16 years old. A best friend. A book. A touch.
The second poem in my series on queer self-discovery is now live!

Enjoy, and don't forget to subscribe.

Stay tuned for the third instalment, due to drop in a few days.
storyandtruth.substack.com/p/16-revelat...

substack.com/@storyandtruth

11 / Awakening The first poem in a six-part sequence tracing the moments that shaped my queer identity.

'11 / Awakening,' the first poem in my six-part sequence about self-discovery is now live on my Substack, Paul McClure | Story & Truth. Enjoy, leave a comment, and subscribe.

And keep an eye out for the second poem in the series, which will drop in a few days.

substack.com/home/post/p-...

Coming Soon: A Six-Part Poetry Series

You can read the first installation on my Substack, Paul McClure | Story & Truth, from tomorrow.

substack.com/@storyandtru...