Category Archives: News

News about the site.

STORY OF THE MONTH: November 2019

News

The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month.

The finalists for November were:

Sundays by Una Nine Nine
Rain Dance by Raymond Sloane
Surrender by Eileen Hansen
Shadows by Dmitri Christopher

The winner of the November 2019 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

Shadows

I expect this story represents different things to different readers. I see a portrait of depression or other forms of mental illness. It can hide in plain sight, even in the midst of “happy” moments and friendly faces. And like a spy, it may feel like it is always lurking just out of sight, nefarious, waiting for the worst moment to emerge.

STORY OF THE MONTH: October 2019

News

The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month.

The finalists for October were:

Mother Always Asked Uncle Bart to Babysit by C. Christine Fair
No Returns, Exchanges, or Substitutions by Maria Cargille
The Macy’s Mummy by Graham Robert Scott
Like a Crow by Louella Lester
Grocery Run by Mariya Khan

The winner of the October 2019 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

Mother Always Asked Uncle Bart to Babysit

As several commenters pointed out, praising or “liking” this story seems wrong somehow, but that’s really the point: it makes us uncomfortable, it even hurts us, but we can’t ignore it. If we do, look at the consequences.

What I appreciate most about this piece is its double-edged sword. There is condemnation of Uncle Art and of the mother: How could you do this? How could you let this happen? And there is also pain spilling out from the narrator to wound those around her: beg me for absolution. The consequences ripple out.

Christine, thank you for sharing this.