The story of the week for May 23 to 27 is…

Alien Nature by Patrick Yu

I love the speculative nature of this piece, and how open it is to interpretation. Plus I’m a sucker for poetic presentation.

The story of the week for May 16 to 20 is…

Encroachment by Daniel Slaten

The story does a great job of immersing the reader in metaphor just in time to plunk them smack dab into something very real with non-metaphorical implications. Very clever pacing and structure.

The story of the week for May 9 to 13 is…

Alone by Verity Park

This story builds great tension, then releases it in a comedic twist that carries more than just comedy. Good layering!

The story of the week for May 2 to 6 is…

Cryptic Quest by John H. Dromey

Exploration, mystery, and personal voyages are all compelling themes, well married in John’s story.

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

The finalists for April were:

The Stink of a Lifetime by Bob Thurber
Terror by Viv Burgess
The Shrimp Farmer by Alexandra Keister
First Luncheon in a New City by Lynette Hinnings-Marshall

The winner of the April 2016 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

The Shrimp Farmer

Alexandra was able to tell so much story in so little space, packing a ton of character development and implied backstory into every sentence. Fantastic, chilling work!

The story of the week for April 25 to 29 is…

Guillotine Guys by Bob Thurber

Bob has paired the macabre with the absurd in a way that isn’t nearly as pretentious as this summary I’ve just written.

The story of the week for April 18 to 22 is…

First Luncheon in a New City by Lynette Hinnings-Marshall

This story has great use of language, and I think most of us have been some version of this character at different points in our lives.

The story of the week for April 11 to 15 is…

The Shrimp Farmer by Alexandra Keister

This story makes me shudder a little, but I’m impressed the creativity, and the story’s ability to deliver an impact.

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

The finalists for March were:

An Apartment on the Moon by Cathy Ulrich
Luck by Viv Burgess
Inside the Walls of Troy by Bob Thurber
The Diviner by Candace Kubinec

The winner of the March 2016 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is…

Luck

The pair of moments described in this story tell the most succinct parts of a much larger, and very engaging, story. That’s a great thing for a piece of microfiction to accomplish.

The story of the week for April 4 to 8 is…

Terror by Viv Burgess

This is great use of a twist for artistry rather than comedic or shock effect. The metaphor of the stage as torture is really interesting!