ROBIN LaVOIE: Moms’ Getaway

Amusing, Submissions, , , , , ,

After a rush to exfoliate and color away years of children and scour closets for outfits inappropriate for soccer practice, they crash into a Vegas hotel room, where, in a flash of giddy consensus, they dump their over-stuffed bags and non-sensible shoes, order room service, draw blackout curtains, and sleep.

Robin LaVoie is presently sweating in the suburbs of Phoenix, Arizona. She writes personal essay and creative nonfiction on her Substack publication, It’s Like This, and her work has appeared in print and online, including Monday Coffee and Other Stories of Mothering Children with Special Needs (Inwords Press, 2013), Pentimento Magazine, BarBar, and NonBinary Review.

V VAIDEHI: Antidote

Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

One look at her face and his insides shriveled.

No smile, no inquiries about the day. No coffee either, as other things were brewing.

Loaded with conjectures, he waited for the explosion.

The cockroach behind the bedroom door that was slammed shut, saved the day.

Sweetly, she sought his help.

V Vaidehi is an aspiring writer based in India who writes travel memoirs and short/micro-stories at vvaidehi.wordpress.com and whose work has been published by Brilliant Flash Fiction and The Centifictionist.

CAROL BERGER: A Choir Recital

Artistic, Submissions, Touching, , ,

There are two ways to make an audience cry: an all-male group of seniors singing “Unchained Melody,” and six-year-olds performing “Amazing Grace.” Innocence and anguish, love and loss. The beauty of childhood and age. The old will speak of love and the very young atone for sins not yet committed.

Carol Berger is a Canadian anthropologist and writer. Her work has appeared in the London Review of Books, The Guardian, The Economist, and The New Yorker. She is the author of The Child Soldiers of Africa’s Red Army (London: Routledge 2022). She lives in Cairo, Egypt.

JA ALLISON: Six Months Ago

Adventure, Submissions, , ,

Six months ago, my husband went missing, never to return. That is, until a few days ago when he came home. Today, I can’t sleep, because I know the man sleeping next to me could not possibly be the husband I had buried in the backyard six months ago.

J A Allison lives on the outskirts of society where he finds inspiration deep in the Heart of Texas.

STAR FITZMAURICE: Coffee In Hand

Artistic, Submissions, ,

The man who runs my morning coffee cart drives past me while I am waiting to cross the street. He makes a fleeting joke out the window, mostly lost to the wind. But I laugh anyways, amazed and happy to be reminded that I exist in the eyes of others.

Star Fitzmaurice is a recent NYU graduate just trying to make the best out of her apartment’s square-footage. She writes, draws, knits, crochets, and does any creative activity you can think of. If she doesn’t yet, give it time.

RUCHI ACHARYA: The Sunset Whisperer

Submissions, Touching, , ,

I stood on the edge of the cliff with my arms wide open, my eyelids filtering the last glow of the dying sunset. His arms wrapped around my love handles, and his pointy beard rubbed against my cheeks. He whispered, “It’s too late.”

I woke up wearing a black dress.

Ruchi Acharya, hailing from the vibrant city of Mumbai, India, is a visionary in the literary world. As the founder and driving force behind Wingless Dreamer, a dynamic publishing company, she is dedicated to nurturing and promoting fresh, creative voices. With a deep passion for storytelling and a commitment to quality literature, Ruchi has established Wingless Dreamer as a haven for writers and readers alike. Her work continues to inspire and shape the literary landscape, one dream at a time.

LESLEY WARREN: Bracing For Impact

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , , , ,

The hospital vending machine drones an accompaniment to the febrile bouncing of my foot: rubber kissing laminate.

You could be anywhere by now.

When I tip my head back, I see stars: souls trading places, a life for a life. We should be out there, where the air tastes sweet.

A translator by trade, Lesley Warren lives for language. Born to Welsh and Filipino parents and now resident in Germany, her work encompasses themes of identity, displacement and “otherness”. Her poetry and prose have been published in a number of digital and print journals as well as appearing in a podcast.

SEAN EWING: A Hunter’s Goodbye

Submissions, Touching, , , ,

The vet said to put Old Tom down. The man, not ready to let go, took him hunting one last time. They flushed a bird, and Tom’s final moment was filled with the scent of what he loved. Buried on a hillside, the man visits with tears and fond memories.

Sean Ewing is a follower of Jesus and a lover of dogs, cycling, and being outside.

ARSHI MORTUZA: Medusa Checks into a Women’s Shelter

Adventure, Artistic, Submissions, , ,

She walks up to the counter barefoot and battered, refusing eye contact with the receptionist, sporting a fresh hairdo from slither salon, the serpent weave still feeling tight and itchy, spirit broken, baby bump forming around her neck, eyes secreting pebbles in place of tears.

Should’ve prayed to Aphrodite instead.

Arshi Mortuza is a 20-something Bangladeshi writer living in Toronto, Canada. Through her poetry and prose, Arshi likes to breathe life into frozen characters from fairytales and popular folklore. She is the author of the poetry collection, One Minute Past Midnight. She can be found on Instagram as @poetessarshi.