The old novelist was poised to write his next masterpiece,
completely composed and waiting in his brilliantly creative mind.
Ready before him were his trusty typewriter, carbons, white-out and eraser.
Then his adoring fans surprised him with a computer,
laser printer, scanner, and writing software.
His complete recovery is uncertain.
Gene Newman is a retired old guy (90 yrs) and former New Jersey journalist and columnist. Read more at GeneNewmanImagineThat.com.
Decrepit friendless house
Groaned in despair
Its ochre regal frame forgotten
Haunted by fiends
Passing travelers pitied the neglect
Encouraged its repair
By All Hallows Eve
The house brightened from villagers’ care
Compassion renewed this house
Grand parties are given where
Villagers and haunts dance merrily
Making haunts happy there
Hazel Ann Lee is a Black American author of published works on science fiction and fantasy, education and science. Her book of original science poems and science fiction short stories is titled The Astronaut’s Window: Collection of Poems and Short Stories Celebrating Nature. Her poem, Sunrise on Loran, was published in 50-Word Stories. Her poetry has also appeared in Star*Line, Utopia and Frost Zone Zine. Her short story was also published in Frost Zone Zine.
Second-hand car, cash, few clothes, fake IDs… The basics for a quick escape. She would’ve turned herself in but for the stowaway in her belly.
Here’s a neat trick: her actions have had consequences on my actions. For no good man lets a pregnant woman flee a crime by herself.
Shruti is enrolled in a technology course that she hates and would much rather pursue a Masters in Modern Literature and Culture. She likes creatively expressing herself through words and screaming into a pillow from time to time.
Tick and tock, the hall clock’s persistent twins.
One his sister, the other her brother.
With hammers of gold, they relentlessly break the present into bits.
Slippery seconds which pass by unnoticed and unused on the way to becoming our past.
So savor the here and now while you can.
John Fowler served twenty years in the US Air Force before retiring and starting a second career in the IT field. He is also a Lay Pastor serving a small church near his home in Texas. His hobbies include reading, golfing, writing, and now oil painting (and teaching painting lessons).
She burned the bridge without a second thought.
Ran, barefoot, through shards of glass that would have wounded a weaker soul.
Now, on the threshold of everything she’d ever wanted, she cautiously looks back.
The glass, strangely smooth, shimmers, beckoning.
But the bridge is gone.
Quietly, she begins to rebuild.
Susan Gale Wickes is a writer who calls Indiana home. She enjoys writing short stories, greeting card verses, and the fun of cartoon captioning.
Late one night the boys woke from the same dreadfully bad dream.
They scrambled to their feet all at once.
The moon seemed unusually large.
The stars shone uncomfortably bright.
The sky felt dangerously close.
Half the boys pressed down against the earth.
Half the boys held up the sky.
Bob Thurber is the author of six books. Regarded as a master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in Esquire and other magazines, been anthologized 60 times, received a long list of awards, and been utilized in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts. Visit his website at BobThurber.net.
The neighbors locked their pets indoors whenever he walked his around the block.
The creature grinned, teeth silvery as its chain leash, time-bomb claws clicking against asphalt.
But when Hook hung up a ragged Jolly Roger, promising treasure for finding his crocodile, they realized not seeing it was even scarier.
Angela Panayotopulos is a Greek-American storyteller with a soft spot for fresh-brewed coffee, transformative books, and genuine people. Her books include The Art of War: A Novel (among The National Herald’s Top Books to Gift, 2017) and The Wake Up (recipient of a Readers’ Favorite Book Award for Supernatural Fiction, 2020). Check out her forthcoming publications at pansbooks.com.
The couple came to my door with religious tracts. “We’re visiting neighbors and want to know if you’ve learned the secret to everlasting life.”
“I’m glad you’re here!” I exclaimed. “I’ve been researching just that!”
Then I led them to the cauldron in my basement, which required two final ingredients.
Emily Merrell is the author of the children’s book, Whirl of a Girl. You can visit her online at ehmerrellwrites.com.
The only part that showed was her beautiful eyes. She never uttered a word, but her eyes screamed as she watched, and she was judged to be the most “vocal.”
So they slapped and kicked her, blindfolded her, threw her in a dungeon. They could not bear their own nakedness.
Yogita has worked for 25 years in a rural financial institution and now uses writing as a means to open her heart.
The story of the week for October 17 to 21 is…
October by Deborah Tapper