The story of the week for October 10 to 14 is…
Nature by Saaiqa Malik
THOMPSON EMATE: Days Gone Past
A love story. She hid it in the forgotten place. It was unearthed in her final days. She told the story of her love tangle. She glowed as she reminisced on those days. Tears streamed down her eyes as she recalled why they could not stand on the same footings.
Thompson Emate is a diverse writer although he is still trying his hands on some genres. His short stories can be seen in Voice.club. He lives in Lagos, Nigeria.
TIM DADSWELL: A Flash of Excitement
“Can I bring Tom on Sunday?” she asked.
“Of course, love. And what does this one do?” asked her mother.
“Theatre.”
“Oh my God, what’s he been in? Does he know Hugh Jackman? Or Judi Dench? Has he met any Royals?”
“Ma, he rotates the barricades in ‘Les Mis’.”
“Oh.”
Tim Dadswell is a retired civil servant who loves writing short fiction. Find him on Twitter: @TimD_writer
MATTHEW EICHENLAUB: Canada Geese
Shimmering
shimmering
skimming
inches above water
lifting hard into the wind
higher
higher.
Coming about
in perfect arch
heads forward
obsidian wings
unshackled
lead goose banks away
and falls back.
Gaining the slipstream
she radios her new position: honk
honk, honk
rested comrade pushes forward
takes point: honk
honk
honk.
Matthew’s good fortune brought him to Maine. He tries to be present and let go of all the stuff that came before. He observes and writes.
CMF WRIGHT: Planet Problems
At the planets’ meeting, the mood is grim.
“I’m losing my rings,” says Saturn. “Soon I’ll be bald like Jupiter.”
“You think you have it bad?” Earth laughs. “I’m infested with humans! They poison my climate and seas.”
Someone bangs on the window.
“Let me in,” Pluto yells from outside.
C.M.F. Wright writes sentences that occasionally turn into stories. Her short stories have appeared in Daily Science Fiction, 50-Word Stories, and Syntax & Salt Magazine.
KATHERINE DARLINGTON: Heartbreak
You’re moving, and I will miss the laughter
your joyful children make in the early morning hours.
It won’t be the same when I sit outside
Because although the bird’s songs are beautiful, the voices
of your children laughing are grand.
Why must you take away my heart’s only medicine?
Katherine Darlington has articles in many publications including poetry anthologies, and literary journals. She also has several published novels. See more of her work at www.katherinedarlington.com.
SAAIQA MALIK: Nature
Wandering through the beautiful Sintra forest, I marveled at the trees, so tall and strong: a gargantuan sentinel army, protecting inhabitants against the elements.
But each perfectly straight trunk leans strangely, parallel all. Daily pummeling from heavy winds takes its toll.
Submissive they bow, slaves to a more powerful master.
Saaiqa has always been interested in writing and is finally having a go.
BILL COX: Sliver
He holds the tweezers unsteadily over her finger, attempting to pull out the dark splinter that protrudes minimally from her whorled skin. She curses at his clumsiness, wonders aloud at his ineptness. He silently wishes for tweezers that could reach into her soul, to pull out the dark sliver there.
Bill lives in Aberdeen, Scotland, where he navigates the collapse of society with a forced cheerfulness that hides the screaming void within.
KAREN WALKER: Old Percy Street Made the Man
The bow tie is new. Straw hat, too.
His face: not new. The shop where he bought it is gone, a swanky bistro there now.
He orders a salad.
Dentures bite, grind, clack; it’s not worth $24.
Eyes—original to the face—mist.
He apologizes and tips the server well.
Karen writes short in a low Canadian basement. Her work is in or forthcoming in FlashBack Fiction, Emerge Literary Journal, Reflex Fiction, Bullshit Lit, Blank Spaces, Ghost City Press, Alien Buddha Press, and others. She/her. Follow her at @MeKawalker883
STORY OF THE WEEK: October 9
The story of the week for October 3 to 7 is…
What Dew Felt Like by Sarah Grace Tuttle