MONICA NAWROCKI: Lipstick

Amusing, Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

My mother called it “around the bend.” Wherever it was, when Mrs. Dumont finally went there, she went without her skirt on. She had white gloves, I heard, and a shiny black purse. A pink scarf, I think, and then nothing else – not even shoes.

But she was wearing lipstick.

Monica Nawrocki lives on Cortes Island in the Salish Sea. She earns her living as a substitute teacher, happily impersonating someone different every day. She is the author of three books and her work has appeared in various journals and anthologies across North America. monicanawrocki.com

YASH SEYEDBAGHERI: Dignity

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

They prey with pleasant voices, names like Megan. Chad. Ask when I can make payments.
Can you make a bigger payment?
I have to make rent.
When can you pay it off?
I lost my teaching position.
Estimate?
I lost my position.
You’re delinquent.
Blood drained, I spout a date.

Yash Seyedbagheri is a graduate of Colorado State University’s MFA program in fiction. His stories, “Soon,” “How To Be A Good Episcopalian,” and “Tales From A Communion Line,” were nominated for Pushcarts. Yash’s work has been published in SmokeLong Quarterly, The Journal of Compressed Creative Arts, Write City Magazine, and Ariel Chart, among others.

ALEKSANDRA PANIĆ: 5 PM

Submissions, Touching, , , ,

Every day at precisely 5 PM, she would boil the water in her red polka dot teapot, add the dried chamomile flowers, and pour some tea in a porcelain cup.

Every day at precisely 5 PM, she would sit down and pretend she was the queen, who never goes to bed hungry.

Aleksandra Panić is a doctor of medicine from Slovenia at the beginning of her medical career. Since the beginning of primary school, she has loved writing poetry and prose (mostly), winning several awards (newspaper, literary magazines, national radio etc.), and having some of her works/books published along the way.

CATHRINE GOLDSTEIN: Time

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , ,

The woman in the old farmhouse
stares into her bathroom mirror
ignoring the crack at the bottom of the glass
and the matching cracks on her face.

Humming, she brushes her most prized possession
(although her once sun-kissed hair is now moon-drenched),
preparing for the tomorrow
that has never come.

Cathrine Goldstein writes a whole lot of gritty, real-feeling “stuff.” Most of it takes place in NYC. She also eats boatloads of chocolate pretty much every day. This story came to her on a trip out of NYC, as she passed an old farmhouse on the side of the road. To find out more about Cathrine’s bestselling novels, award-winning plays, and other writings including articles, short stories, blogs, and poetry, please visit CathrineGoldstein.com.

MARIA CARGILLE: After the War, They Left Us Here

Adventure, Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

Androids have one advantage over our human creators. Not the speed, strength or calculation with which they built us for war. A less intentional boon.

We resist decay.

Here, still, lies J2’s custom arm. A7’s amber eye. Z3’s frame. I walk the wreckage, sorting each piece into its rightful grave.

Maria Cargille wrote this story.

FREDRICK HUDGIN: The Bear

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , , , ,

Feel the change in the air.
Feel the energy, the power,
Undulating just out of sight.

This is a time of the looking-in,
It’s a time of peace and growth.

The wind is blowing,
Carrying the pulse of what will be,
__________________what has been.

Guide me, brother.
I will listen.

Fredrick Hudgin is the author of the End of Children Trilogy, Ghost Ride, The School of the Gods, Four Winds – A Collection of Poetry, A Rainy Night and Other Short Stories, Green Grass, and Sulphur Springs. See more at fredrickhudgin.com.

GABRIELLA BERTELMANN: Life is a Dream

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , ,

I once did dream I was a swan
who reigned upon a placid lake
where gentle ripples cheered me on
with cygnets trailing in my wake
the morning sun lit on my crown
water glistened in the light
upon my pillow then I found
a downy feather soft and white

Gabriella Bertelmann is a literary translator, editor, and polyglot with a passion for poetry, good stories, and Mother Nature.

CHARLIE SWAILES: Late Pick-Up

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

Breathlessly, I stammer my way through apologies, grabbing bookbags, coats, papers from the teacher, nodding-head and fake smiles, checking her watch as she closes the door. My daughter’s embarrassment is evident on her reddened cheeks and averted gaze, and I sigh, wondering when the trauma of school will truly finish.

Charlie Swailes writes flash fiction and teaches English.

CINDY HOSSAIN: Bonus Ball

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

The ball rolls down the opaque tube, before coming to a standstill next to the other five numbers. It seals my fate as a brand new multimillionaire.

“What are you watching?” my wife asks when she enters the room.

“Oh, nothing really,” I say, putting the paper in my pocket.

Cindy Hossain is an English Literacy student and enthusiastic amateur writer. When she’s not busy putting pen to paper, she’s taking care of her three young children and two dogs.