JOCELYNE GREGORY: Jellyfish

Amusing, Odd, Submissions, , , ,

I found a jellyfish washed up on the beach yesterday. It looked like an alien; a strange creature in a strange land. I got a shovel and helped it back into the water. It floated there before waving a tentacle and swam away. How strange to see one on Mars.

Jocelyne Gregory is an MFA creative writing student at the University of British Columbia. She is a graduate of Simon Fraser University’s The Writer’s Studio. She also reviews children’s books and graphic novels. She lives on the Sunshine Coast of British Columbia, Canada.

HANNAH WHITEOAK: Not Ready

Artistic, Submissions, Touching, , , , ,

The unicorn is in the garden again, munching on the roses.

“I can’t,” I say. “I’m not ready.”

I follow him down the lane to the edge of the enchanted forest. The pine scent clears my lungs.

The unicorn slips between the trees. One day, soon, I’ll go with him.

Hannah Whiteoak writes speculative fiction to escape the real world. She is working on an animal-themed flash collection. Follow @HannahWhiteoak or visit hannahwhiteoak.me.

Editor: This story is a sequel to Side Effects.

JILL OLSON: Pandemic

Submissions, Touching, , , , ,

I thought he needed my touch.

He looked empty.

My hand’s warmth could provide him respite.

But that wasn’t allowed.

I could offer only a smile and wave from across the room.

He nodded, resignation wrapped with tedium.

Latex gloves announced despair, their blue color an exclamation on our lives.

Jill has been writing since childhood. She believes well-turned phrases can connect emotions and people. She’s published academic work, but her main passion is fiction.

MARINA ALFARO: Tangled Up

Artistic, Submissions, ,

Maybe one day I wake up from this dream or maybe I die trapped in it. Meanwhile I will continue climbing these vines in case I can see the light at the end of this tunnel.

I may fall for the attempt, but it would be worse to stop climbing.

Marina Alfaro is a student to be a teacher.

VERNAE COFFEE: Aging

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

For some, it’s a glistening gray hair mistook for lint. For others, wrinkles that once appeared only when laughing now remain. For me, it’s my body lagging weeks behind my mind.

Grandma said I too would age, and should sip it like a chilled glass of her freshly squeezed lemonade.

Vernae is new to the world of publishing, but is enjoying every moment of it. She began submitting her work for publication in 2018 and has been published several times. Her unpublished Children’s Book “Teddy Wet My Bed” was selected as one of five Finalists by Eyelands 2019 Book Awards in the Unpublished Books Category. Vernae is praying for overall health and wellbeing for our country and the world during this health crisis.

CARRIE BACKER: Psalm 30:5

Poetry, Submissions, Touching, , , , ,

Darkness engulfs me.
Bitterness and loneliness play freeze tag
Throughout a sleepless night.
At dawn, the pitter-patter of little feet.
Her tiny arms envelop me.
Warmth flows from her pressed cheek to mine.

“Good morning, Mommy.”

Her words linger like a melody,
As sunrise ignites hope for the new day.

Carrie Backer enjoys writing in her very little spare time. She has self-published a couple of kids books and hopes to write more soon.

NATALIE REILLY-JOHNSON: Bombshell

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

The word hung in the air like a noxious gas, choking me.

“Cancer.”

Its consonants clattered and hissed, drowning out the rest of the doctor’s words. It cast a veil of freezing fog around me.

It hoisted me onto the ceiling, above my body. Just the word and me, floating.

Natalie is a Clinical Psychologist and aspiring writer in Wales, UK.

MONICA PEREZ NEVAREZ: Thirteen Suspects

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

“What do we have here?” asked the detective.

“Female, single, 60-something, sleeping pills,” the coroner responded.

“Anything else?”

“An empty Cuervo bottle, a pink slip, an eviction notice. A bare cupboard; wearing a new Gucci nightgown…”

“Cause of death?”

“A lethal mix of economic strangulation, diehard aspirations, and early-onset poverty.”

Monica Perez Nevarez is a sustainability consultant by day, and an aspiring writer and social critic at any other time, researching the many everyday things that can kill you while living in a collapsing economy.

JULIA JORGENSEN: Peel

Submissions, Touching, , , , , ,

Grandpa picks her up from ballet, lets her sit in the front seat. He has brought three tangerines wrapped in a paper towel (two for her). They eat them in the car. Later, she will forget to remove the peels from the cupholder; even now, his car smells like tangerines.

Julia Jorgensen is a junior at Stanford University studying Symbolic Systems and Creative Writing. She loves short stories, theater, and tangerines; she has definitely eaten at least eight in one sitting before.