KEVIN DOALTY BROPHY: Nuclear Winter Wonderland

Adventure, Submissions, , , ,

His name was called at fourteen-hundred hours Zulu Time. Winners (losers) of this lottery went up to surface level.

No contact in 31 days. Rations running dangerously low.

Necessary for the continuation of government. Shaking his hand and smiling. This burlesque head of state before him never made the shortlist.

Kevin Doalty Brophy is twenty-three years old and has just graduated from Economics, Politics and International Relations at University College Dublin. He will be commencing a Masters in Common Law in University College Dublin in September.

PONTIUS PAIVA: Umbra

Amusing, Submissions, , , ,

The shadow worshipers performed their unholy rituals, but when the lunar eclipse came, nothing happened.

Confused and crestfallen, they looked to the elderly shaman, who was already riffling through the pages of his grimoire.

After rereading the ancient texts, he suggested they try again, next time under a solar eclipse.

Pontius Paiva sacrifices sleep and sanity to appease the writing gods. Visit pontiuspaiva.com to find out if the spirits of storytelling reward him with the gift of publication.

EMMA GRAVE: Pistols at Dawn

Adventure, Submissions, , ,

Kathie fired a warning shot over the heads of the thieving mob that had surrounded the gunslinger’s prone body. Her former mentor may have lost the duel but those scrabbling vermin wouldn’t rob his fancy boots; they’d now pass to her.

Kathie thought somberly, “To the victor go the spoils.”

Emma Grave is a speculative fiction writer who lives near the forest of Cannock Chase in the UK with her husband and house rabbit.

PHILIPP M SELMAN: An Easy Decision

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

Some decisions are hard. Choosing the right car—the one with the perfect balance of comfort, capacity, and fuel economy—was tricky. Finding the right insurance was difficult, too.

But the final decision had been easy, Maria mused, as she swerved to avoid the child and flew off the overpass.

Philipp M. Selman is a graphic artist, musician, historical martial artist, and professional copywriter. His work has been published in Fifty Word Stories, and his art, music, and writing can be found at pmselman.com.

KAREN J WALLACE: The Flood

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

“It won’t reach us up here, love. We’ll be fine. We just need to wait for it to pass, and then everything will go back to normal. You’ll see.”

But the water level continued to rise, and Annabel realized, perhaps for the first time, that her mother was absolutely wrong.

Karen lives in South West London, England, quite near the River Thames, which floods fairly often.

JACKIE ASCRIZZI: The Colors of Winter

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , , ,

Night-veiled raven swoops down
settling on a field of stubbled snow
red river birch standing guard along the edge.
The colors of winter envelop the world
stark and soft, like a broken heart
stunning and everyday, like losing love
magical and hard, like brown leaves
skittering across a frozen pond.

Jackie Ascrizzi lives in Montville, Maine, mock orange and peony wafting through the windows.

JOHN H. DROMEY: History Repeats Itself

Amusing, Submissions, , ,

Over coffee, an op-ed writer quizzed his newspaper’s sports reporter.

“It would have been a great Cinderella story if only that promising filly you told me about could have won her maiden race. She started as an odds-on favorite, yet she finished last. What went wrong?”

“She threw a shoe.”

John H. Dromey has a 100-word story “Twelve O’Clock Hijinks” online in the Spring/Summer (Issue No. 19) of Quantum Fairy Tales.

Editor: Now I’m just wondering whether there could be any worse invention than a set of glass horseshoes.

MARCUS BENJAMIN RAY BRADLEY: Stay-at-Home Mom on the First Day of Preschool

Amusing, Submissions, Touching, , , , ,

Finally, after four long years, I’m free!

I can use the bathroom and take a shower without a tiny partner. I can finish a cup of coffee while it’s still hot.

Oh, the possibilities! I could even read quietly or even watch a non-animated television show.

I miss her already.

Marcus Benjamin Ray Bradley grew up in Perryville and now lives in Versailles, KY, with his wife and daughters. He wonders if his wife will feel this way in three years.

VIV BURGESS: Entangled

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

“We could sit there?” She points tentatively at a cafe table facing the busy market square.

“No.”

He heads for their usual unpopulated corner. Following obediently, she glimpses a hanging cobweb. At its centre, a desiccated corpse spins slowly.

She watches him suck his drink dry and plans her escape.

Viv Burgess wrote this story.

BC NANCE: Backtrack

Submissions, Top Stories, Touching, , ,

The tragic play unfolded in reverse. From the kitchen window mother saw the ragged hole in the ice on the frozen pond. Footprints in the snow backtracked to the door. The little red boots were gone, and toys lay abandoned on the floor. The television droned on, speaking to emptiness.

B.C. Nance is a native of Nashville, Tennessee where he works as a historical archaeologist. In his spare time he writes fiction and poetry and has published several of his short stories.