He has no control as he falls deeper into the unknown abyss. Its essence finds him, surrounds him, and becomes him until he can scarcely breathe.
The deeper he falls the dimmer his past, but as desperation dies away it’s replaced with something far more stomach-churning yet wonderful… called love.
Connell is known, in some parts, for writing a reasonably eclectic mix of stories.
The doctor looks at me with sad eyes.
“Oh, don’t look at me like that,” I gulp.
“I know I’ve been cheating death for too long. But doc, don’t tell me my time’s up when I’m just learning how to live.”
“Well,” he says, “it’s me who’s dying, not you.”
Sharon is a communications strategist and storyteller for companies ranging from technology start-ups to Fortune 500s. When she isn’t wordsmithing for her clients, she writes flash fiction and short stories and is also working on a novel, The Tiger Baby. She has a masters of professional writing degree from the University of Southern California and has been published in EastLit, Ethos International, and Reed Magazine, among others. Follow Sharon at Twitter or Instagram at @sharonysim.
A dance of death performed a million times. His mind and body recall every pivot, every feint, like their first memory. The audience thunders loud enough to put Mother Nature to shame.
Wave, bow, catch the rose. Show off your uniform; flourish your cape; begin the dance.
“Toro… Toro… TORO!”
Tony is 22. He loves American cars, horror movies, playing the saxophone, and writing fiction.
The story of the week for March 28 to April 1 is…
The Stink of a Lifetime by Bob Thurber
As always, Bob’s evocative language summons up a whole host of implied back story and character building.
The scent of my father lives in the walls and permeates the air.
The oddly sweet aroma is strongest in his office. From a wall packed with books I can select any one and, just by opening it, smell his hands, his breath, feel his eyes reflected off the page.
Over the years Bob Thurber’s work has received a long list of awards and prizes. His most recent book is a collection of brief stories titled “Nothing But Trouble”. His first novel “Paperboy: A Dysfunctional Novel” will be rereleased in May 2016. Visit BobThurber.net.
As the dark loomed over her, she could feel her heart race.
Suddenly she could hear her own footsteps. She started to move towards a tall derelict building.
The noise of her footsteps faded away, overtaken by an overwhelming screeching like finger nails on a blackboard.
What could it be?
Erin Walker is a 9 year-old girl who in her spare time likes writing stories and singing.
“Lord, a good skillet makes all the difference,” Rhonda whispers, mimicking her grandmother. Bruised, bleeding, and trembling, she raises the cast iron high overhead, and then whops her sleeping husband, crushing his skull.
As blood soaks into the mattress, she understands why her grandma’s wedding gift came with a wink.
Jeffrey Darter is currently at work on his first book. A nature enthusiast and an adventurer, he is also an avid cook, and has an iron skillet of his own. He is single.
Hot soup had lifted a small membrane of skin from the roof of his mouth during dinner. His tongue probed this injury, and he studied his reflection in the mirror.
Skin between his eyebrows was taut and eyes opaque, but he experienced no pain.
He did not want to die.
Michael is a graduate of Portland’s 2011 Attic Atheneum, a one-year alternative to a MFA program. His published fiction and creative non-fiction have appeared in Bartleby Snopes, Blue Lake Review, MacGuffin, PANK, Prick of the Spindle, Prime Number, and other on-line and print journals and anthologies. His series collectively called “Mississippi Freedom Summer in Eight Vignettes” was published in the “Best of the Net 2011” by Sundress Publications.
Lying on her bed, Bella could finally move her legs; flexing and testing their strength, she waved an arm with glee.
When they held a mirror to her face, she gurgled.
“Mama!”
“That’s right, Bella,” said the brain surgeon.
Bella’s children sat quietly nearby. They hoped she would recover fully.
Margaret McGoverne is currently writing her first full length novel, while being distracted by short stories, flash fiction and her blog about all things writing.
Meandering up the steep hill, Chloe, my Labradoodle, dawdles, sniffing brown-green grass. I pause, enjoying early morning birdsong
My quiet journey is interrupted by sounds of cars racing to join other bleary-eyed drivers, hurtling onto jammed freeways. For many, the work day has begun.
I smile, ambling down the hill.
A New England girl transplanted to sunny San Diego after marriage, Kathleen has been an English teacher on both American coasts (and in Puerto Rico). Retired, she enjoys writing, hiking, working as a volunteer with students, and visiting Cambria, the west coast’s answer to her New England.