KIEREN MCCALLUM: A Metamorphosis

Amusing, Submissions, , , , , ,

One morning, as he woke in his bed from troubled dreams, Gregor Samsa discovered that he had been transformed into a monstrous cockroach.

Moments later, as World War III began, civilization was destroyed by a nuclear missile. Gregor was lucky to survive.

It’s nice how sometimes things just work out.

Kieren McCallum has just finished an English Literature degree and dreams of becoming an author, as well as a few more practical things. He has a blog at lemonmachine.wordpress.com with some creative writing on it.

Editor’s Note: This story is a clever modification of the classic novella The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka.

MEGAN DODGE: Open Door

Submissions, Touching,

Here I stand, alone at the front, the crowd murmuring from stolid pews. My coat tails limp, my collar moist with sweat. I imagine her in white, coming up the aisle, my heart pounding.

But when I look, there are only faces full of pity and an empty, open door.

Megan Dodge is a sophomore in high school with a passion for writing. She’s written stories and poems since she was seven years old and hopes to have a future affiliated with editing, writing, and/or publishing.

CHRISTINE HEUNER: My Precious Girl

Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

With guiltless greed hotter than any Nazi oven, she pillaged the platinum ring Grandma smuggled through Auschwitz. Snatched the bracelet Frank gave me on our silver anniversary, its width thicker than the vein she shot up with its loyal gold. Crushed and sniffed my diamonds’ dust. My daughter. An orphan.

Christine Heuner is a high-school English teacher in New Jersey. She loves her job!

SAM GEM: The Anthill

Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

I escape the house and run, crying, into the backyard. Examining hand-shaped bruises on my small body, I notice an anthill. Yesterday, I watched these ants a long time. Today is different. Raging, I stomp the anthill flat. Ants scurry in panic and writhe in pain.

It doesn’t help much.

Sam Gem is a writer of flash fiction, short stories, and maybe a novel someday. He resides in upstate New York.

ALYSSA GALLOWAY: The Best Friend

Submissions, Touching, , , ,

She finished tying his black tie before tucking it into the pink vest his fiancée picked out.

“I thought you didn’t want to be loved,” he said, looking down.

“I didn’t,” she smiled. “But sometimes people change their minds,” she whispered, squeezing his shoulder reassuringly before heading towards the sanctuary.

Alyssa Beth Galloway is an unpublished fiction and poetry writer. She enjoys watching Hitchcock films and browsing used book stores in her spare time. Galloway currently attends Southeast Missouri State University, and is seeking a career in writing.

J CHRIS LAWRENCE: Swallowed By the Dark

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

He came in the night and had his way, leaving evidence in the trunk. Yet, by popped tire and flipped car, he woke to find her gone.

Through the trees he ran, catching fleeting sight of pale gown. Swallowed by the dark, he found only silence, and her cold embrace.

Born in the Blue Ridge Mountains of West Virginia, J. Chris Lawrence spent much of his life traveling, exploring the various cultural facets of American life. With a love for dark fiction, he fancies himself a writer, and hopes to make a profession of it. He currently lives in Georgia with his wife and two sons. Find out more at jchrislawrence.com or follow him on Facebook at facebook.com/JCLFiction

Hide, Hide, Don’t Dare to Breathe

Amusing, , ,

I crouch, bound in tension, not daring to move, not daring to breathe, not daring to blink, lest I be discovered. The consequences would be extremely unsavoury…

Someone enters the room, stops, inhales deeply. Can they smell me? They depart.

I peek. The coast is clear.

This pie is MINE!

Through the Flames

Amusing, Artistic, , , ,

I could barely see him through the smoke, a wispy silhouette, dancing and swaying to the rhythmless music of the crackling bonfire. His erratic movements transported me to some other place, a far-off, magical land. He was ethereal, mesmerizing, screaming…

Screaming!?

“DON’T JUST STAND THERE! MY PANTS ARE ON FIRE!!”

This story was based on the prompt “through the flames” at TypeTrigger.

The Consequences of Sleeping on the Job

Amusing, , , ,

Check the news, honey. Apparently something crazy happened at work today. I was napping in a storage room. (Hey, I earn my siestas!) The guys didn’t give me many details. When I woke up they said it was over already.

Haircut? What haircut? Why are you laughing? Did someone…?

Argh.

TIM SEVENHUYSEN: Waitering Woes

Amusing, Odd, Puns and Wordplay, , , ,

“I won’t recommend seafood dishes anymore,” the waiter explains. “It has landed me in hot water too many times before.”

“Oh?” I say. “Do people really get upset with you when they don’t like your suggestions?”

“I mean literal hot water,” he says sardonically, clicking his lobster claws.

This story was based on the prompt “won’t recommend” at TypeTrigger.