Tag Archives: J.S. O’Keefe

JS O’KEEFE: Murmuration

Artistic, Submissions, , , , , ,

Thoughts and actions begin, and go nowhere.

Birds are different. A wing shifts, a body turns, and it passes through the whole flock. They take off as one, landing somewhere far.

If birds are capable of holding a conviction, it’s that evolution is not all it’s cracked up to be.

J.S. O’Keefe’s work spans short stories, essays, and poems. They have been featured in a variety of publications, including AntipodeanSF, Roi Faineant, 101 Words, Everyday Fiction, Spillwords, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, 50 Word Stories, ScribesMicro, Dissident Voice, 50GT, etc.

JS O’KEEFE: Dreaming

Artistic, Submissions, ,

You hear your pulse. It used to be steady; now loud. You’ve snatched a dream. It doesn’t answer to the men playing cards outside your jailcell.

Between their curses and your next breath, you learn that liberty is in your blood.

Freedom is a heartbeat that ignores Aces and Kings.

J.S. O’Keefe’s work spans short stories, essays, and poems. They have been featured in a variety of publications, including AntipodeanSF, Roi Faineant, 101 Words, Everyday Fiction,  Spillwords, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, 50WS, ScribesMicro, Dissident Voice, 50GT, Bewildering Stories, etc.

JS O’KEEFE: Tremor

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

Fingers claw railings; new songs quiver first but soon catch on fire; an angry yell fractures into many, rolling through schoolrooms, churches, workshops; civility gone; smoke curls; sweat runs; papers tear; hands once serving the upper echelon now grip polearms; the tide surges, feral, unbroken; the downtrodden done being down.

J.S. O’Keefe’s work spans short stories, essays, and poems. They have been featured in a variety of publications, including AntipodeanSF, ScribeMicro, Roi Faineant, 101 Words, Spillwords, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, 50 Word Stories, etc.

J.S. O’KEEFE: The Rafting Fifty

Adventure, Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

Apurímac River: A floating community of fifty drifts slowly toward the Amazon. Three generations share the raft, where daily life revolves around fishing, gardening, crafting, and teaching the children. There’s no hierarchy here; no mine and yours. They depend on trust, cooperation. Never anchored to land; anchored to each other.

J.S. O’Keefe has published over three hundred short stories and poems in print and online literary magazines. See more at szjohnny.net.

JS O’KEEFE: Visiting Home

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

I step off the train.

The streets empty out as dusk sets in. I count sixteen blocks with no light. The noise from the business side of the tracks also fades. The city has turned into a tomb.

Luckily, the wise edicts of the Supreme Council still guide my way.

J.S. O’Keefe has published short stories, creative essays and poems in print and online literary magazines worldwide. More at his website, szjohnny.net.

JS O’KEEFE: Geography

Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

They told me the vizsla puppy I got for Christmas is a breed originating from a particular region. After spending the entire morning perusing the globe in vain, I called the Center For Allowed Information.

“Don’t let that bother you,” they said. “Maps are being redrawn almost continuously these days.”

J.S. O’Keefe has published over three hundred short stories and poems in print and online literary magazines. See more at his website: szjohnny.net.

JS O’KEEFE: Outwith the Garden

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , , ,

the town’s storyteller often used the word outwith
instead of outside
he claimed to have picked up
from Scottish and Yorkshire volunteers

now
the Garden’s shrinking around us
and there’s no other place left to live
we often say outwith among ourselves
concerning where
we’re going to find ourselves
soon

J.S. O’Keefe has published over three hundred short stories and poems in print and online literary magazines. See more at his website.

JS O’KEEFE: Leaving the Delta

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , , , ,

a big old plantation house
or a drafty shack over the bayou
your home

before you set out
visit every corner to behold
what all not to miss
what all to forget

it’s your home you’re leaving behind
never to return

don’t wave good-bye
don’t talk to anyone
glide away

J.S. O’Keefe has published over three hundred short stories and poems in print and online literary magazines. See more at szjohnny.net.

JS O’KEEFE: Double Walker

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

I meet me ambling in the grocery store
and look into my cart
what a cheapo man am I

Saturday too I saw me in the state park
wearing torn yoga pants and old tennis shoes
like a gutterpup

I’d better start avoiding places
where I can bump into me

J.S. O’Keefe has published over three hundred short stories and poems in print and online literary magazines. See more at szjohnny.net.

JS O’KEEFE: Questions

Artistic, Poetry, Submissions, , , ,

clickety-clacking is the tram
neighbors talking politics
it’s probably mid-morning
why’s it still pitch dark
or am I dreaming

no

turns out
I have yet to open my eyes

not bad
nice and soothing
what if I stay like this
also turn off my ears
will the world go away

J. S. O’Keefe is a scientist, trilingual translator and writer. His short stories and poems have been published in EDF, WENSUM, Roi Faineant, 101 Words, Spillwords, ScribesMICRO, 50WS, AntipodeanSF, Friday Flash Fiction, Spirit Fire Review, Medium, Paragraph Planet, 50 Give or Take, 6S, Satire, MMM, etc. See more at szjohnny.net