The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month.
The finalists for October were:
Personal Effects by Jim Parisi
Pizza Fog in an F-150 by Robert Allen
Evacuation by Meg Pokrass
Taking Flight by Stephanie Lye
Sunrise by Melanie Winklosky
Good Will Books by M. Elaine Wilkins
The winner of the October 2026 Story of the Month is…
Taking Flight
Can’t tell how many times a girlfriend dumped me. Always taken completely unawares. Years ago, I decided to turn the tables. I had no reason whatsoever to dump Jenny but I called her just to make a breakup date. Still waiting for her return call. Still wonder if she knew.
Don Nigroni is a retired labor economist. His flash fiction has appeared in Ambit, Asymmetry Fiction, Mystery Tribune, Theme of Absence, Free Flash Fiction and 365 tomorrows.
Open your eyes and the universe wheels.
Close them. It’s still as a winter’s night, peaceful but for the pounding of your heart.
Open them—spinning stars, the Earth a sapphire streak, the moon a silver comet, the darkness as crystalline as the meteor that severed your umbilical cord.
Close them—pray.
Tim Boiteau is a Writers of the Future winner and author of the novel The Nilwere.
We gave you the best months of our lives. We energized you. We put on a colorful front but frankly, we’re drained; our chlorophyll is no longer filling us. And how are you repaying us for our goodness to you? By cutting us off. Well, we’ve had enough. We’re leaving.
Lynn Messing loves the autumn colors but is saddened by the falling leaves.
When I was twenty-nine I went through a phase of simplifying my life. I bought a robot vacuum, prepped meals in advance, and began cycling to work to save time at the gym. All friction had to go.
Eventually, so did Addie. But that’s okay. She was slowing me down.
Benjamin Rowley is an architect and writer currently based in Germany. This is his first published story, but you can find more at rowleysmiscellany.com.
The story of the week for October 26 to 30 is…
Ecdysis by Alyson Floyd
“Don’t believe what you read and see on social media, son. When trust is broken, it’s broken forever. That’s not a rule — it’s a fact. And no matter how hard you try to convince yourself otherwise, the trust you once had in another human being will never be absolute again.”
D.M. Barlow is a writer, currently based in China. When not at his desk, he finds, fixes and uses old typewriters.
Eight years. That’s how long my brother has been missing. Mom still sets his plate every night. Dad stopped correcting her years ago.
Tonight, she smiles at his empty chair. “You’re late.”
Dad goes pale.
A fork moves. Just slightly.
Mom smiles wider. “Eight years, and you still don’t knock.”
Fatemah Zaminpaima is a third-year student majoring in Information Systems and Business Analytics at the American University of Sharjah. She is currently enrolled into a creative writing course which reminded her of the passion she had for writing. Amongst all the chaos of business studies, this course is a breath of fresh air resulting in her to write stories again and work her mind for stories in a way she has not since 10th grade.
My hometown church’s WE HAVE FREE NARCAN sign’s third E has fallen. The letters are black and choppy. FRE. Last month’s O was gone for the event. SUP KITCHEN.
How many letters have never been put back in place? I tighten my grip on the steering wheel and keep driving.
After three years of teaching in Cincinnati Public Schools, Rachel Hapanowicz is currently attending George Mason University for her MFA in Fiction. She completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Virginia. Her works can be found at 50-Word Stories, wildscape. literary journal, and Spillwords. She thinks Sup Kitchen sounds cooler, anyway.
There are no rules but the phones work and it’s a party line. I dare you to say “More syrup, please” into the receiver.
Listen. You’ll hear: “Where are you?”
It’s not from servers or another table. It’s the diner’s hungry ghost. Regulars won’t touch the sticky phones or pancakes.
JR Walsh is the Online Editor at The Citron Review. He teaches creative writing at SUNY Oswego. Find his writing on itsjrwalsh.com.