JO WITHERS: Best Supporting Actress

Amusing, Submissions, , , , ,

A child star, she’d been acting all her life. She’d played the beautiful princess, the glamorous wife, the sexy secretary.

At 35, roles disappeared.

She booked in quick: nipped, tucked, tightened.

Next audition they loved her: “Perfect cheekbones; sensual pout.” Booked her for a Hollywood blockbuster.

Playing George Clooney’s mother.

Jo Withers writes micros, shorts, and poetry from her home in South Australia. Recent work is featured or forthcoming in Ellipsis Zine, Molotov Cocktail, FlashBack Fiction, Milk Candy Review and Lunate. You can follow Jo on Twitter at @JoWithers2018.

RAYMOND SLOAN: Rain Dance

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

Grey skies jigged upon the bus stop as dejected commuters huddled beneath. The endless stream of headlights paraded the relentless downpour.

A man checked his watch. A woman her phone. A dog ducked between.

The bus arrived.

Lucy smiled getting off and nonchalantly, through the applause of puddles, waltzed home.

Raymond lives in Ireland and has been previously published in 101 words and 101 fiction.

MARLIYN McFARLANE: End of the World

Adventure, Amusing, Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

Doomsayers warned of apocalypse. “Disaster from the sky will destroy the world and the entire species!”

“Ridiculous superstition,” trumpeted Tyrannosaurus and Brachiosaurus. “We rule. Always will.”

The prophets were right.

A puny bunch with no claws or sharp teeth took over and wreaked havoc.

But their end, too, would come.

Marilyn McFarlane is a travel writer and the author of Sacred Stories: Wisdom From World Religions. She also writes poetry, memoir, and fiction. She lives in Oregon with her husband, a sizable garden, and maple and fir trees. See more at marilynmcfarlane.com.

ETHAN NOLL: The Gun

Adventure, Artistic, Submissions, , ,

The pistol tucked in my waistband is a constant reminder of my vulnerability, the reason that I can never feel safe.

Sometimes I forget it’s there. Sometimes everything feels normal. But then I remember all at once: the gun, the people I’ve hurt, and the retribution that’s sure to come.

Ethan Noll writes short stories and poems. He hopes to have as many published as possible.

ED N WHITE: Dream Catcher

Submissions, , ,

Sometimes my dreams seem so real I think I can reach out and touch them. Sometimes they don’t. This last one worries me the most: I can’t tell the difference.

I’ve stayed awake now for almost two days, feeling more secure with each passing minute that nothing bad will hap…

Ed N. White has recent stories accepted by The Scarlet Leaf Review and Wordgatherings (Dec. issue).

ALEX MARKOVICH: Wrong Place, Wrong Time

Artistic, Submissions, Touching, , , ,

“Je t’aime,” the young soldier declared to the farmgirl in German-inflected French as they strolled hand-in-hand through peaceable pastures. “I love your smile. Your eyes. Your lovely long hair…”

But she couldn’t forget her neighbors’ wrathful warning: “Someday we’ll drive out the pigs. Then we’ll come for you with shears.”

Alex Markovich is old enough to remember World War II.

VR SHANKAR: Velu Grows Up

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

Velu had an uncanny resemblance to his mahout dad. Even his voice was the same.

But he was a wastrel.

Until Dad died and the elephant refused food.

When Velu patted him and gently asked him to eat, the noble animal rose to oblige.

Velu’s status, too, rose with that.

V.R. Shankar is a retired engineer from India with a zest for creative writing.

KRISTYN MASS: Ravin

Adventure, Submissions, , ,

Vicious attacks plagued the sleepy town.
Victim after victim, each unable to defend themselves.

I made the journey to walk the darkened streets alone.
Finally it was my turn to face the flashing blade,
but the paltry criminal did not count on my maniacal nature
and rapacious taste for blood.

Kristyn Mass lives in Iowa with her husband and three cats. She is a professional voice actor and aspiring writer.

OLIVE RICHARDSON: Three in the Morning

Adventure, Submissions, , ,

Mom warned me not to look in the mirror between the hours of 2 and 4 A.M. “If you do,” she said, “don’t ever look your reflection in the eye.”

How childish.

I caught my eye and she winked, and yanked me by the collar. My head cracked the glass.

Olive Richardson is an unknown but human adjacent creature made of spite and caramel lattes.