RICHARD DAY GORE: Cloudless

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

A cockatoo gnaws at the twisted wire holding his cage shut. Upstairs, humans hurl insults and furniture. Again.

These bars, their anger: a prison within a prison. Enough.

Snap! A puff of feathers, an open window. The sky, foreign but irresistible, challenges his wings to embrace a new, dangerous freedom.

After chasing his muse from Virginia to Manhattan, Richard Day Gore settled in Southern California, where he spends his time pushing around words, paint brushes, and guitar strings. See more at richarddaygore.com.

ALEXANDRA KEISTER: Life Ain’t No Fairytale

Amusing, Stories, Submissions, Touching, , , ,

Girl had never dated a prince. She’d dated Pig, and Dog, and Weasel, but royalty had never bought her dinner or kissed her hand.

One day she was sitting in a café when a handsome man approached her. She smiled. Could this be her forever?

“Hello,” he said. “I’m Frog.”

This is Alexandra’s fourth 50-Word Story.

ALEX CREECE: Tragician

Odd, Submissions, , ,

Rabbits escaped her hat; their itchy feet ached for dry dirt over dry-cleaned velure. Her sleeves cried pigments of cheap pretense. On the mortician’s table, her final trick was unveiled: a heartless ribcage—a taunting gimmick—was the oldest trick in the book. The coroners still queued for the show.

Alex Creece is a snow poff.

BOB THURBER: Mind Your Own

Artistic, Submissions, Top Stories, , , ,

My daughter lives thirty minutes away. She’s got two children now. We haven’t spoken in twenty years. The last time we were together we hunted Monkey Bees in the backyard, turning things over, looking for a Monkey Bees’ nest. It was a made-up game. There was no way to win.

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,” was recently rereleased. Visit BobThurber.net.

GARY POWER: Fireside Felony

Amusing, Submissions, , ,

Samantha lay naked on the hearth, luxuriating before the open fire.

Pulling the chain tightly between clenched fists, and with sinister grin, the man nudged the door open.

Blissfully unaware, Sam rolled gently over.

The man moved stealthily, deftly dropping the noose about her neck.

“C’mon you lazy mutt. Walkies!”

Gary Power is the author of several short stories published in respected anthologies such as the Black Book of Horror and Spinetinglers and also online. He is a member of the British Fantasy Society and the Clockhouse London Writers and also an Amazon Author.

ABBY MOREHOUSE: Flaws

Artistic, Submissions, , ,

Mess-ups. Scratch-outs. We all have our moments. Life is full of mistakes. We all make them. It’s what makes us human. Our imperfections make us perfect in our own way.

But when we work together, we can overcome our imperfections and be an (almost) perfect team.

Even with our flaws.

Abby Morehouse is a 7th grader who recently started writing 50-word stories. She hopes to continue writing.

HARRIET DYER: Girl in the Box

Artistic, Submissions, , , ,

The girl was sick of running, then sick of hiding once she’d run.

The only person she trusted was the man in the nearby box. She never asked for a name.

As she lay there, battered, bruised, and fighting for her life, she wished she knew his name after all.

Harriet Dyer is a comedian and writer based in the UK.

MONICA PEREZ NEVAREZ: Mom’s Last Garage Sale

Submissions, Touching, ,

Inside the empty cottage, shadows of ghosts: smudges where your picture used to hang; discolored floorboards where your cactus stood guard; a sepia burn on the kitchen counter; air stained with your perfume.

Six hundred bucks to show for a lifetime’s work.

Your gifts whisper to me in my dreams.

Monica is a sustainability manager by day and a writer by night, who used to visit Cape Cod every summer and every Christmas.

CHRISTOPHER GANNON: Forever Falling

Amusing, Poetry, Submissions, , ,

I tripped over something and fell a long way,
didn’t expect this to happen today. Wrapped
in darkness Like a coat. Felt my belly hit
my throat. Looked for the ground
that should have been found,
but I was misinformed and
quickly became bored
as forever falling
became my
calling.

Christopher Gannon is a writer of short fiction and theatre. He does not make up the stories; they make up him.