Bill never expected to find love.
He never expected Susan at the coffee shop to greet him warmly, smile eagerly, and wink at him while she made his latte grande.
Bill never expected it, so he ignored her, took his latte, said goodbye, and went on with his lonely life.
Chris Fries is a new writer, working to hone his writing chops. He is an Engineer by vocation, a guitarist by avocation, and a writer by compulsion. His writing blog is StratPlayerCJF.blogspot.com.
The reporter looked away as the private’s family marched out to face the television cameras. A soggy flag drooped at half-mast on their porch. They spoke of a kid who led rubber band fights, flashlight tag, bicycle jousts. His pen paused, hovered. A phrase consumed his mind: pornographer of sorrow.
Joseph S. Pete won a four month’s supply of Pabst Blue Ribbon by placing second in the poetry category of the 2010 PBR Art Contest. John Donne couldn’t say the same.
“Hallo. Leuk om hier te zijn! Ik ben klaar voor de hemel!” said the recently deceased Priest.
St. Peter was taken aback by the confidence and knowledge of the Priest.
“How did you know we spoke Dutch in Heaven?” he exclaimed.
“Because there was certainly no Earthly need for it!”
Gavin is a full time student who writes fiction in his free time. One day he hopes to write full time as he fears real work.
Tim set out one day to write the most compelling fifty word story he’d ever composed. He spent months crafting the story, until at last he felt he had perfected it . It was only as he began to write it down that he realised the introduction was one word too
Keab42 wanted to write something awesome here, but sadly his imagination abandoned him.
The time traveler found the genie’s lamp.
“You have one wish,” she said.
“I wish for zargon crystals so I can return to my time.”
The genie shrugged, embarrassed.
“What about some protofongles?”
The genie sighed. “Here’s some gold, a castle, and a gorgeous wife. That’s gonna have to do.”
This is the seventh in a series of stories from King Kool, who has previously contributed multiple other series.
An alchemist discovered the genie’s lamp.
“You have one wish,” she said.
“I wish I could transmute lead to gold.”
She granted it. “I could’ve just made some gold for you,” she said.
“Yeah, but give a man a fish… Plus I have tons of lead to get rid of.”
This is the sixth in a series of stories from King Kool, who has previously contributed multiple other series.
A stubborn gardener found a lamp in a potted plant. He cleaned it, and a genie emerged.
“You have one wish,” she said.
“Whatever I wish, you’ll make it awful. So I wish genies didn’t exist.”
The genie zapped him to ash. “As far as he knows, I granted it.”
This is the fifth in a series of stories from King Kool, who has previously contributed multiple other series.
A fighter found the genie’s lamp.
“For freeing me, I will grant you one wish,” she said.
“I wish for a sword that can go through anything.”
With a wave of her hand, a sword materialized before him. He reached for it, and his fingers passed right through the handle.
This is the fourth in a series of stories from King Kool, who has previously contributed multiple other series.
A merchant found an old oil lamp. Amazingly, a beautiful genie was summoned as he rubbed it.
“For freeing me, I will grant you one wish,” said the genie.
“I wish I didn’t have to worry about money,” the merchant said.
“So be it,” the genie said, and killed him.
This is the third in a series of stories from King Kool, who has previously contributed multiple other series.
A bandit polished the bronze lamp he stole from the caravan. A genie materialized in a puff of smoke.
“For releasing me, I will grant you one wish,” she said.
“I wish for the power to lay waste to my enemies.”
So she turned him into a highly contagious bacteria.
This is the second in a series of stories from King Kool, who has previously contributed multiple other series.