Tag Archives: insect

WILLIAM MITCHELL: Monster

Adventure, Amusing, Submissions, , , ,

Upturned glass wavering, I carry terror incarnate.

Every instinct screams, “Kill it! Squash it! Obliterate it!” I resist; outdoors, its freedom awaits.

Now it sits, in its newly spun web, remembering the warm, dry bedroom it once inhabited. It watches, and slowly and surely, it draws its plans against me.

William Mitchell lives in East Sussex in the South of England. He is an award-winning author, having had early success with various Horror and Science Fiction publications before winning the Writers of the Future contest in 2012. His first novel, CREATIONS, came out in 2014 with John Hunt Publishing.

FRANCISO TUTELLA: The Ladybird

Artistic, Submissions, , , , ,

He watched the ladybird crawl up the blade of grass. He pitied the beetle, its perspective confined to the soil; its miserable existence regulated by the basic needs to eat, defecate, and reproduce; its life dependent on the man’s whim.

He did not envy the ladybird… until it flew away.

Francisco Tutella’s fiction and poetry reflect his experiences growing up in northeastern Pennsylvania and his time spent studying and traveling in Italy. He has written for Wilkes magazine, and his poetry was included in the Luzerne County Transportation Authority’s 2014 Poetry In Transit program. He holds a Master of Fine Arts in Creative Writing from Wilkes University and teaches composition and literature in northeastern Pennsylvania.

SUMMER STORIES – CRAIG HOLZSCHUH: My Deerest

Submissions, Summer Stories, , , , ,

Runner-Up 2: “Amusing” Category

“I know we are bad for each other, but you add something special to my life I’ve never felt before. Our closeness makes me feel faint. It wounds me that they say we would be better apart.”

“To separate us would kill me.”

“And me as well, my deerest Tick.”

Craig Holzschuh (1973-present) is an American writer. He is best known for amusing stories and an overreliance on spell-check. His pseudonyms pout in jealousy.

KIEREN MCCALLUM: A Metamorphosis

Amusing, Submissions, , , , , ,

One morning, as he woke in his bed from troubled dreams, Gregor Samsa discovered that he had been transformed into a monstrous cockroach.

Moments later, as World War III began, civilization was destroyed by a nuclear missile. Gregor was lucky to survive.

It’s nice how sometimes things just work out.

Kieren McCallum has just finished an English Literature degree and dreams of becoming an author, as well as a few more practical things. He has a blog at lemonmachine.wordpress.com with some creative writing on it.

Editor’s Note: This story is a clever modification of the classic novella The Metamorphosis by Franz Kafka.

Stick With the Plan

Odd, , , , , , ,

“What are you up to?” muttered Wendel, eyes narrowed.

None of the fifty-seven fuzzy orange caterpillars inching across his driveway offered an explanation.

“I don’t trust you,” said Wendel. Then he stomped one, for emphasis.

Deep underground, the Caterpillar Council murmured grimly. Casualties had always been inevitable in this war.

Attack of the Fruit Flies

Amusing, , , , ,

With waxy wings buzzing, and multifaceted eyes glowing maliciously, the fruit flies attacked.

In mere seconds, the unsuspecting picnickers were covered with a two-inch-deep blanket of angry, but harmless insects.

“We have them!” buzzed Franklin Fruit Fly. “What do we do now?”

And the swarm realized it had no follow-through.

This story is based on a title suggested by Nancy Cavanaugh via Facebook.

The Metamorphosis

Amusing, Touching, , , , ,

Gregor went to bed one night and woke up as a giant clumsy bug.

His family freaked out and locked him in his room. His little sister fed him garbage.

He scared some old guys and someone threw an apple at him which got stuck in his back.

He died.

This story is a microfiction treatment of Franz Kafka’s classic novella, The Metamorphosis.