April, 2021
On Behalf of a Grateful Nation by Deborah Robinson
Rifles fire skyward. The widow sobs. Praying for sufficient air, she raises the trumpet, holding back her own tears. A nation listens. The hero rests.
Deborah Robinson is sixty-two-years old. Writing prose is her greatest passion. Flash Fiction is her newest pursuit, and she is happy to find this website. She is a bereaved mother and widow. Her guys are war heroes, and she continues to honor their memory.
The Affair by Barbee
Leaving the Café before he did, she forgot the gifted flower, but no bother; she had taken his last spare apartment key when saying “Yes.”
Barbee lives on Lake Norman with his wife, five cats, and two hounds.
Unholey Ends by B.J. Thompson
“That hole, by our feet. Was it there before?”
“No.”
“And up there. Was it…”
“No.”
Echoed murmurs cascade up and down. The implosion begins.
B. J. Thompson is a retired public relations liaison and currently a Calgary, Canada-based literary novelist and short story writer. B. J.’s works examine the process of death — of an historical icon, an ideal or an event — in a Trumanesque non-fiction novel delivery, to reveal an answer to a long-held mystery or a societal question, for it’s in life’s final moments that truth plays the only role.
Disco Ball by Kiesa Kay
Like the last Gibb brother staying alive,
I slap my hands together, wiggle and dive,
Dancing between beats of a broken heart,
Shredding mended polyester.
Kiesa Kay, playwright and poet, dances and fiddles in a cabin in the Appalachians.
Sheer Happiness by Andrei Preda
The media’s success stories stoked the man’s envy until he dreamed of emulating curated happiness. His wife’s tears dismantled the success he was blind to.
Andrei is a writer and actor based out of Toronto. His first published piece – Too Many Boxes – can be found online at (mac)ro(mic) beginning March 31st.
You’re a Catch by Bob Hood
The traveler closed his eyes
and prayed the Lord his soul to keep
the Thug smiling, coiled his silken rumal
another addition to his list
Bob Hood is a retired IT contractor and computer programmer with a History Degree, who made parts for Concorde in the 70’s, and spent the 80’s as a motorcycle courier in London. Now busy honing his writing skills through poetry, short stories, and his second full length novel.
Clear by Jamie Peterson
There was beauty to me in your crumpled socks gathering dust under our clean bed. Now my sheets are rumpled and I never wear shoes.
Jamie Peterson is a teacher and writer; publisher of weekly newsletter “GoGranny!”; author of Stories for Women Who’ve Had Many Lives
Violet Sky Holographic by Edmund Fines
Diminished by the northern lights and endless skies, he gazed across the tundra and wondered when he’d be home again. A steely gust roared, “Never.”
Edmund Fines lives in Toronto with his wife, daughter, and versatile pug.
Riddle me
Not cut, or burnt, or drenched, or dried.
Not cloaked in smoke,
or shrouded in dust,
or wombed.
Sheltered from every wind;
What am I?
Kris Spencer has written seven books, most published by OUP. He is a regular contributor to magazines in a journalistic career that spans over 20 years. His poems have been published in a number of journals; most recently, Acumen and the Balloon Literary Journal. He’s a Headteacher living and working in west London. He was born and grew up in a village outside Bolton. Previously, he has studied, worked and lived in Hull, Cincinnati, Oxford, and the Bailiwick of Jersey.
Blue Eternity by Kevin J. Miller
President-for-Life Thorondsen bans post-high school education.
My Blue Eternity brain microchip cures the schizophrenic epidemic.
Oh, and makes IQs 200 after I push this button.
Kevin J. Miller has taught community college academic writing for twenty years. He has sold 100 poems & short stories (and yes they have been published, smart aleck) oh and a Welsh theater performed a play he wrote and put in on YouTube.
Crawfishin’ for a Compliment by Joshua Nash
I suck the head, pinching it a little, savoring every delicious moment, including Carl’s dumbfounded expression. It’s the nicest thing he’s ever said to me.
Joshua Nash is a writer from San Marcos, TX. By day, he does his best to interpret state tax law and communicate this complicated subject to everyday citizens. By night (and sometimes during a lunch hour), he methodically places small groups of words together with the intent of telling an intriguing story. He enjoys his night job more.
Pearl of Wisdom by Hugh Allison
Gloria Estefan once said the rhythm is going to get you. I didn’t believe her until I couldn’t stop sambaing. I’ll dance on her grave.”
Hugh Allison lives in London where he writes a lot and dreams of theme parks.
Happy and Healthy by Linda McMullen
Trevor demanded Kate run with him, and abjure alcohol and sugar.
Protests.
“It’s good for you!”
She dumped him post-marathon, recovered with marshmallows and mimosas.
Linda McMullen is a wife, mother, diplomat, and homesick Wisconsinite. Her short stories and the occasional poem have appeared in over ninety literary magazines. She received Pushcart and Best of the Net nominations in 2020. She may be found on Twitter: @LindaCMcMullen.
Three pieces by Fiona M Jones
Seaglass
Louisa searches the tideline carefully, collecting diamonds and emeralds. One day, soon, she will bring them out, tell her parents their money worries are gone.
Deep Water
Janey knows what happens if you dive off the rocks. You turn into a mermaid, beautiful like your blonde-haired stepsisters, but invisible forever. Worth it.
Breaking Wave
Alistair tries to imagine his parents’ arguments as breaking waves: each one sudden, terrifying, then gradually diminishing. But the waves keep on coming. Getting stronger.
Fiona M Jones writes very short things, most of which you can find through @FiiJ20 on Twitter and Facebook.
Two pieces by Susanna Lepow
We’ve Got History
Name after name in the Shoah records; “murdered” next to each one. And in the comments of my post, something once again not worth repeating.
Find Me an Oasis
The sky weeps bitter tears. Ahead, horns blare and lights flash, the city at night a living postcard. I wilt, and you carry me home.
Susanna is a writer and sometimes runner outside of Seattle, Washington. In her minimal spare time, she watches too many Netflix documentaries and pretends she knows how to cook.
Two pieces by Allen Ashley
Earl Grey
North Sea swim. What is that whooshing past my legs? Common seal head emerges ten yards away, sniffing air. I back off. It’s your domain.
New Dawn
Only one local church agreed to their wedding because they were divorcees. A shame as this was a remarriage. Twenty then; sixty and wiser now.
Allen Ashley is the founder of the SF group Clockhouse London Writers and is also President of the British Fantasy Society.
Cashmere Pink by Thea Pueschel
“You are a girl,” they say.
“No!” I yell.
“I read your body,” they declare.
“Those are parts,” I say.
“Those are girl,” they rebut.
Thea Pueschel is an emerging nonbinary writer and artist. Thea was the winner of the TAEM Flash Fiction Summer 2020 Contest. Thea has been published in Short Edition, Abstract Elephant, and DNA Magazine.
Topsassy by Adebisi Amori
He smiles. In that moment, I know.
That the end of us is near though we’ve not begun.
Who cares though? I walk towards him.
Adebisi Amori is a writer from Nigeria whose work has appeared in various publications. She’s inspired by everything and anything. Follow her work online on Instagram @thereal_adebisi
Polar-izing by Christina Lesnewich
She drinks Starbucks from a reusable mug, reads the Times. He sips Coke, scrolls through the Post. Their feet bump under the table, worlds away.
Christina Lesnewich is a writer and teacher living in suburban New Jersey.
Cloudy Blue-Grey by Jefferey G. Moss
A thousand sea lions
bark into the mist.
Up the coast
sea elephants molt and fast.
I pray tonight
The Big Dipper reveals
pathways home.
Jeffrey G. Moss was born and bred in Brooklyn, USA. After 32 years urging 13/14 year olds to craft their worlds he is branching out and attempting to follow some of his own advice. He has pieces in Bending Genres, Minnow Literary Magazine, 50 Word Stories, and forthcoming in SPACEONSPACE.
Flaunt it in Fitzrovia by Stephen Oram
London’s best kept secret village, they said. The crowds flocked. The Fitzrovians were flattered. Developers rebuilt, advertising a revamped village. A bland corporate nothing. Dead.
Stephen Oram writes science fiction. He is a founding curator for near-future fiction at Virtual Futures and a writer for SciFutures. His Nudge the Future collections have been praised by publications as diverse as The Morning Star and The Financial Times.
Golden Hour in Green Park by A.N. Myers
She strides through the grand gates, royally attired, delighting her grateful crowds. In her shopping cart are all her earthly possessions; all her putrid treasures.
A.N. Myers’ short stories and flash fiction have appeared in numerous publications including 101Fiction.com, Speculative66, the Eibonvale Press Anthology The Once and Future Moon, and BFS Horizons. His novel The Ides is available fromAmazon and his website anmyers.com. He lives in London where he enjoys writing humorless bios.
Funeral Wake by Flint Argus Claymore
Water flowed from her eyes, his eyes. Candles blew out, spirits making their way. The casket gasped. Oh, he’s alive! Alive! Candles lit once more.
Flint Argus Claymore currently gathers ideas for his future horror projects. He loves learning literature and watching dog videos.
Ballet Slipper
At dawn, hungover and broke, he stood, hopeless, as objects and curses rained down from her bedroom window. Then it flew at him, ribbons fluttering.
S. Britton runs a downmarket AirB&B, near YYZ.
Nailpolish Stories 