part 1
Tonight, me, Rouxgaroux, and Felix were back-up for all the things that go bump in the night. Our unit was volunteered for extra duty. A really stuck-up way to say we were babysitting the local police forces during Samhain celebrations. We had it coming. Continue reading “Border Patrol, M.E.L.”
Part 1 Superstition Part 2 Names for Blades
The dirt and the leaves on the trail showed no signs of disturbance. It smelled of balmy firs and two-day-old game trails. The patches of grass and plants stood straight. The path we took was virginal. No wind, no movements, no sounds, besides Frank’s and mine. I almost expected the cicadas to sing, but the forest remained silent. The day lost its fierce heat and power. Even the fir trees froze in the semitransparent shadow of ominous size, stretching above the canopy. It was something heavy and dangerous. Blue, violet, and brown saturated in the shadows but I was the only one to recognize. Light withered faster than I had anticipated. Continue reading “DEVIL’S PEAK (3)”
*Flex*
It feels good.
As the six or so of you who regularly read my rambles know, I’ve recently returned to this crazy, addictive sport that we the athletically challenged call “blogging”.
During my interweb absence, I’ve done a lot of outdoorsey stuff (avoiding unnecessary athleticism, of course), mostly with my dogs. I’ve gotten involved in various dog sports and activities. I’ve done walking. A lot of walking. So much so that I bought one of those smart watches that monitors your distance covered, steps taken, heart rate, sleep quality and subconscious thoughts, just so I can show people and brag “hey, look how athletic I am!” (said people then look at the general shape of my body and are rarely fooled by this claim).
But I’ve done little writing, and less reading. Now, I need to remedy that.
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PART 2a
Today’s destination is a puddle jump away from Camara do Lobos’ port. Somebody important used to be on holiday here, probably drinking poncha, or something stronger, practicing watercolor painting and smoking big cigars. Yes, Winston Churchill liked to sit and stare at the sea.
The island is a huge volcano, so the fishermen don’t have to go far, there is a drop to the ocean floor in the vicinity. The port is tiny, but bustling with boats on shore leave, tourists, villagers playing cards, old women going to or returning from grocery shopping. The air is saturated with the laughter of seagulls, churchbells and low chatter from the waves lapping at the black stones on the shore.
Continue reading “Going Hemingway with a Line, the Atlantic Ocean, and Heartache (2)”
FLASH
From The Dark Netizen, the supernatural revenge story, Highway To Hell.
“Now, he was bringing hell to the demon…” —Highway To Hell.
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From And Miles Before I Go To Sleep… Daughter’s Surprise by Ramya Tantry.
“You sacrificed your wishes so that you can fulfill mine.” —Daughter’s Surprise
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From Heart In Print By Jaya, Where’s My Master?
“Has the master been abducted?” — Where’s My Master?
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From Iain Kelly, ROXY.
“Glitz and glamour away from the gaudy Strip and the drug-riddled suburb slums.
The waitresses. All young, slim, white. Wearing just enough.” — ROXY.
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From X-R-A-Y Magazine, Theme Park Suicide by Teddy Duncan. A grim tale which shows how even those who seem to have given up on life haven’t given up on human connectivity. Duncan’s work was excerpted from a as-yet unpublished chapbook.
“I just really didn’t want to feel alone when I…
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Sadly true, thank you for the great post
The 80s were arguably the toughest decade for Romanian citizens during the whole Communist regime. Dictator Nicolae Ceausescu, surrounded by an obedient clique of ill-advisers, embarked on two major projects with devastating consequences for the Romanian economy, and the living standards of the population:
These decisions were reflected in the everyday lives of Romanian people, who started suffering from food shortages, as well as regular cuts in electricity, heating, warm water or gas. The goal was to reduce internal consumption as much as possible, and to…
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Thank you for featuring me and the flashes of stroboscope light reflected from my disco ball of characters and misfortunes. 😉
FLASH FICTION & SHORT STORIES
New Flash Fiction published Sling Shot by Craig Fishbane.
“I had pestered my father to take me on the Sling Shot ride the night of the disaster. You can actually see a photo of us standing alongside the ticket booth if you watch the documentary on the Travel Channel. My father is easy to spot in a red and white checkered shirt and navy shorts. I’m holding his hand, wearing a baseball cap. The picture was taken about a minute before the accident.”
Fishburn’s tale was one of those stories that I could have easily imagined being elaborated upon and turned into a full length novel. I’m curious whatever became of the child and the two young lovers…
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The Library of Nell has been quite active since debuting with several new pieces available, including Dirty Dozens, a collection of her writings from Storyin12
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Primum: Benigne! Omnis necessitas Logos est.
FLASH FICTION
First up, Nell of The Library of Nell published a sequence of erotic microfictions entitled The Book of the Woodsman as well as the surreal, The Book of Morpheus. Decidedly evocative. Very interested to see her future works.
“We raised our faces at octagon windows of colour, through mirrors, upending to infinity.” — Book of Morpheus, Ely
♦
The persistently consistent Dark Netizen published the mircofic, Buster about a dog figurine that is more than it seems.
♦
Curious Forgotten Lore has published a plethora of fascinating little fictional tidbits, most notably: a continuation of his mythos of Clod, The God Of Clowns. Perchance, in time, he’ll be the new Slenderman; if that is to be the case I just hope SONY doesn’t try and make a movie out of it…
SHORT STORIES
Lucas Barstow has published Deep Vein Trombonist, which begins alluringly, “Deep underground…
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Without hyperbole, this was by far the most challenging contest we’ve ever judged here at Molotov HQ. The quality of submissions has never been higher, making even the Close-But-No-Cigar shortlist a challenge to crack with such fierce competition.
We saw U.S. entries roll in primarily from the East and West Coasts, with some Midwest thrown for good measure (and a smattering of the landlocked West), and we were thrilled to also read submissions from writers stationed in Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Canada, France, India, Ireland, Israel, Netherlands, New Zealand, Portugal, South Africa, and the United Kingdom.
The following writers had stories that made it through several rounds of cuts, but didn’t quite squeak into the Top 10.
Close-but-no-cigar shortlist shout-outs go to:
Dmitri Akers
Kristopher Armstrong
Beth Bauman
Brook Bhagat
Mason Binkley
Andrew Bourelle
Andy Brown
Michael Carter
Travis Chambray
Christina Dalcher
Phillip Dixon
Mitchell Duran
Robert…
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THE STORY HIVE 