The Lie Piper of AMZN
AMZN Town’s in cyberspace, Near famous Bezos City, Oh interwebs, so deep and vile, Exporting junk like the River Nile, That hungry town, lacking a smile, is where begins this ditty. Almost thirty years or so ago, when commerce began to slow, an idea brewed
The Living Work of Bo Winslow by Bobby Minelli
“GLORY BE,” the Holy Warrior whispered. There was dirt in Eniba’s mouth and he could taste its bitter grit as he spat out blood. He had, he knew, lost the fight. The Light had run out of time, the Story Catchers would have to be
Summer Smoke by John J. Staughton
HAVE YOU EVER FALLEN ASLEEP to the sound of something dying? I find myself here in a tent beside a river ten miles north of Yellowstone and my breath blooms overweight smoke, clouding my vision as I write. There is a herd of elk perhaps
The Way It Is Now by Laurinda Lind
YOU ARE TOO YOUNG to remember why the wars started. They coated your heart like candy, like caffeine that waits within your blood until you are crashed on the couch with one eye strung tight all night to the neon sign across the street. As
Giving Thanks by Elle Griffiths
RACHEL NEWMAN IS A TALL, BEAUTIFUL DOCTOR. She grew up in a Jewish family, in the affluent Chicago suburb where they filmed and set Home Alone. Although she originally attended the local state school (the filming location for both Ferris Bueller’s Day Off and The
The Power of Love by Sean Flannery
I’M IN THE EMERGENCY ROOM of Akron General Hospital, waiting for a doctor after having X-Rays taken of my chest, back and both legs. I’m part of what the staff here probably calls “the last call injuries”. Between the hours of 12 and 4 AM,
Ravine by Ben Renner
THE ENEMY ATTACKED the encampment the moment the sun peeked over the plain stretching forever to the east. John Smith, a missionary sent to convert ‘friendly natives’, as his mentor called them, watched the riders whooping and yelling as they descended upon his adoptive tribe
Love is a Marketplace of Two by J. Mark Tebben
KYLE OFTEN SPENT HIS COMMUTE HOME worrying over his workday. Try as he might, he couldn’t help it – even though his DJNA playlist was optimized for his predisposition to stress, it was never enough to relax him, especially after a pitch meeting. And especially
Now You Are My Soldier by Jack Davies
“I WANT TO GO PARTY it up in Ramallah,” the American says, pronouncing the last three syllables like the name of a Latin lover to be dropped at the end of September. For the last half hour, she’s been holding forth to two Israeli boys
The Drowning Heart by Bobby Minelli
IF THERE IS ONE THING that really sets me off it is talk of when the world will end, that type of talk pushes aside those of us for whom the ending happened ages ago. That said, I suppose one has to be grateful for
The Man in the Brown Suit by Mac Cushing
JASON WAS TALKING AGAIN, but Mac barely paid attention to what he was saying. They were two hours south of St. Lawrence and both he and Jason had already put in a full eight hours tying rebar in Syracuse before they had gotten in Jason’s
See You On The Other Side by John J. Staughton
HE FELT LIKE HE HADN’T SLEPT in weeks, but even while acknowledging the thought, he scoffed at his own lazy adoption of the cliché. He had slept, certainly, because he was still able to carry on low-intensity conversations, complete an embarrassing modicum of work, and
The Ballad of Sean Ouia by Ben Golden
WE OPEN WITH MASON, a low-end hustler, passing through a part of America that America forgot. Mason’s spent some time in the music business as a promoter, run a couple companies, and is always looking for his big shot at wealth and stardom. He’s currently
You by Jared Thomas
TWELVE MINUTES from where you stole your first quiet breath from a soft breeze, there is a road most people only see once, if they see it at all. It winds and whips and slashes through acres upon acres of towering trees begging to become
While You Were Out by Mark Ehler
HELLO. WELCOME HOME. We’ve missed you, just me and that noisy fridge you have there. You really should look into that thing. It’s been interrupting my thoughts. One minute I’m on to something and the next I’m thinking about what an obtuse thing a refrigerator
