Most read stories

Waiting

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He grew red-faced at her quiet words, "I'm pregnant."

A Conversation Between Bacon and Eggs

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In a hot splattering we were born

Sweet & Sour

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Since the divorce had gone final, the matter settled once and for all, he’d taken to a masochistic bingo of sorts.

Blind Spot

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If the photographs made sounds, they would rumble like static from an impending thunderstorm, pressed between the pages of a yellowing dictionary. Compressed sound, searching for the proper words.

Music Box

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Katie loved butterflies. Katie loved daisies. Mainly, Katie loved presents.

Tarot

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He had no idea about the first three cards - what he would call the flop - which looked dubious and full of danger.

I Don't Blame You

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for going forthe river and being blinded by its millionsof invisible fish, all sparklinglike pink enchanteddreams made of rosequartz and shaped like glassroses, who would? I fell for an illusionaftermy own fashion,but I could alwaysadmit mymistakes and catcha laugh out…

Prom Date

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The dump smelled of the chaos of creation, of rusting metal and burned glass, chemicals and rancid rainwater, wet cardboard and rotting wood, paint slaking off clapboards and drums.

Displacing Charles the Bald

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I try to envision long-haired men riding horses across a vast expanse, their faces blank as those of my students.

Countdown

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I’m twenty eight years old, and I am dying.

The Day After Falling in Love

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The day after falling in love, I became unmoored from everything familiar.

Hey Jude

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I laugh too loud cause the world looks good that way and for a minute we both make funny sounds just to exercise our vocal cords and see how close we can come to the line without crossing.

The Anniversary

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.... The sun tears through the windshield as if it were an six-foot wide magnifying glass and for a moment it feels to them both as if they are in a manipulated universe of fire and ice, storm and heaven, as it does when the skies crack and spread open a

Who Do You Say I Am

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You’ve gathered in church to wait for Jesus. Unarguable signs have let you know this is the day. This is the day of the second coming. This is Judgment Day. It was a no-brainer to wait at the church.

Phone Call

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I could call him. And be done with this waiting but I refused. I wanted him to not forget me first. To bring himself to remember me first before I'd give him the pleasure of my company.

Hungry 6-Year-Old Crashes Car While Driving to Applebee’s

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That sort of says it all, doesn’t it? The skirmish for truth must be fought early in the morning. Lies happen later in the day. Big lies occur in the night. And this belongs directly on the surface of time as well: Alleged shoplifter arrested

Osmo's Bells

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Worldwide, sturdy bells quickly superseded decomposable, and edible, cheese balls as jesters' preferred cap ornaments.

Sophie's Choice

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Sophie is a cat. I tell you this upfront so as not to get you all wound up about moral angst, Nazi's or a mother's love.

Write

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I pasted a sample paragraph of my writing on the website 'Who do you write like?'.

Invasion

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That summer crawled with them, insects of every denomination: cicadas caught by the cat, wingless, came to rest in the roots of the garden we planted; sudden swarms of dragonflies...

Chinchillas in the Air

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He rounds his back to stretch again, circles his arms like a ballerina, settles into the couch cushion behind him. “We made plans. Real plans. New York City. Live like bohemians. Fuck like chinchillas.”

Luther Loves Lucy

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Luther Mishmash stood numbly in the yard, dumbly staring at the soiled pair of underpants flapping lazily in the breeze on the wash line. Grandpa had wet himself again. Tomorrow, at school, he knew he’d hear about it. Luther wasn’t sure which was more

Metaviews at Metazen

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This is self-reflection or self-reflexive writing. Candor but not verse. That is what I write: not-verse. On occasion I write a poem though rarely an occasional poem. Instead of calling it non-fiction we could call it non-verse.

Making Love to God (or: A Profound Man)

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"I would physically — not metaphorically, mind you — make love to that avocado..."

Regret

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Every time I read a great line by another writer, I feel fear.

Shirts and Skins

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The boys finished their laps and returned to the center of the gym, Hamid shuffling up last, as usual. Amid the T-shirts and shorts, he wore faded blue slacks and a grubby, long sleeved dress shirt. He always dressed that way, even in gym class, as though

NAMASTE

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I was dating my yoga class. It was going all right. Which is to say, the sex was pretty fantastic but otherwise I was beginning to lose interest. I'm thinking of one Saturday afternoon in the summer. We ended up browsing for Father's Day gifts at Crate & Barrel in …

First Kiss With Rubber

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Julie studied her brush, plucking a strand of hair from it. She looked up and smiled. "My mother thought you were a peeper."

Welcome Back

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I lean forward and take her two hands in mine. I look into her eyes. “It’s you and only you,” I say. She starts to cry.

The Poet. Pt. 2

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for the rush of longing and brush with flight that is her imagination will surely lift her above the traffic