Recommended stories

The Needle and the Damage Done

15191519 views33 comments11 fav

“She never knew her, you know?” Chief Jack Gardner, retired, said to the duty officer absently, thumbing a well-worn photo in his rough calloused hands. His gravelly voice cracked a bit when he said it, catching his throat.

The History of Strands

14431443 views44 comments11 fav

We cannot love the past...

77 Words - Barfly(s)

12731273 views22 comments11 fav

Things that happened, were said, acted upon at twilight or later.

the musk and the drama

968968 views44 comments11 fav

Shame must search the soul, broken, original, with its primitive juices stirred. Moved until now only by the musk, only the stroll you lived with, the worry, the sorrow, the drama – may I never conceal or recover from it! Yes, I might beg or steal the

Extract from my Fantasy book

10741074 views22 comments11 fav

Lucien ran through a burning vortex in desperation ignoring the cries of his friend. It was a flux of Satanic majesty. The floodlight of the fire was incredibly grim, but it did not hurt his eyes. Have you ever seen painted glass windows in a cathedral built by the…

Map of the World to Come

767767 views22 comments11 fav

The middle finger talks of many things How I killed the moon But still drank the moonshine And how getting over her took Some bleeding from the soul Maybe it’s the Inner Face of Outer Space That worries me the most But what about the Fro

Living in the Death Industry Could Kill You; The Q&A

12441244 views22 comments11 fav

Q: Tell me briefly about how you got into the death industry.

Gabe

12201220 views44 comments11 fav

“Damn!” he said to himself, wondering for the millionth time what he was doing in such a sad line of work. Break time, he decided, grabbing his stash box and locking himself into the freezing cold bathroom to smoke a joint. He emerged thirty minutes la

Stealing From A Corpse

11381138 views22 comments11 fav

He kept one scarf. It was the scarf that she would tie around his eyes to play with him, long, until he was in his teens. A silly game that made her happy and he squirmed with delight until he got too old. She did not want him to see her, only to know if

don't let the flames chase you away

13871387 views22 comments11 fav

my maddening pyromaniac,/ you're burning up my heart/ so open up your broad-toothed mouth/ and let me pour the ashes in.

The Adventures of Tequila Kitty: Chapter 3 - by Brian Lepire

15741574 views11 comment11 fav

I’d made it to the motel parking lot when I heard the footsteps. A sombrero may make me look good, but it does shit for my hearing, so the bastards were able to scoop me up real quick. The first one gave me a hard slap on the top of the head with an opene

In Tongues

271271 views22 comments11 fav

Even as I moveTowards some form of true reprieve I can't make head nor tail of you Except when you speak in tongues In the dark progressive hills In the fields that freedom chills In the house Democracy built You will find a hint of guilt …

Mirrors.

130130 views33 comments11 fav

Pass frame.Avert eyes.If Ido look,I'm stillnot there.

Nesting Code

11231123 views33 comments11 fav

scratches

Intractable

12901290 views33 comments11 fav

~ ! ~

The Old Man and the Shark

17051705 views33 comments11 fav

The shark’s voice was dark, warm and scratchy, like dying embers.

Can Bone-Munching Zombie Worms Help Fight Childhood Obesity?

14091409 views11 comment11 fav

President Kennedy’s national physical fitness program tried to reverse the incoming tide of obesity, but for many it was too late.

For the Woman Who Has a Hundred

15431543 views22 comments11 fav

“What would you get? What should you give a lady who’s one hundred for her birthday?”

Poetry, Inc.

805805 views33 comments11 fav

It comes to our attention you have what it takes to join our enterprise.

Autumn

12171217 views66 comments00 favs

Early morning cokeBottle. Did Katie callHeiddegger "Skippy"?Remember years backWhen we studied so hard andHa ha, just kidding.As you age, neverForget you are dying noFaster than before.

The Executioner

12231223 views22 comments11 fav

No one knows where the wind comes from, but sure as hell it comes. The executioner glances round the reception area. Nods to himself. Function versus form. Anodyne, instantly forgettable, like hotel rooms. Perfect.

Tea Time

11071107 views33 comments11 fav

But I sense a tremor in your soul as well, young friend, a yearning of some sorts.

Small Man

12201220 views22 comments11 fav

When Reg Cuff heard that Sandlewick's abandoned Tiny Town model village was up for sale, he sold his home and failing business and moved right in.

First Lesson (Mother Tongue Series)

15071507 views33 comments11 fav

I used to see kids at the mall with those extendable "kid leashes". Like the ones made for chihuahuas. Like the ones made to squash a good story, you know...

Up

832832 views22 comments11 fav

See if you can come up with the pattern. There is very little run-up to the theme. I am not making this up...

THE ORCHID

15731573 views33 comments11 fav

The orchid trembled on its long stem

Did you ever kill someone?

13571357 views22 comments11 fav

Well, yeah but no one that wasn't pointing a gun at me, mostly. I shot at a lot of people but there were only three times when I can honestly say I know that I blew someone away.

Shadowland

13041304 views22 comments11 fav

His touch, even now, seemed to set off tremors inside her.

My Neighbor in the Apartment Across the Hall

12601260 views33 comments11 fav

She's an obese woman whose clothes don't fit: shirts that ride up too high her belly hanging out her pants suctioned to her strangely pegged legs. Her ballooned cheeks are always chapped pink her lips little slivers peeled back over small beige teeth like…

show the soul its own beauty

767767 views44 comments11 fav

Go ahead, show the soul its own beauty. But also tell me again about my own, so I may know I lived, and loved you. The one who shows the soul its own touching beauty gets to keep her. Who shows her the golden nightly song that's given us life, is like t