Temptation Drive-Thru (Flash Fiction)

Courtesy of C. Glass at stock.xchnge

For those of you unfamiliar with flash fiction, it is the short version of the short story.  It is also the specialty of Every Day Fiction, a site that delivers daily short fiction to your mailbox (you can also read stories online).  Here is an excerpt from a fantastic story recently published by EDF called Temptation Drive-Thru by Greg Likins:

I pulled up to the window. The girl leaned out, twisting her necklace around a fingernail studded with stick-on gems. I paid, and when she returned my change, that fingernail lingered in my palm. It felt like a condiment packet scratching my skin, and instinctively I squeezed it. She didn’t seem to mind.

Read the entire short story here or visit the author’s website.

Something About L.A. (Flash Fiction)

Photo courtesy Daniel Zamora at Stock.xchnge

Gay Degani has a new story out called Something About L.A. that was recently published over at Litsnack.  Here is an excerpt:

The truck shivers to a stop, dust swirling. The door opens as a small figure slides off the driver’s seat. A boy, just a boy, dark skin and hair, wearing a faded plaid shirt and jeans. Barefoot.

Puts his hands on hips and says, “I ain’t gonna hurt you.”

“I guess not.” I’m feeling better now knowing I’ve got 50 pounds on him.

Read the whole story here.  Gay Degani is a talented writer who has been featured on this blog before:  see Flash Fiction Story by Gay Degani – The London Eye and Flash Fiction: Dani-Girl’s Guide to Getting Everything Right.  Also visit her homepage, Words in Place.

Zombies…A Love Story

Check out this new flash fiction story (less than 1,000 words) at C. Dominique Gibson’s blog called The Forgotten Thing.  Here is an excerpt:

…before he could protest, she brushed a gentle kiss on his lips which were surprisingly intact. He returned her kiss with a passionate one of his own but was careful not to be rough. They were both delicate and any body parts they still possessed were precious.

Go read it now!

Fictional Short Story About Anorexia

The Heart Fails Without Warning is a beautifully written story about a family’s struggle with anorexia.  It starts like this:

September: when she began to lose weight at first, her sister had said, I don’t mind; the less of her the better, she said. It was only when Morna grew hair – fine down on her face, in the hollow curve of her back – that Lola began to complain. I draw the line at hair, she said. This is a girls’ bedroom, not a dog kennel.

Visit the link above to read the entire story at guardian.co.uk.  The Heart Fails Without Warning was written by award-winning author and novelist, Hilary Mantel.   Go here to see a list of Hilary Mantel’s books at amazon.com.

Horror Flash Fiction – A Taste for Life

There’s a new flash fiction story by Patrick Freivald over at Flash Fiction Online that you should really check out, especially if you like it when your stories come with a healthy dose of creepiness.  It’s called A Taste for Life…

“And how old were you when you died, Mister Beauchamp?” Joan Rothman asked, leaning back in her chair. The scientists watched her behind the one-way mirror, hands clasped behind their backs.  “Twenty-seven,” the corpse replied, more gurgle than speech, as it gazed idly around the interview room.

To read the rest of this short short story, click the link above.

Werewolf Story — Statistical Evidence

The flash fiction story, Statistical Evidence by Hugh Cook, begins:

“‘Another bloody werewolf!’ said Doctor Blix. Where the hell were they all coming from? ‘Okay, give him the usual, and I’ll take a look at him tomorrow.’

This was worrying. So far, the only thing they had found which could control lycanthropy was Voodozlin-X, and their stocks were running low.”

Read the rest of this story at the link above or read more of this New Zealand writer’s poems, stories, and even some complete sci-fi fantasy novels at his website, Zenvirus.com.  You can also visit his blog, Hugh Cook — Cancer Patient, at hughcook.blogspot.com.

It Pays to Eat at McDonalds

I am a Justin Hyde fan.  He writes killer poetry and strange stories.  Here is an excerpt from one of the latter, called It Pays to Eat at McDonald’s:

“They were standing in front of the pop dispenser. Shooting it into their cupped hands and slurping it up. Was it Coke? Dr. Pepper? I can’t tell you because I couldn’t see through the adipose tissue and dual thickets of dirty brown hair. I could only hear the slurping, clicking of the mechanism and that torqued chortle native to ultra obese children.

I stood behind them, waiting patiently with my tray and empty cup.”

Read the entire story at the above link or visit the online magazine, Unlikely 2.0, where the story is published.

Needle! Now! Broken!

Wow.  Needle! Now! Broken! by Brett Allen Smith is a short story written in a very different and very cool style.  Me like.  You read:

“He felt the absence immediately upon waking, so obvious that he fell out of his bed, tearing from his arms the tubes that had only the day before been preserving him. And as he fell, he felt the tubes tugging the length of his own tubes, the organic ones inside, and for an instant he knew with stabbing certainty that he would be torn inside out.

He was. Oh. He wasn’t at all, actually.

When he hit the ground, the plastic yielded to his weight and snapped, squirting streamers of blood upon release. He laughed with a blissful, forgiving kind of laugh which— oh—in retrospect—ah—seems sad (me already knowing the ending of the story).”

Visit the above link and read the entire story or go to Fringe for more stories, poetry, nonfiction, and other cool stuff.

Prick of the Spindle

Prick of the Spindle is a brand new online literary journal featuring poetry, fiction, drama, creative nonfiction, and literary reviews.  It’s off to a good start with solid pieces and a simple yet creative layout.  I’m thinking about submitting some of my work to them.  Here are some brief snippets of what Prick of the Spindle has to offer.

Poetry — This town with the train and the prison on the top of the hill by Susanna Fry:

“black spots and stripes
this rooftop town
of poison ivy and open windows
open wounds
this refuge”

The poem is done in 6 parts, offering 6 unique views of the town.  I like the way this was done.

Fiction — Writing My Angel by Corey Messler:

“His face wore the countenance I have seen in nightmares where those who love me turn on me like formerly tame wolves.”

A piece of micro fiction.  Every sentence is engaging.  Very well written.

Creative Nonfiction — Tectonic Synapses by Derek Ramsey Holst:

“As you hang there waiting for all the blood in your body to pool in the center of your brain, you think names like, Hemingway, Dickinson, and Poe. You ask the question everyone asks, were they writers because they were crazy, or were they crazy because they were writers?”

This piece seems random at first as it circles around and around until you see how all the pieces fit together at the end.

Do check out this online lit mag as it has a lot to offer.

mystorypage.com

Mystorypage.com is one guy’s flash fiction, micro fiction, and graphic fiction.  He doesn’t post his name, but his email says Giles.  Here’s a story told in 100 words called “The Sale”:

“Nice car! Can I buy it?” He asked.
“Now?” I say.
“Now, including everything in it. I’ll pay you double what it’s worth.”
I look around the car, finding nothing of real value.
“OK” I say, “but I need to get home first.”
He follows me home and I sign a hasty contract whilst sat in the driver’s seat.
Inside my house my dog starts barking as I hand back the contract.
In his hand the man holds a studded dog collar.
“My dog wasn’t in the car!” I protest.
“Your dog wasn’t.” he says and reaches for my throat.

Read more of (Giles?) stories at mystorypage.com.  He also posts stuff by others if you want to submit something.