Fiction

Contest Winners

Raspberry Jam Pie by Lindsay Golder, 1st Place

And So by Rob Gordon Bralver, 2nd Place

Let Go of Their Hands by Sunny Huang, runner-up

Current Featured Fiction

Irreconcilable Differences

by Leigh Camp | 7-15-2008

            “Ms. Julie Sullivan?”
            “Yes—“
            “Martin Holloway, good to meet you. Please come in,” Martin said, taking Ms. Sullivan’s arm and leading her towards his office.
            She looked down at his hand on her suit jacket and thought it was nice to be touched by a man, even just skin on cloth, and even if the touch was far from sexual. The one thing she hadn’t been able to get in the divorce was her ex-husband’s dick, and for that she was very sorry. She hadn't known it at the time, but it had been her favorite part of their marriage, and she missed it terribly.

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Buried Alive

by Amanda Blakely | 4-14-2008

The autumn wind blows strong and swift like a sucker punch to the gut, and Monica Truman hunches down into her sister’s brown corduroy pea-coat to fight off the bone-deep chill that seeps through her knitted sweater. The oak trees disguise the sun as it falls closer to the horizon, waving farewell to the day. Monica inches carefully between the gray marble stones forever stamped by faceless names until she finds the one she is looking for. She stares at the engraved letters on the headstone and reaches a fingertip out to trace them. It has been nearly four months since she lost her identical twin sister, and the pain sticks deep, fighting to hold onto Monica as she is fighting to hold on to Elizabeth. ... more

Speak Some Texas

by Katie Lanning

By this point, Mr. Aubade was undoubtedly in love with Elba. Of course, there was not really much he could do about it, but there it was, staring back at him in the mirror when he brushed his teeth every morning; snapping, crackling, and popping at him every time he ate his breakfast cereal. It even followed him to work, quietly humming with the static that his car radio couldn’t seem to shake. Elba, Elba, Elba, said the static. No, no, no, replied Mr. Aubade, without much conviction.... more

A Modern Campaign

by Daniel Bland | 4-4-2008

The first time Inaara pulled off her little prank, she’d told herself it was a preventive measure or maybe an empowering one. She’d seen it happen to other models’ work all over the city, and she knew that if she saw one of her ads like that, it’d break her heart. She wouldn’t be able to stop wondering if everyone hated her, so she’d start hating everyone. She’d made it this far on her own, and she’d be damned if some loser with a can of spray paint would ruin it for her. ... more

Missing Angel

by Amanda Blakely

Doug could remember the smallest details about the day she was born. It was cold that night. Snow hadn’t yet fallen, but there was that promising smell in the air. The December wind seeped through his unzipped, oversized down coat as he scurried to the car weighed down by his wife’s suitcase. Angie stood on the threshold of their front door, waiting for him to return and help her to the car. Her black-gloved hand rested on the bottom of her swollen stomach, occasionally applying pressure in an attempt to relieve the pain. She was such a dainty thing that the bump made her look like an overstuffed pillowcase busting at the seams, the softness within waiting to come out.... more