futuristic stories long stories pick of the month Simon Renaka Friday, April 26, 2024 The Mile by Simon Renaka <i>Norman purchases a mute companion that only wants to please him.</i><br><br>I was chosen. He knew <i>I</i> was better than the others. The best. I had been on display for weeks now, ever since I was first brought onto the main floor of <i>The Mile</i>, and could already sense when a man's relentless gaze led to one of us getting a ticket out of here. It wasn't a firsthand experience, but I suppose you learn by obs… Read more Labels: futuristic stories long stories pick of the month Simon Renaka 5 comments: shares
creepy stories Sarah MacAllister short stories Wednesday, April 24, 2024 A Bachelor's Dinner Party by Sarah MacAllister <i>Hendricks goes to great lengths to prepare the perfect dinner for Charles - it's a pity that Gemma is coming too.</i><br><br>The cellar air tasted cool and rank. Hendricks selected a horizontal bottle from the wine rack and blew dust from the label; an aged <i>Montepulciano D'Abruzzo</i>. He carried the bottle upstairs to the kitchen and twisted the cork out upon a round table laid for three people. Fumes b… Read more Labels: creepy stories Sarah MacAllister short stories 13 comments: shares
creepy stories fantastic stories Frederick Frankenberg medium length stories Monday, April 22, 2024 The Quest for Red Bull by Frederick Frankenberg <i>Jake is forbidden from travelling beyond his garden, out where life is cheap and monsters roam, but he simply must get some more Red Bull.</i><br><br>I wasn't always an adventurer. In fact, I hardly left the house. I would shut myself up in the living room and play video games all day. But Daddy used to let me out on Fridays to play handball with the other kids after my homeschool ended. <br><br><br>I was in front o… Read more Labels: creepy stories fantastic stories Frederick Frankenberg medium length stories 7 comments: shares
Loredano Cafaro medium length stories real life stories Sabrina Beretta Friday, April 19, 2024 Thus the Circle Closes by Loredano Cafaro, translated by Sabrina Beretta <i>When Max returns to Pratonero, he is forced to stay longer than intended, and face the trauma of his past.</i><br><br>A single raindrop, an imperceptible veil of fog, even a hint of mist would contribute to creating the right atmosphere for the situation. Instead, there is only the autumn sun carrying out its task as a routine, perhaps with too much zeal. <br><br>Then again, why expect the opposite? If life were a m… Read more Labels: Loredano Cafaro medium length stories real life stories Sabrina Beretta 6 comments: shares
Aurora McKee creepy stories long stories Wednesday, April 17, 2024 And the Beanstalk by Aurora McKee <i>An autistic girl called Jack tends to a mysterious plant growing in her back garden to try and escape from a memory she can't bring herself to voice.</i><br><br>There's a new plant in the garden. <br><br><i>New</i> as in <i>no one planted it</i>, no one's put anything there since Grandma died. Her roses have all withered, her lilacs choked with weeds, flower petals rotting into the dirt like little girls' skins. T… Read more Labels: Aurora McKee creepy stories long stories 8 comments: shares
JD Strunk real life stories short stories Monday, April 15, 2024 Swish by J. D. Strunk <i>Jeremy Astor becomes obsessed with making the high school basketball team, but at what cost?</i><br><br>Jeremy "Automatic" Astor stood at the free throw line. Two shots were forthcoming; two points would win the game. Even so, it was not the orange lip of the rim that was the focus of his attention. Nor was it the 400 chanting fans. Rather, Jeremy was attempting to calculate the odds of a game endi… Read more Labels: JD Strunk real life stories short stories 16 comments: shares
pick of the month Pushcart nominated real life stories short stories Stephen Myer Friday, April 12, 2024 The Blue Country by Stephen Myer <i>A sorrowful man shares his surreal recurring vision of the Blue Country.</i><br><br>I sit beside sorrow heading crosstown, eyes searching for the address through iridescent drops that pelt the windshield. I depart the bus and climb the steps of a brownstone. A woman answers the door. She wears a black, avian print dress that conforms to her svelte body. Where have I seen her before? Perhaps she is the doctor… Read more Labels: pick of the month Pushcart nominated real life stories short stories Stephen Myer 20 comments: shares
criminal stories K Arlington Andrews long stories Wednesday, April 10, 2024 Hole in the Head by K Arlington Andrews <i> Having fallen from grace into a life of addiction and petty criminality, Devin Franks falls hard for fellow crook Angel Bradford - and gets accused of a violent murder.</i><br><br><b>Found</b><br><br>The lump in his pocket was an antique pendant, and it shimmered brightly when the police officer pulled it from the pocket of his jeans. A tiny silver pocketbook with a tarnished chain. Linked together with a paper clip. <br><br>&qu… Read more Labels: criminal stories K Arlington Andrews long stories 8 comments: shares
fantastic stories short stories Tamara Breuer Monday, April 8, 2024 The Skeleton In The Closet by Tamara Breuer <i>Isabela has always struggled to fit in with her family, but things come to a head when she discovers a skeleton among her father's possessions.</i><br><br>Three years after moving into her father's home in Asunción, Isabela found the skeleton in his closet. The wooden crate containing the bones had been lying in the same spot since she began her caretaking duties, and yet she had never thought to ope… Read more Labels: fantastic stories short stories Tamara Breuer 6 comments: shares
Bruce Jacobs medium length stories real life stories Friday, April 5, 2024 If I Ever Get Like That by Bruce Jacobs <i>Old man Leonard loves his ageing and confused wife, but wonders how much longer he can look after her.</i><br><br>At seventy-eight, Leonard discovers that <i>fork split</i> is just a marketing descriptor, not instructions. All the forks are in the dishwasher so he pries the muffin halves apart with a butter knife, and neither nook nor cranny appear worse for wear under such treatment. So he toasts and butters her m… Read more Labels: Bruce Jacobs medium length stories real life stories 8 comments: shares
Cary Barney medium length stories real life stories Wednesday, April 3, 2024 Easy Lay by Cary Barney <i>A woman attends the funeral of her former best friend, having fallen out with her forty years ago because of her brother's bad behaviour.</i><br><br>On a cold, clear November night in a cabin on a marijuana farm in eastern Colorado an aging propane heater malfunctioned, and Tracy, her current partner, and their dogs died in their sleep from carbon monoxide poisoning. They were discovered the next day by … Read more Labels: Cary Barney medium length stories real life stories 14 comments: shares
Lenore Tsakanikas long stories real life stories Monday, April 1, 2024 Chicken Marsala by Lenore Tsakanikas <i>A divorced couple regularly prepare dinner for their daughter and her fellow convalescents in rehab, but Chicken Marsala might not be enough to heal their wounds. </i><br><br>Giovanni, my ex, is driving us to Patagonia for the eighth Sunday in a row, a meal for the residents in tow. Of late, our Sunday routine is shaped around visiting hours at New Beginnings, bringing dinner to the twelve women living there… Read more Labels: Lenore Tsakanikas long stories real life stories 8 comments: shares
