Featured Writing
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Tale of the Beautiful Dryad and The Mule by HL Dowless
Your Happy Summer: for Soier by Marley Greiner
The Desert Rat by Charles Etheridge
Summer Fyre by Vaughn Westheimer
In an Alternative World by Stefan Sincerz
Made with Scissors and Glue by Pete Adler
The Personal Diary of Calliope the Siren
Summer Dance by Christine Crespo
The Incident by Jo Ann Sanderson
Generation Gap by Mona Schroeder
The Day I Learned by Mike Mercer
Nob Hill Blues by Christian Garduno
Turn Me On, Dead Man by HM Cuello
A Birthday Party by Molly Quell
The Green Dress by Carter Little
Two of Wands by Michael Quintana
The Caged Bird by Alondra Usai
Summer Delights by Alice Marks
My Mother's Patio by Marley Greiner
My Mother Speaks Up by Esther Read
Waterfalls of Summer by Duane Anderson
The Just Before by Clara Tamez
Her Cross/Lupe by Julie Corpus
Once Upon a Nightmare by Frank Rodriguez
Fantasy | Satire | Poetry. "Tale of the Beautiful Dryad and The Mule." A mule works itself to death after eating magic seeds. By H.L. Dowless. READ THE POEM AND SEE THE VIDEO.
Dark Comedy | Word Play | Offbeat. "Mansplaining" A woman plays by her own rules. By Tom Murphy. SEE THE VIDEO AND READ THE STORY.
Expat | Emigration | Love Triangle. "Your Happy Summer: for Soier" An American in an unusual love triangle in Russia. By Marley Greiner READ THE POEM.
Memoir | Coming Home | Belonging. "The Desert Rat." A young man finds that happiness was closer than he realized. By Charles Etheridge.
Live Reading | Honest | Poetry. Michael Guinn tells you straight up what is on his mind. READ THE POETRY
Parental Plans | Independence | Poetry. "Summer Fyre" A gifted child chooses her own path instead of fighting her parents' fights. By Vaughn Westheimer READ THE POEM AND SEE THE VIDEO
Pastoral | Dreamy | Poetry "Summer Delight" A slightly surreal ode to a brilliant summer day by Hanh Chau. SEE THE VIDEO AND READ THE POEM
Holocaust | Life Choices | Poetry "In an Alternative World." A person thinks about turning points in life. by Stefan Sincerz. WATCH THE VIDEO AND READ THE POEM.
Cut-up Technique | Headlines | Poetry "Made with scissors and glue" Mixed up headlines might make sense. By Pete Adler.
Mythology | Challenging Authority | Satire "The Personal Diary of Calliope the Siren" A young siren finds herself at odds with her fellow sirens. By Annie Huckabee.
Poetry | Remembering the Past | Looking to the Future "Summer Dance" A person remembers dancing on the beach. By Christine Crespo. Read the poem & watch the video
Detective | Satire | Alternate Reality "The Incident" A sheriff confesses to a murder that may or may not have been committed. By Jo Ann Sanderson. Read the story
Memoir | Nostalgia | 1960s "The B-52s" A man recounts a visit to an air force base in the 1960s. By Gary Mott. Read the story and watch the video
"Remember" A person is not too happy about the state of the world and remembers the way things were. by J.L. Wright.
Coming of Age | Generation Gap | Shifting Perspective. A young woman is horrified when she learns about how fun-loving her mother was when she was a teenager. READ THE STORY AND SEE THE VIDEO
Farm Life | Reminisce | Coming of Age
"The Day I Learned..." A father and son struggle to repair a farm combine. By Mike Mercer.
Poetry | Break-up | Sad "Nob Hill Blues" A man calls his ex and leaves a voice mail. By Christian Garduno.
Nightmare | Sci-fi | Surrealism "Turn Me On, Dead Man." A man wakes up dead with instructions on what to do if he doesn't want to stay permanently dead. By H.M. Cuello.
Despair | Poverty | Danger "Alive" A person asks what it would be like to be alive and not merely survive. By Dante Silva.
Lifestyle | Free-spirit | Story "A Birthday Party" A Strait-laced couple attends the 98th birthday party for the house of a free-spirited woman. By Molly Quell.
Short Story | Despair | Supernatural "The Green Dress" A beautiful woman stands at the edge of a bridge as if she's contemplating suicide. By Carter Little.
"The Rock" Teenaged boys dive off a very dangerous cliff. By Leonore Wilson.
"The Pier" A man chases a mysterious woman in this glitzy mash-up of various genres, including mystery, spy, romance and sci-fi. By William Mays.
"Two of Wands" Random indelible memories. Was it a romantic weekend, a fun getaway with friends, or something else? By Michael Quintana. READ THE POEM.
"The Caged Bird" A parakeet figures prominently -- and tragically -- in the lives of a woman and her daughter. By Alondra Usai
"Summer Delight." A couple ditches traditionalism and embraces earthly delights. By Alice Marks.
"My Mother's Patio" A woman remembers her mother and next door neighbor as she watches grackles on her patio. By Marley Greiner. READ THE POEM AND SEE THE VIDEO.
Esther Bonilla Read "My Mother Finally Speaks Up"
Mother and Daddy came from Mexico, and after they met and married, followed the Mexican protocol in raising their families. My father was the head of the family and made all decisions. READ THE REST
Duane Anderson
"Waterfalls of Summer" A man remembers the past in a distorted dream-like manner. By Duane Anderson
"Confessions of a Hyphenated Alien Spice Eater" A man from the rough barrios of Corpus Quetzal must make his way in the universe. By Joel Ortiz.
Clara Tamez "The Just Before"
A young woman talks to her boyfriend who is in prison.
Domestic Abuse | Alcoholism
"Her Cross to Bear" A woman falls in love with a man who becomes abusive when he drinks. by Julie Corpus.
Frank Rodriguez "Once Upon A Nightmare"
That smile, that dang demented smile. It looms over the crevices of my soul. Shrouding the depths of my vision, blinding my reasons of existence. Why does nobody see it.
Elizabeth Flores "Tribute"
I wish I knew the boy's name.
He paid tribute to my dad,
a man I'm sure he didn't know,
as we left St. Joseph’s Church on
19th Street and headed to Holy Cross Cemetery.
Joseph Wilson "I ALWAYS KNEW SOMETHING WAS WRONG WITH ME
one hundred years ago
my grandfather
Paul Herbert Cline
fought in WW One
GHOUL TALK by Mona Schroeder
Two modern urban women talk about dumping their boyfriends--who happen to be Frankenstein and Dracula. READ THE STORY AND WATCH THE VIDEO
Church Bullies by Carol Mays
A slightly unhinged suburban woman rants to her neighbor about the the bullies at her church. READ THE STORY AND WATCH THE VIDEO
Lucas Jasso "Crabby"
A crabby old man navigates life in a world that has become strange and unfamiliar. READ THE STORY AND WATCH THE VIDEO
Donna Huddleston "Customary Prayers for Marie"
"I’m only thirty-four years old,” Marie said. “I’m too young to die.”
That morning, she ran away from her husband, ten-month-old daughter, and four-year-old son. She drove to an emergency room a hundred and fifty miles away, hoping for a different prognosis and then came back home.