Stories

Some Say the World Will End in Fire by R. Daniel Lester

January 1, 2019ani 1 Comment

R. Daniel Lester’s writing has appeared in print and online in multiple publications, including Adbusters, Geist, Broken Pencil, Pulp Literature, Switchblade and, most recently, Retreats from Oblivion: The Journal of NoirCon. His novella, Dead Clown Blues, from Shotgun Honey and Down & Out Books, was shortlisted for a 2018 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Crime Novella by the Crime … Continue reading Some Say the World Will End in Fire by R. Daniel Lester

Genesis by Brynn McCall

December 21, 2018ani

Brynn McCall is a high school student from Denver, Colorado with an endless file of unfinished work. She loves poetry and graphic novels, and is hoping that capes soon come back into style. Find updates or future works on her blog. 1.In the beginning, there was rust and oil and her hands wrapped around her … Continue reading Genesis by Brynn McCall

All the Ugly Things by Brigitte N. McCray

September 22, 2018ani

The week before the spring festival, when some of us village girls were sixteen, the age ripe for the river god, my mother crawled into my bed one night, wrapped her arms tightly around my chest, and whispered, “Ingrid, if the god should pick you above the others, imagine all the honey and fish the … Continue reading All the Ugly Things by Brigitte N. McCray

The Tin Man by Kyle Kirrin

September 22, 2018ani

I filter out onto the shining steel streets with the rest of the Machina. They glide around and across each other in a hundred different directions, with only millimeters of clearance between them. Their motion is mathematical—no space goes wasted. I don’t glide. I can’t calculate the trajectories like they do, not anymore. I can’t … Continue reading The Tin Man by Kyle Kirrin

An Accidental Coven by Laura Blackwell

September 22, 2018ani 1 Comment

One Saturday night six months ago, my husband and I attended a party where we saw three women wearing the same dress. To save those present from embarrassment, I will not identify them by name, career, or family status, but instead describe the fateful three by their avocations: the Artist, the Athlete, and the Gardener. … Continue reading An Accidental Coven by Laura Blackwell

The Memory of a Memory by Marc A. Criley

September 22, 2018ani 1 Comment

I crack time. Part the seam, step into gray-green gloom. I wait as eyes adjust, hear the seam flutter closed. Bookshelves line the corridor, extend into the past. Shelves crammed with books, spines to the wall, smelling of ozone and rose water. Hardcovers, paperbacks, trades, loose leaf. The past as hardcopy, minutes pressed against minutes, … Continue reading The Memory of a Memory by Marc A. Criley

The Girl Who Ate Galaxies by L’Erin Ogle

September 22, 2018ani 1 Comment

There’s a black hole inside me. Yesterday Oklahoma disappeared. The dry dusty fields stuck in my throat for a moment, my jaw unhinging and elongating to accommodate that wide rectangle of land. Part of Texas came with it. Lake Meredith and the Canadian River came last and cooled my sunburnt throat, as the salt skated … Continue reading The Girl Who Ate Galaxies by L’Erin Ogle

Refuge by Jack Caseros

September 22, 2018ani

“It will be dark soon,” Tristán said. Arturo cleared his throat in response. He looked like he could be Tristán’s brother, but only in the way that the church ladies who welcomed the asylum-seeking families assumed everyone who arrived on that military bus were one big family tree, chopped down from a Central American war … Continue reading Refuge by Jack Caseros

Us, Them and the Future by David Beyt

September 22, 2018ani

Maria has been in the waiting room most of the day. She expected to be, and she brought a lunch with her. But it was only the leftover rice. She ate it hours ago. A screen on the far wall carries news of the vote, but Maria keeps her eyes out the window. She watches dotted lines … Continue reading Us, Them and the Future by David Beyt

The Poison Swallowers by Logan Murphy

June 20, 2018ani

Two Little Gods were smearing cold soot onto their cheeks when the tide finally came in. The smaller of the two was named Ogden, and he was the God of Irregularly-Shaped Fruit. Most of his divine duties involved watching for people who saw a pear that looked a bit like a Buddha, or a banana … Continue reading The Poison Swallowers by Logan Murphy