IN PRINT
SHORT STORIES
"THE NEWEL POST"
The Dillydoun Review Issue 2.2 March, 2021
"IN PLAIN VIEW"
Meat For Tea Volume 15, Issue 3 September, 2021 *(Print or PDF)*available from Meat For Tea $12Print/$5 PDF
Ordinary life dissolves. It takes gumption to resolve the situation. Three short stories and one novella are filled with characters who find themselves in places they never thought to veer into. From one couple in the witness protection program, to another who looks for happiness in fresh hummus and warm pita along the shore of Tel Aviv, each story makes the everyday a bit less mundane.
"In Plain View," "Word Game,’ "Boomerang,” and "Resolve,” are filled with characters who discover that they control their destinies as long as they participate in the opportunities presented to them.
"In Plain View"
Imaging that the Witness Protection Program is a short stint, a young couple take on new identities. Training to be someone else is easy on the surface, but when something blocks their way, and they veer off the chosen path, keeping cover takes on a new meaning.
"Boomerang"
A boomerang always comes back if it is thrown correctly. Sharon's life stays in its repetitive pattern after Morty passes until she shuffles past the window of a local travel agent in her post-pedicure flip-flops. In the front window of the agency, with cars whizzing behind her on Madison Avenue, Sharon imagines herself stepping onto the warm sand on the beaches of Tel Aviv. Hard cement returns to crumbly sand grains when she removes her shoes and smells warm hummus wafting over from a small cafe. She is reticent to cast the boomerang at first, but when she does, there is more than a return trip to NYC in store for her.
“The Chapel Ghost”
A small child, dressed in white with a pale, yellow bow holding her blond hair in place at the nape, is nothing unusual, but Samuel and Tyler, experience otherwise. The young men share a brotherly bond formed during summers on the Maine coast and together discover a buried secret about their new acquaintance after spotting something near the back of the chapel one Sunday morning. Youthful curiosity overtakes them, and the two seek to learn the truth about a crime committed over a century before.
“In the Vegetable Garden”
Nicola and Corinne, lifelong friends, always have one’s best interest in mind, but when illness causes one to cross into ‘that world,’ their bond moves into new territory. Nicola’s pride and joy is a large vegetable garden, and is not a hobby shared by both. When Nicola asks Corinne to keep it going, Corrine grapples with the dying words of her best friend and how to overcome her own inhibitions of having dirt under her fingernails. But grimy hands are not a deterrent for the persistent Nicola.
Created by the editors of Grande Dame Literary, this book offers writers a step-by-step guide to short story creation. Writing is a process and writing short stories is an art. Learn as you write. You can read about writing, but the only way to improve your writing is by writing. Meet Prince Rupert who is in dire need of an 'unfrogging.' The story line is set, except for the ending, and by leading our green hero out of his predicament, you will learn all the components that are integral to story writing. In no time, you will be able to apply the same steps to your stories and after that, the sky's the limit.
*only available as an e-book.