fiction 4/7

May 28, 202316 min read

"Love, Jola" by Ibrahim Babátúndé Ibrahim

I always pride myself as the best waiter in Faaji Restaurant and Lounge. Maybe even in the whole of Ibadan. But all afternoon as I skid...

May 28, 202315 min read

fiction

"I Dreamt of Blood" by Itoro Bassey

If someone asks, "Are you with me?" then you say yes, or a-ha; something to show that you are with them, because this is how they know...

May 28, 20232 min read

fiction

"Rejection Therapy" by Takier George

Author’s Note: Below is an excerpt from “Rejection Therapy” by Takier George, a hybrid collection of narrative poetry/fiction. Memories...

May 28, 20236 min read

sci-fi

"Pendulum" by Melissa Ren

Content warnings: escape and abduction, swearing, mention of terminal illness The ceiling glowed crimson as I sprinted down the hall. A...

May 28, 202322 min read

fiction

"The Analogue" by Shannon Sanders

The yoga class ran long. On a bench outside the studio, the Kuykendalls sat waiting with phones in hands and their breath billowing...

May 13, 202310 min read

fiction

"Jesus Lizard" by John Yohe

Lizzie and I were the only two ‘girls’ on the Snake Mountain Hotshots that year, 1997. Our supervisor Bob would only hire two for a...

May 13, 20234 min read

fiction

"Mother and Child" by Richard Stimac

For the first few years, when his father and Addie went to the Barracks, his father would stop by the welcome center and ask a volunteer...

May 13, 202311 min read

fiction

"Anti-thesis" by nat raum

The light in the studio (read: closet) was starting to wane as the sun sank behind the apartment building to the west. Kara hopped up and...

Apr 30, 202314 min read

fiction

"El Capitan" by Matt Knutson

On a balcony overlooking the parking lot of the El Capitan Resort Casino, Rodney and Tatiana shared a cigarette while a red glow crept...

Apr 16, 20238 min read

fiction

"Belief" by Tommy Vollman

Alex Frazier stared in from atop the mound as I settled into my crouch and rolled through the signs a second time. Behind Frazier, the...

"Every kid knows the price" by Meg Tuite

Apr 16, 20232 min read

fiction

"Every kid knows the price" by Meg Tuite

Some houses on Harwood Avenue were louder than others. Some houses housed families with twelve to twenty raucous kids who were kicked out...

Apr 2, 20237 min read

fiction

"Blue Something" by Molly Andrea-Ryan

Shannon lifted her face toward the open sky, waiting impatiently for the passing of a shooting star. John spotted one after another,...

Apr 2, 20237 min read

fiction

"Yes, the Opium" by Stephen Myer

The embers of memory smolder but no longer flare. I hold her in stolen moments of dreams, my mind altered, untethered from the ravages of...

"Recipe for Almond Burfi" by Sumitra Singam

Mar 19, 20232 min read

fiction

"Recipe for Almond Burfi" by Sumitra Singam

Add sugar to the pan, and just cover with water. Don’t add too much water, like you did in your first year of marriage. You had to stir...

Feb 19, 20237 min read

fiction

"Jackie" by Stuart Phillips

Mid-August, my parents dragged me out to watch my sister, Jackie, lose the championship to Tackett’s Auto Supply. Even in early twilight...

"Issue #43: The Supervillain Zoom Interview" by Joshua Grasso

Feb 19, 202310 min read

fiction

"Issue #43: The Supervillain Zoom Interview" by Joshua Grasso

One by one, the headshots popped to life on the Zoom conference which was supposed to have started promptly at 12:30 (it was 6 minutes...

"Nails and spoons" & "Shutting in, shutting out", & "Le Mer"- Bonnie Meekums, Nolcha Fox

Feb 19, 20233 min read

poetry

"Nails and spoons" & "Shutting in, shutting out", & "Le Mer"- Bonnie Meekums, Nolcha Fox

I’ve looked up at this building many times, from a cardboard city. It might as well be a different planet, made for those whose lives...

Feb 5, 20232 min read

fiction

"Minnesota Morning" by Zary Fekete

The wood was so dry that it ignited almost as though it were paper. Paul stood up from the fireplace and grabbed the keys from the bowl....

Feb 5, 20234 min read

fiction

"Cherry Tree Carol" by Paul Luikart

The man and woman hiked a yellow trace, barely a road, through the countryside, bound for another town. He walked in front of her. She...

"Basket with Raspberries (for Anatoly Marienhof)" & "Coffee Pot Larry" by Marc Isaac Potter

Feb 5, 20233 min read

fiction

"Basket with Raspberries (for Anatoly Marienhof)" & "Coffee Pot Larry" by Marc Isaac Potter

Basket with Raspberries (for Anatoly Marienhof) The raspberries are misplaced in a wooden basket, cradled thankfully in multiple paper...