Fiction

The Open Palm of Desire

Brian Gresko -

My son found a severed hand in the sandbox. Dug it up, along with half a lime green crayon and the nub of a...

Tell Me What I Can Do For You

Curtis LeBlanc -

On an evening in late May, Martin Bigras and his new friend Carl Barnet arrived at a train station in Munich, disembarked and went...

21 Things Nobody Tells You About Blood Sludge

Lisa Locascio Nighthawk -

HELLO, DOWNERS GROVE! All right, ladies! Woo! Are we having a good time? I can’t hear you, I’m sorry. ARE WE HAVING A GOOD TIME? Most...

Neutral Buoyancy

J. R. McConvey -

They always make it harder to achieve results. Kielbasa Joe paddles his noodle up the fourth lane in a painfully slow crawl, the fluorescent pool...

Ms. Kay

Sara Finnerty -

Amber lay with her back on the purple yoga mat, her legs pressed together at a perfect 90-degree angle. “Exhale,” the teacher said, “And...

Swanee

Sara Lippmann -

Sara Lippmann's debut collection of short fiction, Doll Palace, is now available from Dock Street Press. Billy Monroe was stuck in the plastic fun tunnel...

Certainty

Matthew Walsh -

“We want you to come around the corner of the car like you aren’t expecting us.” Melanie smiled. She used a lint roller on...

If Life Gave Me Lemons

Kerry Clare -

At the time, her life had been lacking in sure things, and so Lindsay took comfort in knowing where she stood with Aaron, even...

Waiting

LaToya Watkins -

Vashti read the bear policy posted at the start of the trail twice before she decided to walk with us. She made one command....

The Hour of the Library

Wah-Ming Chang -

Our library is dying. The books break apart like hard dust, and we can no longer read their stories. A film of oil sticks...