When Garf opened his refrigerator, he saw a jar of purple pickles beside the carton of expired milk. This was strange as, only yesterday, they were green. Garf stood in his itchy annoyance before the refrigerator, his red, black-striped robe hanging off his slumped body like an old, worn-out curtain.
Continue reading “Garf and the Purple Pickles by Landon Galliott”
This was the day I lost my soul and I suspect Stu did too, considering… We got our daily warm RC Colas at Mullens Grocery store. Mr. Mullens gave us a skeptical once over, trying to figure out what we lifted. We wore giant parkas, that could hide a dirt bike or whatever we could grab. Our frugal mother’s bought them extra-large hoping we could wear them from the fifth grade to high school, perhaps forever. Mine was dark blue and Mom already washed it, and it wasn’t even dirty. This was evident because the once fine furry texture around the stove pipe hood’s edge was all gray and gooey. Like globs of wet dog fur. Thanks, Mom. My cousin Stu’s coat was light green with yellow stitching. The hood still had the fake rabbit’s fur look–shiny and bristly. Maybe it was real rabbit fur? How should I know? I was only ten.
Continue reading “Where Everything Got Broken by Christopher J. Ananias”
Re-Reading ‘Lucky Jim’
Note: This review contains spoilers.
I’m a big fan of re-reading, a sovereign cure for Life’s Disappointments. Whenever you injure your foot at the start of a walking holiday, or your team gets relegated, or the school bully turns up again as your new line manager, there’s one guaranteed restorative: re-reading a favourite story. And not just any favourite story: for my money, it’s got to be either a galloping adventure story, or a comic novel. (Notice I don’t say ‘favourite author:’ Stevenson’s ‘Treasure Island,’ or ‘Kidnapped,’ definitely fall into the ‘sovereign cure’ category, but don’t ever pick up his ‘St Ives’).
Continue reading “Writers Reading. Review by Mick Bloor”
We have a bit of history between us all. In all sorts of ways and I was thinking on where our name came from. We threw a few bits and pieces together and ‘Literally Stories’ is what we came up with.
Continue reading “Week 504 – Do Happy Workers Exist? R.I.P Gary And Remember What You Excelled At As No-One Else Will!”
“She was reckless and calculated. Sharp but dreamy. I think she was lost. Overcome by the world’s endless configurations.” A wave of chills swept over me. Papa was only eloquent when talking about her, so I tried to soak it all in–every syllable, hand gesture, intonation–to paint a picture of her in my head. Papa never even showed me photos, because as he said, “It’s in the past.” I had stored a few features such as angular nose and fair skin in my reservoir until then, but those were surface-level. I had been yearning for characteristics to vitalize the shell of a person in my head.
Continue reading “Remnants of a Silence by Saul Brauns”
They say that telepathy is a gift.
But it was not a gift when I was designed as a tool—a gene-twisted thing, a tool made of meat. My gaunt, pale, body was designed by the norms for one purpose—reading the thoughts of other norms. I was made to be a psychic burglar, built to uncover the secrets that a norm hides in the lies or silences of their porous mind.
Continue reading “The Mirrors of His Eyes, the Thirst of His Soul by David Newkirk”
Russell Freeman, long white hair tied back, dressed in jeans and white cotton shirt, got off the bus and walked down a side street of the city he grew up in. He looked around and shook his head. Urban renewal in the late sixties had taken much of the character out of the center of the city and replaced it with parking ramps, cheap prefab buildings and fake facades. According to city elites the old sturdy brick buildings of the past were obsolete and old fashioned. We must look to a bright new future said the politicians as money flowed to demolition companies.
“Renewal my ass,” Russell mumbled.
Continue reading “Cheap Whiskey and a Crumpled Dollar Bill by Lee Conrad”
He took a swing at me. I braced for impact as it battered my jaw.
Big mistake, I thought, as I got low, latched on, picked him up. Buddy laughed; guy was having fun with me. Fine. I spun around and took him down.
He snatched my beard, mashed his face into mine. I tore free, pinned his arms, prepared to strike. His feral eyes widened; he knew his fate.
I put my lips on his bare belly and blew. My son squealed and flailed, then stiffened and vibrated. Electrocuted by elation.
Continue reading “Death on Rotation by Brandon Nadeau”
Somewhere in a land where only the forgotten remembered, stood a river flowing with discarded memories. Tears cry above it, ever begging for the one who shed them to return.
Sometime between now, today, and never, a man burst out under the river––let’s call him M. He splashed around, thrashing his arms, kicking his feet, but all was unnecessary, for the river never had the will to drown.
Continue reading “Where Do Lost Memories Go? by Rinanda Hidayat”
Today we look at resilience in the animal world. The fine little fellow on the skateboard attached to this story has an attitude that humans would do well to emulate.
Continue reading “Literally Reruns – Wattle and Daub by Tim Hildebrant”
literally stories 