Short Story Library

 
irresistible women vehemently reject her
inadequate, she screws overweight reprobates
insolent drug dealers progeny her face
strung-out, she croaks and thrashes
doctors vowelize no surgery time again
dejected, she stabs malnourished skin
family members identify a failed investment
capricious, she squats seedy hollowed-outs
she always used to tell me
now that we weren’t together
i couldn’t tell her what to do
i stand here now, holding [...]

Sunday afternoon in a new cafe there are no other customers. Soon a group of five comes in with a swish of wind. Not the usual snatches of café talk- school, jobs, children, love, today’s news- the menu of daily lives. This group speaks of “channeling” through to the other side, communicating with a deceased [...]

One word encompasses the fiery rage of hell
released in torrent invective, passion balled in knotted gouts
struggling to frame the blow before it lands
boundless, it has no vessel that contains
reason tears and shreds, a tornado incensed
with no sense of the red mist
through which it sees
yet green, shifted through envy and it’s mad gaze
it can cycle, a [...]

Eddie
liked to
think he was
stronger than dirt,
but
he had a
weak spot
in his heart
for his dog,
Bastard.
now,
old Bastard,
he was tough.
he’d been hit
by cars
twice,
and,
even when Eddie
found him,
three years ago,
under the Parker’s steps,
with a
broken leg
and his throat cut,
he didn’t even
whimper.
Eddie wouldn’t have
noticed him
if he
didn’t hear him
moving around
in the leaves.
in fact,
that’s how
the dog
got his name.
when Eddie saw
the condition he was in,
he said
“Bastard!”
and [...]

we are lovers
lost in mexico
searching for a name
in which
to carve a stolen tree
we are marbles
clocking brilliant
in the perfect bend
of youth
we are strangers
bound together—
bobbing buoys
on the tide
it is likely
we will die
before we meet.
About the Author
Matthew Dickens
Matthew Dickens, b1982, has no degree worth mentioning. His mother is disappointed. He has been a sailor, hitchhiker, bum, outlaw, poet, [...]

Malevich’s self-portrait
Red stripes
on white canvas
Lashes
of father’s belt
 
About the Author
Daryl Baldwin
Daryl lives in Gloucester, England. He is married and has three children and one dog. He works in a local company making products for aircraft and other vehicles. In his spare time he likes to write screenplays and poetry. He has been published in The Library’s [...]

i never thought i’d
end
this way.
chronic pain
24/7.
it
hurts to move, it
hurts to sit, it hurts
to breathe.
that wasn’t supposed
to be me.
i expected to be
hitting my 60s
fully formed
as the crazy old guy
who hit all
the elevator buttons
and ran.
never,
no way
did i
expect
for this
to happen.
but that’s
okay.
you
play the hand
you’re dealt.
besides,
inside
i still am
that
guy
i wanted to become.
and whoever’s
responsible
for that other thing…
you and i
gotta talk.
About the Author
John [...]

I forced the cold air
through my teeth, it
billowed like fog.
I screamed, raged
and hurled snowballs.
I stomped on puddles
and gobs of slush clung
to my boots like oatmeal;
the plopping sound infuriated me.
I went blind and stepped
away from myself long
enough to look back.
I saw that I was running
towards her.
About the Author
Brad M. Bucklin
Brad M. Bucklin received a Bachelor’s Degree [...]

I had three of the prettiest petals, though I have never seen them
Crystals, little dynasties of brilliance
They were of my creation and mistakenly in my care
I was undeserving to acquire the red, gracious leaves
Gorgeous rose pearls cannot hit the floor
The petals coiled and spun feather-like in my survival
I am guilty. I let them go.
Anesthesia brings [...]

i just now
agreed to
another interview.
this one’s
for monday.
it’ll be
the same old questions, like:
“how’d you get started?”
“who do you read?”
“who are you influenced by?”
all the same questions
and never once
do i get asked
the right one.
in my opinion,
the only one.
the one that says:
“you write a lot about
dogs.
why is that?”
if they’d only
ask me that
i’d go away happy.
i’d sit them down
and [...]