By Louisa Prince Just another twenty dollars, then I’ll quit. Neon signs glowed and flickered in the dimly lit room. Mark had been there for hours with his bulky frame hunched on the stool, eyes focused on the screen in front and hand hovering over flashing buttons on the keypad. It seemed like a good … Continue reading Chasing the win
The Secret Song of Shelby Rey – Novel Excerpt Chapter 1
By Rayne Lacko Shelby 2010 The last semester of high school, I kept a list called “Things I Won’t Miss After Graduation” in the back of my chemistry binder. The instigator of the list was the periodic table. It seemed impossible that so much magic should be boiled down, parsed, categorized, and then fenced together … Continue reading The Secret Song of Shelby Rey – Novel Excerpt Chapter 1
The Pond
By Gregory Smith Frank was a real Renaissance man. He was a writer, an artist and musician. He adored nature and animals more than people. Don’t get me wrong- Frank was a sociable guy. But like many tortured artistic souls, he was happiest in solitude. He never married and only tolerated children when he had … Continue reading The Pond
They Came
By Yucheng Tao Originally published in Cathexis Northwest Press Tuol Slenglike a poisonous flowerexhalinga piercing venom.The palm trees swayedbeneath the faltering shadow,a procession of bones —the dead—labeled as intellectuals.They camelike a gust of wind,They camelike a herd of wild beasts.They cameslaughter upon slaughter,cursing Tuol Sleng,damning its streets and rivers.They regarded themselves as fanatical idealists,But never, … Continue reading They Came
The Fly and the Behemoth
By Jacob Alexander Who can perceive a fly?A speck whose life flits away between blinksBut in that fly does not the knowledge of the beginning and the end exist?And if such magnitudes are contained in that microcosmThen what eternity lies inside the behemoths of the pastAnd the leviathans of tomorrow?In that regard we approach life … Continue reading The Fly and the Behemoth
Greasepaint
By David L Painter There is a certain mystique that lingers backstage,where roles become habitand characters are set free.Time hangs like a slow-motion waterfallas you memorize your lines-just words on paper, voices yet to be born,echoes not your own,mere reflections waiting to be accepted.Your entrance is made, stage left-time to be heard, time to astound.The … Continue reading Greasepaint
Her Life
By Cynthia Li With a lilac bra on the top and underwear on the bottom, and with face downwards, she dived down under the pool, motionless. Illuminated by ethereal lime-green glow, the ripples sparkled as the shallow waves rolled. Behind the pool was her stately mansion. The ivies twined their way through the gate and … Continue reading Her Life
The Unfinished Sentence
By Dr. Deepak Dev I am ink that refuses to dry,a story that stutters mid-breath,a thought unraveling at the edge of language,too vast for the shape of words.Every beginning carries the weight of its ending,yet mine lingers—unfinished, unclaimed,a stanza missing its last line,a map with roads that never meet.Some call it hesitation,this reluctance to carve … Continue reading The Unfinished Sentence
The Eight Chair
By Mark Moran The invitation came unbidden, a slim envelope of cream paper slipped under my door. Its edges were crisp, its ink black and exact. Dinner at Blackthorn Hall, Donegal. November 10th. Eight. No name, no flourish. Just an address and a command. I held it too long, and felt it graze my fingers. … Continue reading The Eight Chair
Brake Neck Speeds
By Faith J Forster ‘I bought a Cadillac,’ Wilson hollers over the phone. He overwhelms me with talk about his newly acquired car. He’s gone mad, I decide and collapse flat on my back to pedal my legs in the air. A thing I do to get in a few seconds of fitness while attached … Continue reading Brake Neck Speeds
Academy of the Heart And Mind 