This is the last one of these in 2024, I think, and we’re going out with a bang. Three of the four writers are new to me, and every one of these stories left me wanting more. If you have a little downtime this week, there are definitely worse ways to spend your time than reading these.
Fiction
Sforzando by Timothy Reilly
It’s a story about tuba lessons, kind of. It goes in unexpected directions, and also contains some good tuba trivia (18 feet of tubing!).
Read the full storyFiction
Signs of Suffering by AD Schweiss
This is how it starts:
Read the full storyI want to make it home sober but there’s a bar sitting perfectly just between the station and my house and I need to sit somewhere in between until my jaw can loosen up; the stink of your burnt car still in my nose.Schweiss uses repetition and a slow reveal to devastating effect.
Fiction
Blueberries by Chris Scott
This story is way too short. It’s a bit of a John Marrs-type concept – people start getting texts from alternate-universe versions of loved ones. Put me on the preorder list for the novel already.
Read the full storyFictionRead the full story
The Prank by Amy DeBellis
A group of kids set up to prank a peer, but things go sideways. The reveal in this story made my jaw drop.