You better believe she doesn’t give two craps about his whereabouts or well-being; she just wants to make him feel guilty about being a bad dad, as if it’s his fault she’d kicked him out for yelling too loudly at the TV.… Continue Reading
The humor, the hatred of day jobs, the drinking, the gambling on life, the madness of the grind, giving away your soul for pennies on the dollar, I knew that world. I lived in that world.… Continue Reading
“How do you feel, son?” Pa Ade asked. “I feel strong and powerful, Dad,” Ade said. “Masculinity is strength, power, and responsibility, Dad. Taking care of the heavy duties at home is my responsibility. I understand that now. I am a Man!”… Continue Reading
One morning, Gregor Samsa woke from a night of uneasy dreams to find that he had become a series of questions and answers on an exam.… Continue Reading
Clara hopes there’s a replica of her family somewhere still living in their house on Saguaro Street, where her dad didn’t lose his job at the General Store, where his breath doesn’t stink of Wild Turkey every morning.… Continue Reading
Once he made his first million, he disassociated from the outside world and got deeper into the game. I suspect the diaper thing started after he had at least six million in the bank.… Continue Reading
I waited a while by the river, pondering. Once or twice I inspected my nether regions, like runes in the spindly moonlight. I have a soft spot for soothsaying and they have always proved reliable aids.… Continue Reading
A rustling noise came from behind them. Norman turned to see a shaking tree limb. Then, something fell from the air and hit the ground in front of them. A bloody scrap of meat lay on the forest floor.… Continue Reading
I realized that language can be more than the vehicle for a story; it can be the lens through which the reader sees the world. For me, the cadence of the language came to mirror the setting of Euphoria County—with its mysterious flora, its snaking roads, and its trapped secrets.… Continue Reading
As he smokes he dreams himself the captain of a grand ship, standing on the deck above his cabin, overlooking a vast and dynamic crew buzzing as bees do to make the ship to his liking, but instead he looks down at the cerulean water in the pool below and wonders where he went wrong.… Continue Reading