Every day was the same. At 9:00 o’clock each morning, Eleanor the assistant copyeditor started her day at the office. She opened the envelope at the top of the pile. She read the first few lines of the enclosed manuscript,… Continue Reading
He was a slug. Bobby knew this, that he was a slug. He knew that he existed to do slug-like things. He lived in a garden; it was the garden of a retiree in Seattle but he sometimes imagined that… Continue Reading
Play this podcast now: [audio:http://www.everydayfiction.com/stories/wp-content/uploads/EDF029_building.a.sparrow.by_.chad_.redden.mp3] Podcast EDF029: Building A Sparrow, written by Chad Redden, read by Matt Cowens “Building A Sparrow” was originally published in EDF on April 21, 2010. Chad Redden currently lives in Indianapolis, Indiana where he majors… Continue Reading
Sally always gets a little down every Spring, on account of this was the time of year Billy got sick. Two years ago, he had a high fever. They said it affected his brain and he’d never be the same.… Continue Reading
Ma always told me there was something special about my paintings. I thought it was just because that’s what mothers say. They tell their shrieking daughters that they can sing, their husbands that they have the most handsome green eyes… Continue Reading
It was Saturday, September 23. I sat in a hospital emergency room with a friend that had taken too many sleeping pills. She apologized again and again. She was just trying to get some sleep she said. I sat stoically… Continue Reading
The nose on my face is rare, perhaps historical. It’s a little fleshy and has a bit of a hook. It’s from my mother’s side although she hasn’t worn it since she was four. The last one to wear it,… Continue Reading
“You are afraid,” the fortune teller told Anthony Torelli. She dressed like a gypsy, and her heavy-lidded eyes seemed to gleam with dark secrets. “I know that.” Sweat dripped inside his shirt. “I want to know why.” The air in… Continue Reading
Again, he flashed on the scene. A gray-haired man slumped across a table, one arm extended. Liquid pooled around an upset tumbler. Kincaid shook his head. He inhaled the smoky scent of his whiskey. The vision wafted away. “Heeere’s Johnny!” squawked the big green… Continue Reading
The hollow thump of running on the stairs would have disturbed Arabella if she hadn’t previously decided to ignore Johnny’s outbursts. She kept her eyes deliberately on her book and continued reading until the door to the parlor crashed open. Johnny… Continue Reading