December 10, 2021

“This Monstrous Life” by Casey Wolfe

Salutations Fictional Cafe Listeners and Happy Holidays! In honor of the season of Love and Giving just around the corner, Fictional Cafe would like to present “This Monstrous Life” by Casey Wolfe. Yes, we realize that the title and… images included in this podcast might seem a little contrary for this holiday, but we can assure you, that while this is an unorthodox way to start off our Christmas season, we can also promise an entertaining evening of audio fun and enjoyment. We’re in the midst of the holiday season, right? We hear a lot of people complain about how stressful the holiday season is, but if you think you have it bad – try being a monster. Take a listen to this one, it’ll really give you a new perspective on things. Oh and…

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December 6, 2021

Announcing Our First Ever Pushcart Prize Nominees!

Posted by Mike Rochester in News

Hello Coffee Clubbers! We are excited to announce that, for the first time, The Fictional Café has nominated a handful of our members for a Pushcart Prize. For those who are unfamiliar with Pushcart, they publish an anthology of short stories, essays and poetry from small presses and literary magazines each year—they’ve been doing it since 1976! Small presses and literary magazines can nominate works they’ve published over the course of that given year. The idea to nominate FC members came to us in early 2020. With the pandemic bearing down on the writing world, we wanted to offer something else to our talented, creative members. Ruth Simon, Michael Piekny and I were throwing around ideas and this one stood out as a perfect way to show just how much we value the work we…

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November 30, 2021

“Street Close-Ups,” An Art Exhibition by Ron Hartley

Posted by Mike Rochester in Fine Art

Artist’s Statement: I like to photograph things imbedded in urban asphalt or found on the sidewalks and by-ways of city streets. I love the grungy texture of street art; grunge being an inevitable by-product of the human species that speaks to the human condition like wrinkles to an elderly face. Someone tosses an empty soda can that gets crushed and rusted with time, a fallen leaf lays like a shipwreck marooned on a strange landscape, a white traffic line cracks up in a time-lapse of years, an oil slick fades in a time-lapse of minutes and I try to find my way there. Sometimes “there” can be in the middle of heavily trafficked streets where I practically risk my life trying to photograph such things like they were pieces of the Maltese Falcon. If the…

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November 26, 2021

“The Incredible Adventures of Jack Flanders by ZBS Productions

Posted by Ruby Fink in Audio Arts

Happy November Fictional Cafe Listeners, I know there are quite a few of you who have been looking forward to The Incredible Adventures of Jack Flanders by ZBS Productions. Therefore Fictional Cafe presents for your entertainment, Dreams of the Amazon, Pt. 1 and 2. Jack Flanders is an adventurer. He not only travels to different countries in search of knowledge, he also steps into other dimensions to solve strange metaphysical puzzles. All of Jack’s stories have a lightness and humor, as well as some wonderful little wisdoms scattered throughout. Jack Flanders’ adventures are often set in locations where we traveled to record the sounds; Brazil, the Amazon, India, Bali, Java, Sumatra, Belize, Costa Rica, Morocco, Montreal and New Orleans. Jack’s interest is piqued when a mysterious woman joins him at his New York restaurant table,…

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November 24, 2021

An Excerpt and News from Mbizo Chirasha

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

Editor’s Note: Mbizo Chirasha is The Fictional Café’s Poet-in-Residence. We have featured his work for two years now and are closing in on the end of his term. You may have noticed that we have featured less of his work this year, which, we are sad to say, is because Mbizo has been fleeing his home in Zimbabwe and trying to find asylum in another country. Due to his criticism of African politics and corruption in his writing, he has frequently been a target of violence from his government. We have partnered with a few organizations to help him find a safe place to live and write, but he continues to meet challenges. Mbizo has recently published a new book, which we announced earlier this year. Here is an excerpt from his book, called, “Along…

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November 22, 2021

“Professor Crow,” A Short Story by Salvatore Difalco

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

Things were a little hazy. I had resurfaced after an entire year. I knew it would take time to get my legs underneath me, and not enough of it had passed yet. Not by a long shot. Nevertheless there I stood, out in the world again. How much had it changed? How much had people changed? Had anything changed at all? I’d soon find out. The red floor was sticky. When I lifted my heel you could hear it. I looked around the dimly lit tavern. Sparse crowd, folks still wary, or paranoid. We might still be doomed. We were doomed. Likely somewhere in that spectrum, not forgetting our recent ineptitude and iniquities as well as our successes. Dudes reeking of ganja wheeled about the place with bleeding eyes and slobbery mouths. The bald endomorphic bouncer, in a black turtleneck with a large gold crucifix hanging between his pectorals, stood by the door keeping six on them like an elephant with…

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November 18, 2021

“Once Upon a Dog,” A Short Story by Bob Calverley

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

One day Chief Warrant Officer Walters of the 99th Assault Helicopter Company would complain that the Tet Offensive began a month early for him. But on New Year’s Day, 1968, the company’s gun platoon, known as the Headhunters, was still basking in a lull that had begun a couple of weeks before Christmas. No one had been killed or wounded. Not a single rocket or mortar had exploded in Nui Binh Base Camp. Only one helicopter had been hit by ground fire. On New Year’s, the Headhunters returned to the base camp shortly before lunch after a long-planned combat assault was called off. Then they were given a rare afternoon off. Led by Walters, the gunship pilots decided to visit a Filipino engineering battalion stationed in Nui Binh. After lunch, most of the Headhunter enlisted…

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November 15, 2021

“Heather, Ludwig and Nathaniel,” An Excerpt by Derrick R. Lafayette

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

LUDWIG I was surprised she’d read the first chapter. My tutor usually found small detours in any narrative I put forth. It reminded me of looking at a sheet through a magnifying glass, judging the components that hold it together. Inside my glasses were three strands of hair, dust, and a fingerprint, yet, I blinked away the annoyance and kept going. When I finally finished chapter two, I emailed my document to her. She unearthed a cellphone twice the size of her hand, stuck her face into the screen, and scrolled with her pinky. “Do you know what a journeyman is?” the tutor asked slyly, leaving a hum of arrogance in the question. “A nomad?” I responded, unsure. “Ah, but you do know what failure is?” “A worker or sports player who is reliable but…

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November 12, 2021

Brick Moon Fiction

Posted by Ruby Fink in Audio Arts

Happy November Fictional Cafe Listeners! To start off the new month we’re posting two podcasts from Brick Moon Fiction! 89.9% by Lauren A. Forry, and The Inherited Planet by Lauren Signorino. Brick Moon asked a group of writers a while back to give the listeners a look at what they thought the future of romance and dating would be and they got some truly moving stories (remember OpenBook by Sam French?). This one from Lauren A. Forry was no exception and we are 100% confident you’ll be surprised and moved by 89.9%. Enjoy! One of the most rewarding prompts Brick Moon Fiction ever gave their writers. It was a simple one: “The black sheep of the family inherits the matriarch/patriarch’s entire estate after their passing – much to the chagrin of the siblings.” What do…

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November 8, 2021

“Orphan Smile,” The Poetry of Gopal Lahiri

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

Orphan Smile How hard it is for the stars to weave a story. It breaks through the wall and chain, and then in turn, with eyes closed. Words filter into dark rooms, unnoticeably, to the tune of the evening. It is not unexpected, nor is it striped, wood pencils sketch grey and grey sky. Each strum is a haze that thins and fades, the one who sings with all the heart for a while, is now trapped in the web of memory. Each mirror reflects the orphan smile, what remains is the rising smoke of the pyres. Ancient Palms We must learn to read, to hold them ever among the corn fields of the golden year. Before our eyes, the deep unique shadows take me up…

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