August 27, 2020

Zach Piggott, Guest Blogger — MFA The Online Way

Editor’s Note: Zach Piggott, recently featured writer on FC, shared in his bio that he had attended Southern New Hampshire University’s Online Masters of Fine Arts in Creative Writing program. We were curious about his experience with this type of learning (especially considering how impactful it may be for students in 2020), so we asked him if he’d write a piece for our blog. Here’s his take on the fully remote MFA. MFA The Online Wayby Zach Piggott In 2017 I was adrift. I was working at an escape room (a fun job, I can’t lie) only part-time while my wife worked full-time. My dream of creating and writing the stories for video games was evaporating more and more every day. My wife and I had just gotten married but there was a nagging feeling…

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August 24, 2020

“The Beholder,” A Short Story by Fiama Mastrangelo

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

You blink your eyes open and stretch your arms above your head. You’re wearing an extra-large cotton t-shirt this morning—one that you got for free in your freshman year and never threw out. Your dark brown hair is splayed out on the pillowcase and is exceptionally messy. I wonder if you were feeling lazy or if you just didn’t care what I would think when you decided on this look last night. We can work on that. I watch you get up and move into the bathroom. I can hear you washing your face, brushing your teeth. You turn on the shower and the noise of running water fills the room. No steam, it’s cold water. Hot water will age you, remember? I wouldn’t like that at all. I told you that your legs felt prickly last night. I wonder if you remember that this morning, while you…

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August 21, 2020

“The Encounter,” A Collegiate Audio Drama

Posted by Ruby Fink in Audio Arts

Produced by The School of Visual and Performing Arts at Liberty University, The Encounter is a serialized radio drama that introduces its audience to two seemingly utopian societies. However, for a few young people the search for perfection and a greater truth lies just beyond their borders. Written by Jordon Jarrett, Colton Grellier, Kim Camancho and Phillip Sitterding, the story follows Picasso (Neal Brasher), Violet (Hannah Glavin), Stylus (Cody Carwile) and many more talented voice actors on a journey of introspective discovery. Episode 1: Learn about one of the mountaintop cities–the Peak of Defiance. Picasso (Neal Brasher) hears a lovely song that haunts him, allowing him to see a vision of a third city that no one else can see. In Defiance, learn how the city runs and meet Ultraviolet (Hannah Glavin) and Stylus (Cody Carwile). Ultraviolet…

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August 19, 2020

“Writing the Song,” A Short Story by Carole Langille

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

I met Van and another man at a party and though I was attracted to the other guy, I called Van. That’s how I did things in those days. I wrote lyrics, Van told me he wrote melodies, so when I suggested we get together and go over some material, Van invited me to his small duplex on the west side of Manhattan where he had his piano. That first day, sitting on his couch, watching this tall guy with broad shoulders and curly brown hair play such wonderful melodies, I was happy. He looked like a cowboy, tall and lean, with his checked shirt and leather vest, his dark moustache, but an intellectual cowboy, his green eyes very alive. Years later, when I saw a film with Samuel L. Jackson, I thought they looked…

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August 17, 2020

“The Leopard’s Good Idea,” Poetry by Mark A. Murphy

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

The Leopard’s Good Idea or Costume Change The pen is mightier than the sword. Behold The arch-enchanters wand! – itself a nothing! – Edward Bulwer-Lytton 1 One day the crafty leopard hit upon the neat idea to turn out his old wardrobe in favour of a whole new look. Out went last season’s winter warmers as if a change of pelt might bring about a change in personality. Nonetheless, the inclination to swindle outweighs any kindness. So, the cheating and subterfuge runs its course, until the cheat and the cheated part company in the face of wild promises and denials. 2 Now we journey to the end of time to ascertain whether the pen really is mightier than the sword, only to find what we always suspected. …

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August 11, 2020

A New Call for Submissions

Posted by Jack B. Rochester in News

Fiction writers, rejoice! Our fellow writer and Barista Jason Brick, after struggling through the Portland riots to get back to his computer, is launching a new publishing project, Flash in a Flash. It’s a twice-weekly email that delivers a single flash fiction directly to subscriber inboxes. Although you can write about anything, Jason asks that you keep it to 1,000 words or fewer. When you go to his submissions page, be sure to sign up for his list so you’ll be the first to see your story when it’s published. Jason is our most active barista in terms of publishing the works of other writers. He has published three flash-fiction anthologies, each featuring 100 different writers’ stories (think about that!), and is planning a fourth with the works from Flash in a Flash. He also publishes…

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August 11, 2020

“Pool Boy,” A Short Story by John Beyer

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

The concept did not come as a lightning bolt out of the sky, striking my cranium instantly. But more like a slow buildup of storm clouds on the horizon. The ones that leave a person wondering if inclement weather was in fact on the way or would fizzle into nothingness. Weather is like that sometimes, much like thoughts, ideas, or dreams. Nothing to do with reality at the moment but perhaps in the future that reality would truly become real. That was how it was with the epiphany I could make a lot more money if I turned my career into something deeper if not more sinister. I grew up poor, angry and disillusioned in Forest Park in Detroit. The small neighborhood bordering Wayne State University had high unemployment and those lucky enough to be working had some of…

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August 9, 2020

“Meteor Shower,” Poetry by Mark Hammerschick

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

Meteor Shower Canvas black the eternal oil spill galactic dark matter speckled waves of crystal diamond sky ruby, emerald, sapphire lightspeed silent night bright terminal velocity eyes focus straining in the dark time as seconds, minutes, eons stretch galaxies into small hands that even rain cannot feel for in feeling we begin to fall headlong into night riding the meteors of our past knowing the showers of our future will smother those small hands someday not even the rain has such small hands Smokestacks of oak, hickory and birch lurch in the balance of sleet and snow on a confused Sunday in early May as my woods fill up with snow. It’s a snowy evening tucked away on this Highland Park cul de sac hugging Lake Michigan’s shore as the gales of this Spring day recall the final…

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August 7, 2020

“The Loser,” An Audio Adventure by Strange/Love

Posted by Ruby Fink in Audio Arts

“The Loser” is a fantasy-sci-fi story from Strange/Love, an audio fiction anthology created, written and Produced by William J. Meyer. While most podcasters out there develop their episodes to follow either a certain theme or storyline over the course of their “season,” Strange/Love prefers to release audio short stories of various genres with different voice actors. For example: “The Loser.” Jordon has always been the girl on the outside, listening to the police cruiser radio with her Mom and dreaming of being a dinosaur. But one weekend she is invited to a sleepover with the richest girls in town. For just one weekend, Jordan hopes to be accepted into the cool girls’ circle. But unfortunately for Jordan, the girls have something else planned. Unfortunately for the girls, Jordan has a trick up her sleeve as…

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August 6, 2020

“Party Boy,” A Short Story by Lee Anderson

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

I’m alone at a charity event in Patricia Yeo’s new Midtown eatery. Shirtless, chiseled busboys and lanky, large-breasted servers run lightly about the restaurant, carrying trays the size of manhole covers. The place is gold-trimmed and supported by Roman columns but a terrible place to have a party. Not enough room. We’re ass-to-hip in here practically. I meet gazes with Celine about ten minutes after I arrive. She approaches me without hesitation. I actually don’t think she’s ever hesitated a day in her life. “Uh-oh,” she says. “Lazarus Fucking Cooper. Is that you?” “Last I checked.” “Well, there’s no telling what’s going to happen now.” “We’ll have to be careful.” “Yeah, you attract bad energy. I’m a lily caught in the rapids with you.” “I see you haven’t changed.” “Does anyone?” A hyper-paced metal song begins growling from heightened speakers,…

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