May 10, 2021

“Demon Road,” A Short Story by Derrick R. Lafayette

“Demon Road,” A Short Story by Derrick R. Lafayette

I lived in a castle made of mud. Solid enough to make you feel caged. Light barely escaped the brown warped walls. The house had so many ancestors pass away inside, that layers of its spirit fought each other seasonally. I was doomed.  I believe it was late autumn when my stomach’s emptiness corresponded with my heart. After fifty-five days in solitude, the hunger monster devoured me. Food was to be acquired. There used to be another person to handle these things during the summer.  However, the sunlight tempted her to search for buried treasure in the cityscape. She thought there were buildings, roads, and regular life beyond the mountains, past the desert plain. All things inside the dome. I located the area map before she did and destroyed it. I thought about her wandering hopelessly every night. Helped me sleep.  The gun seemed to gain ten pounds since the last time I…

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May 4, 2021

“Pilgrims of Zame,” by Mbizo Chirasha Now Available!

“Pilgrims of Zame,” by Mbizo Chirasha Now Available!

Pilgrims of Zame, a collection of hybrid narratives by poet Mbizo Chirasha, is a visceral assault a of images, sounds, and evocative experiences that transport readers from the hills and mountains of Zimbabwean villages, to sordid cities filled with violence and poverty, and into the minds, hearts, and lives of an entire people. Chirasha captures the raw emotions of culture and conflict and presents them through his uniquely vibrant poetic style. Through alliterative prose and free verse poetry, Chirasha explores both the roots of his culture and its path into the future. Mbizo Chirasha is the current Poet-in-Residence at The Fictional Café and author of A Letter to the President (Zimbabwe). He has co-authored several titles including The Little Voice, Metaphors of the Rainbow, and Whispering Woes of Ganges and Zambezi. Pilgrims of Zame may…

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May 3, 2021

Forensic Foraging Photography by William Crawford

Forensic Foraging Photography by William Crawford

Artist’s Statement: The trite, trivial and mundane are often dismissed by today’s technology driven photographers. Images shot can unlock the beauty and intrinsic value hidden in most everyday things. Thus, an old fractured glass window found on a wrecked desert shack might better be presented as a compelling image. Such a transformational presentation can be achieved by applying basic photographic techniques: framing, lighting, coloration, saturation, contrast, etc. This precise application of seminal tenets can often transform the mundane into something pleasing. This process forms the essence of Forensic Foraging. Photographers today possess a plethora of powerful technical tools. High resolution sensors, potent post processing software, and cameras with such jacked up processors that they could, in a pinch, support the governmental operations of a small city. Many camera images today all but surpass the human capacities…

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April 28, 2021

Friday on FC: Our First Live Webinar with Dan Blank!

Friday on FC: Our First Live Webinar with Dan Blank!

It’s almost here! This Friday, April 30th, at 2pm Eastern we will be hosting a webinar for writers who want to learn how to create an author platform and market their books. Dan Blank will be presenting on various topics. Check out the description below! Here’s the link to join in the webinar (Meeting ID: 863 9109 4393). An Introduction to Author Platform and Finding Your Ideal Readers Dan Blank has helped thousands of writers develop their author platforms, launch their books, and create marketing strategies that work. In this one-hour webinar, he will share his methodology for how to develop your author platform, market your writing, and find a sense of joy and fulfillment in the process. He will discuss social media, finding your ideal readers, how to present yourself online, and the key elements…

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April 27, 2021

“Head Space,” Poems by Ted Millar

“Head Space,” Poems by Ted Millar

Head Space    I still know my childhood best friend’s  telephone number even though  I’ll never dial it again.    I’ve taught certain poems so many times  I can recite them on demand, yet  some claim that has no practical application.    Most find my ability to name the American  presidents by years in office amusing  before urging me to remember “something important”    (like last night’s winning Powerball numbers?).  I embrace my savant-esque ability to rattle off  every Bob Dylan album and the songs featured    on them. I prefer not to cram my head   with empty crap on the radio and celebrity   gossip, thank you very much.    Want something proofread, I’m the resident  grammarian, but if it’s scores to last night’s  game, I suggest turning on ESPN.    I’ve actually read the whole Constitution,  not cherry-picked excerpts. Ditto   the Declaration of Independence,     the United Nations’ Declaration of…

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April 26, 2021

This Friday: Live Webinar for Writers on FC!!

This Friday: Live Webinar for Writers on FC!!

This Friday, April 30th, at 2pm Eastern we will be hosting a webinar for writers who want to learn how to create an author platform and market their books. Dan Blank will be presenting on various topics. Check out the description below! Stay tuned for the link for the webinar later this week. An Introduction to Author Platform and Finding Your Ideal Readers Dan Blank has helped thousands of writers develop their author platforms, launch their books, and create marketing strategies that work. In this 1-hour webinar, he will share his methodology for how to develop your author platform, market your writing, and find a sense of joy and fulfillment in the process. He will discuss social media, finding your ideal readers, how to present yourself online, and the key elements of book launches. A Q&A…

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April 25, 2021

April Edition of “The Break from HOKAIC”

April Edition of “The Break from HOKAIC”

Jason’s Notes From the Lab… This month I tried something new. I’d heard about other writers doing it, and tried one as a sort of rough draft to some success. I’m sharing the details and results here with you, so if you want to give it a shot you know how.  Who is this for: authors with self-published books and a mailing list. What is this: a giveaway sweepstakes to gather new emails for your list The Details: Here’s what I did. I found a bunch of other authors with mailing lists who write in genres related to mine. We all kicked in $25 for prize money and advertising. Our genre was safety, specifically family safety, and we gathered a library of 13 safety books, plus some supplies and even a AAA membership for the prize bundle.  For…

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April 21, 2021

Jennifer Green & Lorraine Martindale: New Baristas

Jennifer Green & Lorraine Martindale: New Baristas

Please join us in welcoming our two newest Baristas, Jennifer Green and Lorraine Martindale! We are excited to add these two talented editors to our team. You may have noticed their contributions already, but if not, check them out here and here. You can learn a little more about them on our Baristas page or just keep reading! About Jennifer:Jennifer is our Publications Barista. An English teacher by day and freelance editor by night and weekend, she loves helping writers find their voices and refine their craft. In addition to completing the editing certificate through the University of Chicago Graham School in 2020, Jennifer holds degrees in psychology and English from North Carolina State University, Meredith College, and the University of Nottingham (UK). When she’s not teaching or deep into a developmental edit, she can be…

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April 18, 2021

“Rat Road,” A Short Story by Paul Negri

“Rat Road,” A Short Story by Paul Negri

Because I had no father, no brothers or sisters, no aunts or uncles, and no friends, and was scared of everything, Mom was worried about me.   “I’m worried about you, Tommy,” she would say, and she looked it. And that worried me. She was all I had, my lifeline, and even at nine I knew a frayed rope was not the best lifeline, though I did not think of it in such fancy metaphoric terms, as being a child I had no need for metaphors. What I knew was instinctive, a heightened sense of risk that permeated my day to day and night to night life.   Like me, Mom’s father left before she was born and her mother (who I later came to call the Unknown Grandma) gave Mom up for adoption, which launched her into a carousel of foster care for several years. But unlike me, Mom was not afraid of anything, as far as I could tell, and I imagined she never had been.  …

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April 15, 2021

“Botticelli’s Oranges,” The Poetry of Reed Venrick

“Botticelli’s Oranges,” The Poetry of Reed Venrick

Botticelli’s Oranges In an Italian port village near where the boy called “Allessandro” grew up, some thought his circles drawn must be made with a mechanical compass, so round, so fine, there in the Mediterranean sand, where Botticelli grew into youth, wandering through the orange and lemon groves of the Italian littoral; even then sketching lines of muscular trunks and extending arms branching into fingers of leaves, mixing into colors of rinds of reds and yellows. But when youthful fingers grew long enough to put a brush to canvas, he tinted the precious fruit In Madonna with Child and Angels, where she sat under blooming orange trees in spring, for the artist used orange trees to symbolize the virgin, because as he said: among fruits, only oranges are evergreen, “if one sees the mean.” So…

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