465 posts by Mike Rochester

April 16, 2020

“Mythomane’s Truth,” Poetry by Sanjeev Sethi

Mythomane’s Truth If we could retrofit ourselves? I would not be me nor you, you. Imagine me without infirmities. I would no longer be po-faced, pudgy and potbellied. My eyes wouldn’t swim sans Adam’s ale. If any of this gladdens your gut: I reckon, you aren’t for me. ** Flux From entanglements of existence I’m in firmament of my own. In roll-call of needs anamnesis mitigates. Past is polished with coats of one’s inner complexion. Peeps are like diaries different page different piece: same smell. ** Vision When you unself from a situation or skein: you deliver lavish dividends for yourself. Opportune distancing mends the ache: of the eventualities of our exploits. Propinquity bedims the perspective: leaving us to lust after our parakeet or pelt. *** Sanjeev Sethi is published in over 25 countries. He has more than 1200 poems printed or posted…

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April 14, 2020

“Vogel,” A Novel Excerpt by David Lincoln

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

TUESDAY, JUNE 13, 1944 AMIENS, FRANCE STANDARTENFUHRER HANS VOGEL entered cell 51. His black uniform was spotless and sat on his shoulders the way it would a man comfortable with physical exertion. The SS insignia on his collar faintly reflected the light from the bare bulb hanging from the ceiling. It was the only illumination in the cell, which reeked of urine and the familiar coppery scent of blood. The naked prisoner sat in a steel chair, straddling the drain in the middle of the room. His wrists were bound to the arms of the chair, his ankles held fast to its legs. Leather straps held his chest rigid. One eye was swollen and purple. His lips were shredded, and his body was peppered with bruises. A sergeant wearing a Wehrmacht uniform was standing behind…

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April 12, 2020

Arya F. Jenkins — An Author Interview

Posted by Mike Rochester in Interviews

Editor’s Note: We asked author and FC member/contributor, Arya F. Jenkins, a few questions about her book of short stories. Interview with Arya F. Jenkins Author of Blue Songs in an Open Key Short stories published by Fomite, 2018 When did you first get the idea to write this book? I was in the midst of a long love affair with jazz when I first started writing fiction with the idea of having it published. I decided to do something a little different and interweaved my love for that music into a story. My short story, “So What,” was inspired by the first cut in the seminal album by Miles Davis, Kinda Blue, and won first prize in a fiction contest in Jerry Jazz Musician, a jazz-based zine run by Joe Maita. That was in 2012, and subsequently I was asked to write more stories for Jerry Jazz Musician, which I did, at…

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April 9, 2020

“Review for a Canvas Fanny Pack,” by Kerry Langan

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

Heading for Review: Big Mistake Reviewer Name: SheWhoIsDisappointedandIsGoingtoTellYouHowMuch I gave this fanny pack one star because there was no option to give it no stars. If you try to leave the 5-star graphic blank, it won’t let you go to the box where you’re supposed to leave the actual review. So, just know that I gave this one star but it should be no stars. Zilch. First of all, I ordered an apple green fanny pack from HikeBike.com when they were running that sale a couple weeks ago. Apple green, like the color of grass in July and my favorite sweater and, well, green apples! In the photo they ran during the sale, the fanny pack looks like it would match a Granny Smith. I love apple green. If you opened my closet door, you’d see that almost everything is green. Kevin, my ex, told me once that green was a great color with my brown…

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April 6, 2020

“‘The Misfits’ Revisited,” Poetry by Stephen Mead

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

“The Misfits” Revisited* When you chased, lassoed the mustangs, tying hooves to necks of down weighed by tires heavy as trucks, you wrenched the galloping out of me till I found my rage… Butchers! What is the spirit if not these horses wild first to last, these zeniths, comet- tailed, free as the sage, the mountains, the thousand miles of it? That is me down there in the dust. That is you who cannot see yourself for the sign of dog food dollars, a cowboy’s wage, the dream gone to blood. Put my blood on your fingers. Lick clean. Let whiskey drown the taste. The taste will come back, the beleaguering fever and freedom here truly trotting beyond your ropes which shake and shake. Lost boy, lost cow poke, I will…

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April 2, 2020

William Crawford — Forensic Foraging Photography

Posted by Mike Rochester in Fine Art

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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March 29, 2020

“Crimson,” A Short Story by Zach Lattman

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

Ester hated that dress. But it was the only thing she had for tonight. Since graduating law school, she, and four other classmates would get together once a month. Supposedly, they were all such great friends, and they didn’t want graduation to pull them apart. But to Ester, it felt fake—almost coerced. It felt more like preemptive networking; everyone was keeping tabs on each other in case they needed a favor down the road. Ester never voiced that concern to anyone. Surely, it was all in her head, she told herself. But still, in her more cynical, or rather, her more honest moments, she doubted everyone’s authenticity—even her own. She leaned back against the living room wall and stared out the window into the late-spring evening. Chicago looked beautiful at night. From Ginny’s 21st-floor condo, it looked like…

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March 24, 2020

“Deep Fried,” A Short Story by Matt Kolbet

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

“Candy bars? “Of course. Snickers mainly. That’s what people have heard, so it rings true if they hear it again. Easy enough to envision something held in wires, dropped down in hot oil.” “Had it.” Dan eyed the man from Texas and felt a flash of home-grown pride. Travel had brought the two men together and Dan realized everything could be a competition: grilling techniques, the tang of a sauce, the cut of the meat. In other states they touted how high food could grow relative to elephants. Ridiculous, except when it wasn’t. Presently, they discussed state fairs and what could be fried at home. This prompted a lengthy litany and an appreciative silence. “You ever try Rolos?” “Haven’t. Gives me an idea though.” Dan pulled out his phone and punched in a string of numbers. “Hey Jed. No, I’m on a business trip. Met up with this other fellow. I want you to…

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March 19, 2020

“The Woman of Kutch,” Poetry by Jonathan Lloyd

Posted by Mike Rochester in Writing

The Woman of Kutch The woman of Kutch, Living in grasslands Favored by raj And ibis, flees  The earthquake and Monsoon that leveled The Gujarat Three or four  Thousand years ago. For this occasion She wears a dress Embroidered in red And yellow cotton An aba covers The sakral which Begins the stem  Of a sunflower rising  To a shower  Of light, all in Mirrors, surrounded  By grassy fields. She carries three Steel pots of water On her head and  With her left arm She caresses another. With her right arm  She shields her eyes  Against the sun, Into which she races. ** At  the Track She crosses her legs, this girl of twelve, her hat A crown, brim bouncing in a breeze. She reads Her book, maybe–maybe not–lost in thought Or reverie, a boy…

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March 12, 2020

Our New Baristas! Welcome Michael, Amanda & Yong

Posted by Mike Rochester in News

Please join us in welcoming our new baristas to The Fictional Café! These three talented additions to our staff have rolled up their sleeves to help us brew the tastiest “fresh java” this side of Pluto. Michael Piekny has joined our Editorial Board, which also includes our editor and all-star submissions manager Ruth Simon and our editor and anthology barista, Mike Mavilia Rochester. As an Editorial Board Barista, Michael brings a robust enthusiasm for editing based upon years of practice, and the work he does at his own company, Hub Edits. If you’ve recently been published on FC, you’ve surely enjoyed working with him. Our new Visual Arts Barista is Amanda Grafe. She’ll be curating our visual art offerings, which includes anything from paintings to sculptures to photography. An artist herself, Amanda’s passion for art…

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