A biggish spider dangling from a forgotten corner of the porch suspended, dead, by its web, endured the harsh Winter winds and blowing rains of impending Spring. It died in Autumn, with legs curled to its abdomen, fluttering at the end of its enduring silk, looking remarkably like star anise. Cate Covert has been regaling friends and family with her tall tales since she could talk. She loves engaging with her reading audiences. Her poetry, flash fiction, and humorous stories reside at Cate Covert on Chadashah.org and her Inspirational essays and bible studies at Pastora Cate’s Corner on Substa ..read more

I hear the beeping of the machine, the sands of my hourglass running thin. I can’t communicate. “Talk to him,” the nurse urges. “Are you in pain, Grandpa?” Aaron asks, watching me gently move my hand over my chest. No, I think, hand over my heart. I’m just loving you. Seth Pilevsky’s work has appeared in What Doesn’t Kill You, a YA anthology published by Indomita Press, Maelstrom, The Inner Circle Writers’ Group Literary Anthology 2019, Identity Anthology by ArrowHeart Publishing, Tales of the Strange Anthology by The Writer’s Workout, Stinkwaves Magazine, Long Island Literary Journal, Literal ..read more

She dips the brush, composes a haiku. “Cherry blossom weeps, Bitter winter wind laments— Fierce hearts do neither.” Compliant wives conform. But she’d rather confront her treacherous husband on the battlefield, beneath snapping crimson skies. “Wielding Father’s sword— Scarlet camellias bleeding From my ink-black hair.” Victory—like justice—is poetic. Deborah writes at an old desk surrounded by five hundred pet bugs ..read more

He is tempted to lick the ice cream running down his fingers from an overstuffed waffle cone, but he has been taught that that kind of thing is in poor taste, so he watches it drip from his fingers to the ground, where, clearly, it cannot be enjoyed by anyone. Ran Walker is an award-winning author of over 30 books and the creator of the 100 x 100 micro novel. He teaches creative writing and lives in Virginia with his wife and daughter ..read more

Frank Sinatra’s voice coats the snowy night as I contemplate turning off the radio. “Not going to dance?” you ask, not smiling, because I can’t remember anymore how your lips eased into your lopsided smile. I’ll blink and you’ll disappear, I know. But before that, you are here, aren’t you? Chelsea Allen is in love with people and things past, mostly. Her work can be found at msha.ke/lakehouseporch/#links. Follow Chelsea on Twitter at @ChelseaAllen03 ..read more

He guided her fragile, bone-thin hands to the strings. Helped her pluck a tune over the beeping monitors. Hummed her their lullaby. “You’ll have to teach me properly, love. Later.” She whispered the impossibility, leaning into him, comforting. The tune faltered, his voice broke, hands stilled. She smelled of forget-me-nots. Celine Grace is a young writer obsessed with the mystery of ideas and is learning how to use marks on a page to tell them ..read more

EDITOR: I just discovered that I hadn’t selected/announced a Story of the Month for a few months in a row, somehow! Apologies for the mistake and the very late selections! The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month. The finalists for March were: The Keen Gardener by Deborah Tapper We Have Always Played With the Faceless Doll by Joel O’Flaherty Widowhood @ 72 by Shoshauna Shy The Monument by Ron Scully Sólarkaffi by Râna Campbell Happily Ever After by Susan Gale Wickes The winner of the March 2024 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is ..read more

The boy fashioned a tiny bird with arched wings. Twists and swirls in the glass resembled feathers. He placed the bird in his father’s calloused hands. The old man, who was blind, held the bird without looking. He pressed two fingers to the glass, as though feeling for a pulse. Bob Thurber is the author of six books. Regarded as a master of Flash and Micro Fiction, his work has appeared in Esquire and other magazines, been anthologized 60 times, received a long list of awards, and been utilized in schools and colleges throughout the world. He resides in Massachusetts. Visit his website at  ..read more

To remember new words every week is a small task for any word geek, but as I get older my bloodstream gets colder, my brain starts to leak and words start to sound Greek. With no paddle to shoulder, my thinking will molder as I drift downstream in this creek. Ken Gosse usually writes whimsical, rhymed verse. First published in First Literary Review–East in November 2016, later in Pure Slush, Home Planet News, Lothlorien Poetry Journal, Spillwords, and many others. Raised in Chicago suburbs, now retired, he and his wife live in Mesa, AZ, with rescue dogs and cats ..read more

EDITOR: I just discovered that I hadn’t selected/announced a Story of the Month for a few months in a row, somehow! Apologies for the mistake and the very late selections! The Story of the Month is chosen from the Story of the Week winners announced from the past month. The finalists for February were: Time is No Thief by Chelsea Utecht Early Spring by Kai Wang Out with the Old, In with the New by Carol Tymann A Puddle on the Bathroom Floor by Nico Calvanico The winner of the February 2024 Story of the Month, and the $10 prize, is… Out with the Old, In with the New ..read more