The product of a 10-minute “writing sprint” — The rainforest breathed. She could feel its warm breath on the back of her neck. Drops of perspiration collected on her upper lip, in the well of her collar bone, sliding down her back. If Kevin were here, she’d have felt self-conscious about it. …

A micro-fiction — I recently entered a “mini-contest” over at On The Premises magazine to “tell, show, or evoke a complete story between 25 and 50 words long in which the same thing, place, or incident is seen from two very different points of view.” My entry was not chosen for publication, but…

An “AI Made Me Do It” Story — “Hey, watch it! This is my turf!” came a gruff voice as Beezle squeezed under the bed. “Keep to your closet, bogey.” “Can it, Mub,” replied Beezle as he jammed his too-large body under the mattress. He was made for the closet, after all. “We have bigger fish to fry.” …

An entry for Furious Fiction — Mary had made a business out of keeping people’s deepest, darkest secrets. She was the kind of person others had always liked to confess to, even as a child: sweet, unassuming, a good listener. At first, it was just friends and family who would unburden themselves to her. She heard…

What awaits you when you go? — In a blink, it is over. The pain is gone. You feel a comforting nothingness, like floating in an ocean without waves. You were somewhere else, before. You struggle to recall the rough sheets, the smell of antiseptic, your daughter’s halting breath against your ear. “You can let go now…

A world without humans is far more humane — 12-T-87 hummed softly, chewing on a byte of information. It was their habit to hum tunes from one of the Creators’ many ancient databases, as if thinking aloud. “What is that?” asked 6-N-95, tilting their head to one side. “I am unfamiliar.” A curious affectation, as if it would help…

Natural Thought Prompt 4: A Stance on Lunacy — The other night as I crossed a busy intersection, a man on the opposite corner cupped his hands over his mouth and made the call of the loon. …

Micro-Madness 3: Mushrooms — Xixi powdered her nose with a puff, dotting her cheeks with silky spots of dandelion milk. This, she knew, was the absolute height of faerie fashion. As she fluttered from flower to flower, Xixi kept her eyes peeled for friend or foe. Drinking a drop of dew from a buttercup…

Writing Spark: What would happen if aliens finally made contact? — “Report?” I buzzed nervously before the Commander. “No contact recommended. Species was deemed unsuitable.” The Commander turned a beady eye away from the snaking printout to regard me with an unreadable expression. Inscrutable, the Commander. Always. “Unsuitable? By whom?” the Commander asked, tapping a panel lightly to pause the printout…

Daily Special 23: What does the tree see? — The sun is back, warm and bright. I stretch and bask in her rays. A breeze rustles my leaves. Daytime, when the children come. I see a young mother. She pushes her child along the path. I knew her as a child, she climbed my branches. Was it she with…

Daily Special 18: Photo Prompt — When she was a child, the floors were always polished to gleaming. Nan would not have had it any other way. She would tut and tut and scrub on her hands and knees, even when her knees grew knobbled and her hands bent arthritically. …

Daily Special 11: Radar — Blip. What was that? Sasha looked up from the crossword puzzle he’d been working on for the past hour of his shift. He was the only civilian contractor in the rotation and had very little idea what any of the complex equipment in front of him actually did. He was…

Daily Special 9: $100 — Ty looked at the hundred-dollar bill and then back at Dante, cocking an eyebrow. “You just found it, huh?” Dante was a clever kid, no way was he running around picking pockets or some shit, but that crisp benny was not something you’d find lying around on the street. …

Daily Special 4: Something’s changed about you… — You make eye contact with the beautiful woman ahead of you in the coffee queue. Recognition dawns and her face lights up as she looks at you. She says your name softly, like a gasp. Do we know each other? you ask. I’m so sorry, I don’t — She laughs…

Daily Special 2: The Destruction of a World — As the G-forces pinned her to her assigned seat, Astrid felt as though this was all a grand mistake. Maybe it was the unimaginable pressure, like the weight of the whole world was sitting on her chest, but her eyes blurred with tears as she shot up, up, up, her…