by Matt Herron
A Reality Stranger than Fiction
These days it is hard, with a reality so insanely captivating, to imagine a stranger fiction.
Suppose a particularly sensitive and perceptive man emerges today from a three-month sabbatical in seclusion. Suppose also that someone has taken the time to gather together all reports of important events, stories, decisions, and disasters since the first of this year, and then delivers them to him. Our man was away studying, perhaps, or living in a Tibetan monastery, searching for enlightenment. In any case, he has not seen the news or heard anything about the outside world since his departure.
Would our man, freshly emerged from his peaceful life in seclusion, not be completely overwhelmed by what he learns in this compilation report? The revolution in Egypt alone is enough to inspire intense disbelief, learning that so much of significance happened while he wasn’t looking. Add in Charlie Sheen, war in Libya, and every strange thing that happened in between, and it would be perfectly reasonable to suppose that a clever someone is pulling an elaborate prank on a man that has simply taken a little break from the world.
“Ha, ha! Joke’s on me!” our man would say. And the person delivering the report would frown and respond, “No, sir. I’m afraid this is real.” —Read on »
by Matt Herron
These are the results from our second #100Words writing project.
Eight people submitted. Choosing a winner was extremely difficult because all of the entries were excellent. It took a while but eventually we were able to narrow it down to just one: JC. Congratulations, JC. Lord of the Flies is in the mail.
Thank you to everyone who submitted, glad to hear you enjoyed the challenge. Another contest is planneed for next month, so keep checking back.
Winner’s Plug:
* * *
The Winner
by JC
The dome of the skull gives way like wafers under my fingers, but I’m not paying attention to it anymore. Instead, my eyes go to the black sheet covering the massive pile of something this skull rolled out from under. My mind’s eye gives life to the dozens of bulbous shapes forming its outline. The skull falls to the floor, forgotten.
I am no longer amazed at how cheap rent is. Speaking of… wasn’t my landlord supposed to swing by today?
I pull the ladder up as I hear the front door open, a weathered voice calling my name.
* * *
(The rest of the entries after the break)
—Read on »
by Matt Herron
UPDATE: JC WINS.
Final results can be found here.
Respond to the following prompt in 100 words or less. Responses may be vulgar, funny, sarcastic, inspiring, mean, sad, or drunk, as long as they’re creative and original.
Prompt: You moved into a new house during the winter. Today, on the first day of spring, you decide to do a little cleaning. In the attic storage space you find a brittle, faded human skull. How did it get there?
Deadline: Submission received by Wednesday, March 23, 2011, no later than midnight. Please post your response in the comments below, or email it to me at mgherron AT gmail DOT com. The contest is over! Results here.
Prize: The winner will receive a free plug, to be posted with the results of the contest, as well as one (gently used) book from the book list (after the break). —Read on »
by Matt Herron
Searing hot, the surface of the grill as it pushed up against his right palm. George felt the thin plastic kitchen glove fuse with his bare skin, and his hand applied the kind of pressure that only someone unaware of the pain would willingly apply to the clean, shining metal surface of the flat top grill in the morning. —Read on »
by Jacen Spector
“Are you gonna tell me what happened to your face?” Andrea asked her cousin.
Brendan slammed on the car’s brake. Traffic had come to a standstill on the 405. He looked at Andrea out of the corners of his eyes. “I need a smoke,” he said. “You want one?” —Read on »
by Matt Herron
Mubarak may have been ousted as Egypt’s President, but that doesn’t mean that the revolution is over, or that Egypt turned into a genuine democracy overnight. There is still much work to be done. —Read on »
by Matt Herron
This is a hypertext timeline of the revolution that overthrew Mubarak and his government in Egypt. It begins with the protests on January 25th, 2011 and ends with the resignation of former President Hosni Mubarak on February 11th. —Read on »
by cynthiabigrigg
It has been there forever – or at least as long as any of the locals can remember. It stands just south of town overlooking dozens of acres of untamed fields, keeping steady watch year in and year out as the seasons work their magic on the land. The old Tilley barn. Weather beaten, abandoned, and yet still somehow stately-looking. To the naked eye it seems that no house ever stood next to it, but if one is curious enough to stomp through the overgrowth, they will discover the crumbling remnants of a stone foundation, once a modest farmhouse. —Read on »
by Matt Herron
John did not believe in Karma, or Fate, or The American Dream.
How could it be otherwise? His mother died of cancer when he was young and his father died afterwards, more slowly, clinging onto the remnants of life for the boy’s sake. But when he finally let go, early in John’s nineteenth year, the large remainder of his mother’s medical bills—and the mortgage—fell on John’s shoulders. Plus interest. —Read on »
by Jacen Spector
I opened my eyes and stared at my cell phone. Even before the phone rang I knew he was dead. That’s why when it did I said, simply, “What’s happened?”
“This is another fine mess you’ve gotten us into,” she responded.
“He’s dead, isn’t he?” —Read on »
