INSIDE THE SPECULATIVE ISSUE
Cast aside the bloody hands of the self-righteous for they brittle and collapse amongst the…
The first time she noticed, it was purely accidental. A quick glance while reaching for…
The winds bouncing off the gulf swaddle Fleur’s bare head as she stands at its…
The fireflies hovered in front of me, their green bodies emitting a radio buzz with…
When Sunduq was four she got stuck in the hope chest in her grandmother’s bedroom.…
NEW ON MIDNIGHT & INDIGO
On a nimbus of decay, it emerged from the dark recesses of her closet and…
It was a bitterly cold November evening, fifteen minutes or so before closing when the…
I was ten years old when I first witnessed domestic violence. It was a hot summer day on Hobart street. Children were playing; adults were sitting on their steps and porches just…
SHORT STORIES
SOUP: It is barely dawn, and the village of Layou is swallowed up in sleep and sea breeze. Tessa lays on her living room couch swiping indolently through the gallery on her…
“Mannn, the things I could say about my boy, Romeo.” Chuckles rippled through the great hall; some tinged with nerves, others with anticipation. No one knew where this best man reception speech…
Tisha Kroemer had never felt real fear until that moment. The moment she watched her husband fall off the roof. It was January 9th, already a week past due for the Christmas…
When she hears his car door shut close behind him, Queen has just finished her to-do list. She writes one every day, not because she thinks it’s evidence of her being a…
NARRATIVE ESSAYS
“I’m sorry for your loss. Though the coroner’s report said your father departed on June 29th, July 1 (2005) will be the official date of death because that’s when he was found,”…
When I was surrounded by white people, knee-length plaid skirts, and crucifixes, I told my mom I wanted my hair to look like theirs—soft and brown and easy to manage. She always…
Quickly and carefully, I crossed the street with my best friend at the time. Her name was Jalia, a tall and skinny girl I’d skip class with to play Nintendo between the…
My mother’s eyes are bulging, glassy and wild, almost spinning in their sockets with fear. Her cracked lips are pulled back from her teeth, which snap viciously. She is warning an invisible…
midnight - SPECULATIVE FICTION
The fireflies hovered in front of me, their green bodies emitting a radio buzz with their wings. Crickets hummed and perched themselves in trees as a lone frog breached the surface of…
When Sunduq was four she got stuck in the hope chest in her grandmother’s bedroom. Her family looked for her for hours, eventually calling the authorities, who said, “Most children who go…
It was called “Tika Zika”. They gave us instructions to lock ourselves away from each other. No neighbors, friends, nothing–no matter what. My niece played with my daughter a few steps away…
Melam partially unzipped the full body control unit and took a deep breath. It was crafted from lightweight fabric, yet designed to fit snuggly enough to capture the most microscopic of movements.…
