The Sill of the World

This covers the week of 3/28/21 - 4/3/21. foe In her isolation, she has unraveled. She flails at imagined terrors, as they press in on her f...

This covers the week of 6/14/20 - 6/20/20. badgering The ducklings snap at dragonflies. cheep The perpetual cheeping of two chicks, one of t...

This covers the week of 4/12/20 - 4/18/20. clustered It's a cold damp day. Blossoms are still thick on some of the trees. control One tr...

I've done this sort of post twice before , to recommend some short stories that are twisted and dark, that depict people who suffer bad...

agitated I'm sometimes surprised at how much fear and anxiety people carry around with them, even people who seem to "have it toge...

I don't watch this show, but someone sent me the first clip, which made me laugh. It starts out like a typical inspiring song about faci...

arachnids As I pick through a Bach prelude, my hands feel like spiders crawling over cracked pavement. baked I pry the lid off the banan...

distraction We leave the TV on in the other room and play boardgames to the background noise of dismal news. glimmering Part of his job ...

blot I don't always know how an author's life will affect the way I react to or analyze their work. Just sometimes, the knowledge i...

borne Walking the length of a massive bridge on foot. Car fumes, heat, and over-the-shoulder glances to check for bikers bearing down. A pa...

Title: Good Climate, Friendly Inhabitants Author: Nadine Gordimer Where I Read It: World Literature: An Anthology of Great Short Stories, ...

commencing Mornings are delightful when I get a lot of things done. When I don't, the whole day seems to slow down. Futility and fear c...

Halfway Down the Stairs published one of my short stories last week. The link to it is here . The opening paragraph: Down the block from L...

Like I said the first time I posted a Friday the 13th short story round-up, I don't believe in the superstition of the day. But I'd...

backgrounded On stage, there's a doctor, silent for the most part, who hangs in the background of every scene reminding people of impen...

digested He admits to getting most of his news from The Daily Show as a way to relieve anxiety about the awfulness of current events. When ...

230 amazon Stolid and tall, drifting ahead of us like the mast on a ship. dyed Red and yellow kayaks, like slices of fruit candy, bobb...

Collection: A Day in the Life of a Smiling Woman Author: Margaret Drabble Margaret Drabble's writing is delicate brushwork. Fine det...

beam For the first couple of minutes we're on Skype, we just smile at each other. There's really nothing to say that can't be ...

I'm sorry I was away for a while. I took a break from blogging, and it wasn't planned. Some changes in my schedule, new work, and ...