Fiction
Short stories and imaginative prose selected for publication in Open Arts Forum. Discover fiction by emerging and established contributors, then follow the linked author pages to read more of their work. Explore our quarterly and annual collections, or read the fiction submission guidelines.
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Fiction, HumorDELETE MY PICTURES
“I want you to delete all the pictures of me,” she said. I was sitting in the tub with my feet sticking out like…
Fiction, HumorBig Semicolon Sale!
Here at Punctuation World we have a large overstock of semicolons. This is due to the continuing worldwide decline in their popularity and use, particularly in…
FictionThe Season of Laughter
The Season of Laughter It was the spring of laughter. Or maybe the fall. Seasons lost their edges here long ago. In Ardona, the…
FictionA Peaceful World
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tqIc7CTmYaQ The world ended on a Tuesday. Not with a bang—though there were plenty of those—but with the usual assortment of morons talking about…
FictionThe Christo Apartments
I passed her building again yesterday on the train. It’s wrapped like a Christo – do you know Christo? – it's been in this state I…
Fiction, HumorTariffs
The morning started the way it always did: half a joint and a bowl of Frosted Flakes. The cereal was stale and the joint…
Cartoon, Creative Non-Fiction, FictionThe DOGZ of War
They came in loud, laughing, chewing gum like it was some new Olympic sport. Kids in expensive sneakers and hoodies that probably cost more…
FictionNightmares with Howie — Our Purple Years
Just before sunrise, the sky above the lavender farm roared into purple, and the dawn came tinted. Picture me a purple-eyed child insomniac, skinny…
FictionOpening Sentences 101
They say an opening sentence should draw the reader in with its precision and clarity, a bouquet of words with the promise of fulfilment…
FictionRacoon Hunting
I do not have the memory that some do, more often flashes, images, clip shots, waves, feelings. They come on the outbreath. When I…
FictionBenny the Bard: A Modern Epic
I. That Ain’t FedEx It a was dull morning in H-Town, where the sun rose slow as molasses and the coffee from Greasy Joe’s tasted…
FictionForty-Fives
Forty-Fives A Story in Interconnected Flash -1- Ada’s skin was caramel and her hair so black it looked blue. She was tiny with shoulder…