Night of the Living Thespians, Max Booth III
“There’s a clipboard hanging predictably at the door and I sign my name at the bottom of the list in capital letters: GORY FELDMAN. Obviously it’s not my real name but in the zombie business, you don’t use real names.”

Love I Get So Lost, Manuel Royal
“Cut her meat, right – considering what Melanie can do in five seconds with a hot melon scoop, assistance with utensils is the last thing she needs, but it’s one of my duties.”

Salome, Laura Canon
“They used the last silver tray, the one we always passed after dinner, with nuts piled on it. The neck part was horrible, so I didn’t look at it. The eyes were open.”

Longing to Play the Oboe, James Bambury
“The oboe players across the street were in the midst of a blistering ecumenical argument. Their voices were muted by the glass but I caught enough words to figure out they had severely divergent views on the Book of Job.”

Wide Right Game, Ryan Werner
“There’s an apartment building I used to steal from when I was old enough to know better but young enough to be forgiven.”

You Know What To Do, Aaron Frigard
“‘You know what to do,’ she said. This is what I told the fetus in the red cooler. I might have been crazy, but I felt like all the time I was talking, it was listening.”

Cover art: TextureX, Coyle Parker