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36. Night at the Muses’
Part I | Part II A Side As soon as Black flung the door open, the candles seemed to dim. All shadows took on a more sinister presence, including the hooded shade steadfastly approaching the dais. Every eye in the room followed the dark figure. Ignoring the attention, Black glid wordlessly up the stairs and…
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35. A/B Test
This story is a continuation of the one I teased last week, here. A SIDE Scarlet couldn’t remember the last time she felt this trapped. A textbook overachiever, her CV raised eyebrows of university admissions officers all over the world. Skilled in academics, athletics, and the arts—but for what? In all her years of pathologic…
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34. pH Quarterly: New Story Drop
Hopefully you’re on your way to meeting your quarterly goals (fiscal or otherwise). One of mine is to create a new short story at the beginning of every quarter and drop it at the very end. I was able to do it last quarter, so here’s to consistency. Disclaimer: In the interest of personal growth,…
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Bay Area Artist Spotlight: Cardboard People
The first time I saw Cardboard People live, I didn’t know what to expect. There were, of course, actual cardboard cutouts (Dracula and a Stormtrooper) propped up on stage. As their three-dimensional counterparts were setting up, I tried to guess what kind of music I’d be hearing. Once the show started, I found myself surprised,…
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Diamonds Are for Nevermore
[Note: this title is very temporary. Any suggestions for a better one would be greatly appreciated] Prologue “This just in—officials at the British Museum have reported that the Kohinoor Diamond has been stolen. The Jewel, on loan from the Tower of London, was discovered to be missing this morning when curatorial director Dr.—THUD.“ The newscast…
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33. Found in Translation (II)
I’ve spent enough time reading literary equivalents of mediocre sitcoms: sure they’re fine, maybe even a little entertaining—but at the end of the day, they’re completely forgettable. But every once in awhile, there comes a book that’s so wholly wonderful that it makes you think: why can’t all books be like this? They’re page-turning, thought-provoking,…
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32. Found in Translation
I. THe reckoning It was a rainy day in the West End. Much like the rainy day before that. And the one before that. Tomorrow promised to be a similarly rainy day. Even when you managed to get out of the rain and dry off, you could still smell it. There would always be a…
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31. Dénouement
It all ends here. denouement (noun) de·noue·ment | dā-ˈnü-ˌmä The final outcome of the main dramatic complication in a literary work The outcome of a complex sequence of events Merriam Webster Prologue | Chapter I | Chapter II | Chapter III | Chapter IV EPILOGUE One month later, Delhi’s National History Museum received a parcel wrapped in brown paper, tied…
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30. Liquid IV
Prologue | Chapter I | Chapter II | Chapter III CHAPTER IV Laila sat in the her office, surrounded by dress form mannequins, a sewing machine, and colourful bolts of fabric. Her heist plans were hidden between sketchbooks. The specs for the Minerva 2400 were pulled up on her laptop. She wasn’t paying attention to any of it. Instead,…
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29. The Plot Thickens
My main struggle with this chapter was keeping the momentum going. Lots of stories by great authors get slow in the middle. I know it takes a lot of work injecting suspense and drama. In my next story, I’ll take more time to hone these skills, learning how to best do that while keeping a…