I’ve Said It Before, I’ll Say It A Thousand More Times: No Piece Of Dystopian Fiction Has Ever Been

love is friendship set on fire

our flame has been growing since day one yet we are still just friends

the dubious philosophy of salmon

me holding a gun to a mushroom: tell me the name of god you fungal piece of shit

mushroom: can you feel your heart burning? can you feel the struggle within? the fear within me is beyond anything your soul can make. you cannot kill me in a way that matters

me cocking the gun, tears streaming down my face: I’M NOT FUCKING SCARED OF YOU

All she wanted was find a place to stretch her bones A place to lengthen her smiles and spread her hair A place where her legs could walk without cutting and bruising A place unchained She was born out of ocean breath. I reminded her; ‘Stop pouring so much of yourself into hearts that have no room for themselves Do not thin yourself Be vast You do not bring the ocean to a river’

you are oceanic - Tapiwa Mugabe, (via tapiwamugabe)

"We both worked at Orchard but at separate times. He was there for a year, me a year later, then again the year after that. He went shopping there a lot and we talked some, then one day he asked me on a date and you know how things go. We had both gone to the same high school and didn't even realize it; never once had we seen or heard of each other. Funny how things like that happen."

your man doesn’t have the mental strength to caramelize onions 

the friend zone isn’t real

Pacific Northwest Gothic

- Trees crack the sidewalk, roots gasping for air, trying to break free from the concrete prison. If you look at the trees from the corner of your eyes you can almost see them trying to escape.

- Graveyards full of crumbling head stones with names long forgotten. They say if you sit among the tombs and read the faded words you will be forgiven for your sins. The ghosts of the forgotten will smile upon you for trying to remember.

- There are whispers that deep in the desert lay the bodies of the dead; skeletal hands pointing west, towards water. The crows live here finding homes in broken rib cages. The sand littered with the broken jewels of bottles and old wilted leather boots. If you find the place you will become nothing more than bones.

- You can always trust the sea to do what she wants. The sea is her own master she finds pleasure in pain and peace. But if you giver her your trust she will let you live. If you wade out into her waters and give her your body letting the rough waves cut against your calves going farther up to your chest above your head letting her have you she will let you live. She will let you live safely for she knows that you belong to her.

- The fog creeps and claws at the horizon it reaches for your soul. You’ve seen it take others. You know loved ones who have disappeared into the fog. You run afraid of what might happen if it catches you.

- Deep within the forest where the ferns and the fur trees are so thick you can barley see the sun. The earth swallowed by moss and lichen here is where the fairies live. Their sharp claws click and their teeth bare craving human flesh. But if you stand still they won’t take you away quiet yet they will leave you to the trees. For they are hungry too.

- If you drive and drive heading east. You will find them town after empty town. Not a living soul for miles and miles, only bare earth. Perhaps you’ll stop to take a picture of an old dilapidated building, a cow skull, wagon ruts. This small town existing only on a small patch of road. So small you don’t expect to see a person. So small you know there are no people. So small you pray no one is watching. When a hand grabs your shoulder you know you were mistaken.

- Here the earth swallows buildings the mud and dirt devouring brick and metal. The trees seem to walk, they look closer then you remember. The rain never stops falling. It falls forever upon endless streets, the worms drowning upon the pavement; you cannot save them any more then you can save yourself. The crows fly in remorseful circles even the buzzards are afraid of them. The only building left standing is the old town hall its brick and marble pillars lopsided but its foundation will be the last to crumble.

- The sea eats away at the earth making it crumble to dust. Back and forth the waves go until there is nothing left. Cliffs and people fall to the sea, but never did you imagine that the world would as well.

- Do not trust the mountains, their picturesque peaks blanketed in snow. Do not trust the mountains, they have taken so many.

- The fishermen are the only ones you can trust, their sea weathered faces stained by sun and sand. Their wrinkles so deep as if cut with knives, their skin as rough as leather. Trust the fishermen their hands calloused and bleeding full of knowledge, every knot still caught on their tongues. Trust the fishermen their eyes dark from too many worlds seen, their hearts heavy with lost. Trust the fishermen for they are the only ones who know what is at the edge of the world.

- The trees creak with secrets. The wind ruffling their dead leaves creating devils that swirl with ghostly fingers pointing accusingly towards the sinners. The trees have secrets engraved in their puzzle like bark. If you want you can feel the wood like brail beneath calloused fingertips. Few can understand the words stuck like amber upon the flesh of the tree but even fewer have tried.

- At night the lake swallows the moon creating moonbeams that dance across its surface. They say if you dare to drink the water you will be able to live amongst the stars.

- They say the trees bring salvation. Whispers of the children born amongst the trees live in every one’s hearts. It is thought that these children grow strong their bones made of powerful oak and their blood pumps with sap from maples. They say their hair is dappled with lichen. They say, they say. If you watch quietly you might catch them as they dance amongst the forest, the trees showering them in secrets of worlds that crumbled, devoured by flora and fauna. When you leave the forest returning home to the city full of weak children, their lungs full of smog and minds programed with rusted mechanics, you will dream of the forest your head full of pine and spruce. These dreams call to you begging you to come back to the trees, to return. To leave behind these men of steal, to come live in the forest, to come home. Do not listen to these dreams. The trees are not your salvation, they will call for you then swallow you whole slowly decomposing your bones.

This is a compiled list of some of my favorite pieces of short horror fiction, ranging from classics to modern-day horror, and includes links to where the full story can be read for free. Please be aware that any of these stories may contain subject matter you find disturbing, offensive, or otherwise distressing. Exercise caution when reading. Image art is from Scarecrow: Year One.

PSYCHOLOGICAL: tense, dread-inducing horror that preys upon the human psyche and aims to frighten on a mental or emotional level. 

“The Frolic” by Thomas Ligotti, 1989

“Button, Button” by Richard Matheson, 1970

“89.1 FM” by Jimmy Juliano, 2015

“The Yellow Wallpaper” by Charlotte Perkins Gilman, 1892

“Death at 421 Stockholm Street“ by C.K. Walker, 2016

“The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas” by Ursula K. Le Guin, 1973

“An Empty Prison” by Matt Dymerski, 2018

“A Suspicious Gift” by Algernon Blackwood, 1906

CURSED: stories concerning characters afflicted with a curse, either by procuring a plagued object or as punishment for their own nefarious actions.

“How Spoilers Bleed” by Clive Barker, 1991

“A Warning to the Curious” by M.R. James, 1925

“each thing i show you is a piece of my death” by Stephen J. Barringer and Gemma Files, 2010

“The Road Virus Heads North” by Stephen King, 1999

“Ring Once for Death” by Robert Arthur, 1954

“The Mary Hillenbrand Cassette“ by Jimmy Juliano, 2016

“The Monkey’s Paw” by W.W. Jacobs, 1902

MONSTERS: tales of ghouls, creeps, and everything in between.

“The Curse of Yig” by H.P. Lovecraft and Zealia Bishop, 1929 

“The Oddkids” by S.M. Piper, 2015

“Nightmare at 20,000 Feet” by Richard Matheson

“The Graveyard Rats” by Henry Kuttner, 1936

“Tall Man” by C.K. Walker, 2016 

“The Quest for Blank Claveringi“ by Patricia Highsmith, 1967

“The Showers” by Dylan Sindelar, 2012

CLASSICS: terrifying fiction written by innovators of literary horror. 

“The Tell-Tale Heart” by Edgar Allan Poe, 1843

“The Interlopers” by Saki, 1919 

“The Statement of Randolph Carter“ by H.P. Lovecraft, 1920

“The Damned Thing” by Ambrose Pierce, 1893

“The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” by Washington Irving, 1820 

“August Heat” by W.F. Harvey, 1910

“The Black Cat” by Edgar Allan Poe, 1843

SUPERNATURAL: stories varying from spooky to sober, featuring lurking specters, wandering souls, and those haunted by ghosts and grief. 

“Nora’s Visitor” by Russell R. James, 2011

“The Pale Man” by Julius Long, 1934

“A Collapse of Horses” by Brian Evenson, 2013

“The Jigsaw Puzzle” by J.B. Stamper, 1977 

“The Mayor Will Make A Brief Statement and then Take Questions” by David Nickle, 2013

“The Night Wire” by H.F. Arnold, 1926 

“Postcards from Natalie” by Carrie Laben, 2016

UNSETTLING: fiction that explores particularly disturbing topics, such as mutilation, violence, and body horror. Not recommended for readers who may be offended or upset by graphic content.  

“Survivor Type” by Stephen King, 1982

“I’m On My Deathbed So I’m Coming Clean…” by M.J. Pack, 2018

“In the Hills, the Cities” by Clive Barker, 1984

“The New Fish” by T.W. Grim, 2013

“The Screwfly Solution” by Racoona Sheldon, 1977

“In the Darkness of the Fields” by Ho_Jun, 2015 

“The October Game” by Ray Bradbury, 1948

“I Have No Mouth, and I Must Scream” by Harlan Ellison, 1967 

HAPPY READING, HORROR FANS!

"I had a hairdresser who did both my and her hair, she was always trying to set me up on dates but was particular about this one girl C. One day I’m getting my hair cut and she dials C’s number and hands the phone to me. We talk and she asks me out over the weekend but I was busy so perhaps another time. Eventually we went out to a nice restaurant in Portland, then to see ice skaters at a rink. We sat so close to each other that our legs were brushing, but neither of us pulled away. Our next date was me riding the Seattle to Portland 200 mile bike ride, she was to meet me at the finish line. Every 20 miles or so I’d ask my buddies, think she’ll be there? 'Shut up D of course she will.' She was, and had set up a picnic lunch for us to enjoy by Roslyn Lake. We sat there enjoying the view, she told me she had been thinking of me all the past week and I told her the same. She asked what about, and I said “I’d like to transition to an exclusive relationship to explore the purpose of marriage.” She said yes, and bam! we went from dating to me having a girlfriend."