STORIES

After her husband’s sudden death, Cora goes to the doctor because every strange sensation in her body feels like a warning. What begins as fear of her heart becomes a confrontation with grief, aging, and the ordinary forces still carrying her forward.

“Ordinary Force,” Soul Poetry, Prose & Arts Magazine, can be read in its entirety here.

After Lila’s graduation, her mother retells old stories about Lila’s childhood wanderlust, and Lexie hears something in it she never understood before. What once sounded like a family joke becomes a way of explaining why Lila was always going to leave, no matter how much her mother loved her.

“Wanderlust,” The Milk House, can be read in its entirety here.

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At Carson’s pared-down birthday party, Roger tries to be present for his family while enduring his father-in-law’s quiet judgment. When a small crisis interrupts the celebration, Roger sees a chance to prove himself in a house where he has never felt fully accepted.

“Stung,” Academy of the Heart and Mind, July 6, 2026. The entirety of “Stung” can be read here.

When Maggie’s troubled older brother invites her camping, it's a rare chance to be close to him. But the darkness of the woods reveals just how badly she wants his closeness, and how far away he already is.

“From a Great Distance,” October Hill Magazine, Volume 10, Issue 1, May 2026. The entirety of “From a Great Distance” can be read here.

Roger is trying to hold his work and family together during the shutdown, but his son’s punishment exposes how distant he has become from everyone in the house. After an argument with Lily, a walk through the neighborhood forces him to see what his certainty has cost.

“The Walk Back,” Ariel Chart, April 2026. The entirety of “The Walk Back” can be read here.

Roger expects his cousin’s visit to be an unwanted interruption, but the responsibility of looking after Lonnie quickly becomes more than he knows how to handle. When an accident in the barn leaves Roger ashamed and resentful, he is forced to confront the kind of person he might be.

“Where the Dust Settles,” April 2026. The entirety of “Where the Dust Settles” can be read online or purchased here.

Maggie visits her brother’s first apartment after he leaves home, hoping to understand the freedom he has chosen. But amid the smoke, noise, and music, she finds him both newly independent and farther away than she expected.

“Everything Upward,” The Westchester Review, Summer 2025. The entirety of “Everything Upward” can be read here.

Janet tries to survive a family picnic by being quiet, careful, and good, but even her smallest desire seems to invite punishment. One small act of defiance beside the pond turns the fragile afternoon into something she cannot undo.

“Still Water,” October Hill Magazine, Volume 8, Issue 3, October 2024. The entirety of “Still Water” can be read here.

On Lexie’s first day of kindergarten, the wider world opens before her, bright and exciting, while home remains shadowed by her father’s death and her mother’s grief. Caught between her brilliant older sister’s protection and a family sadness she cannot understand, Lexie begins to see just how much can be hidden in plain sight.

“On The Way to Somewhere Else,” Embark Journal, October 21, 2024. The entirety of “On The Way to Somewhere Else” can be read here.

This is the first chapter of Anne’s novel of the same name, in a journal that only publishes first chapters of emerging authors.

In the first days after the world shuts down, Lily is trapped in a silence that makes every siren feel closer. When the dog begins howling at each passing ambulance, the sound forces her fear into the open.

“Howl,” Down in the Dirt, Fall Rituals, Volume 224, October 2024. The entirety of “Howl” can be read here.

When Lily learns her mother’s beloved old piano is being given to another family, she feels the loss as something more personal than furniture. Too young to name what she wants from her mother, she searches for a way to be seen before the piano is gone.

“Piano Lessons,” Ariel Chart, April 23, 2024. The entirety of “Piano Lessons” can be read here and was nominated for Best of the Net Award 2024

In the wake of a strained family party, Roger confronts his wife about his father-in-law's years of judgement. What begins as an argument becomes a more dangerous test of what Roger can say, what his wife will acknowledge, and what might break between them.

“Glass,” Ariel Chart, October 8, 2023. The entirety of “Glass” can be read here.

During a summer playdate, Lily attempts to give her son a little piece of normalcy during a world disrupted by a pandemic. But a conversation with another mother reveals how close the surface is to cracking.

Please click here to read “The Maelstrom” in its entirety.

“The Maelstrom,” Whitefish Review, #27, Volume 14, Issue 1, Summer/Fall 2022. Please consider supporting the publisher by purchasing it.

On the weekend of her brother's high school graduation, Maggie observes old family tensions with brief moments of tenderness. When Paul asks her to keep a secret, the celebration becomes the quiet edge of a larger break.

Please click here to read “Severance” in its entirety.

“Severance,” Short Stories from The Neighborhood Vol. 2, A Collection of Nostalgic Writers from Carbondale, IL, 2021. Please consider supporting the publisher by purchasing the anthology.