Holly L Nicholls - Author Spotlight

Poetry Prompt Contest Winner

Name: Holly L Nicholls

Title: Nature

How did the picture prompt your poem?

Every day, we look into the mirror - we don’t see the changes we go through, yet every day that passes we are closer to death no matter what our belief or lifestyles are. The picture gave me the idea that every time we look into the mirror, we see death.

Holly L Nicholls... 

• What genre(s) do you write?

I love to write Fantasy & Horror. But i’d like to give other genres a go at some point.

• What genre(s) do you read? Mostly Fantasy, but the odd horror, suspense and biographies.

• What made you want to become a writer?

I’ve always loved writing. I remember when i was at a young age (Maybe 9 or so) I wrote a little story about two brothers that had to travel across a kingdom to collect a jewel. I have no idea where the passion came from, all i know is i’ve always loved it.

• What and /or Who inspires you to write?  

I have an avid imagination, my inspirations come from myself. My mind takes me on regular adventures and if i don’t write them down i’d quite possible go insane. On the other hand, i’d also love for my son to be proud of his mum, so that inspires me a lot too.

• What is your favorite book?

The sight. By David Clement-Davies

• What do you look for in a book? Lovable characters, an unparalleled villain and an hair-raising adventure!

• What turns you away from a book?

Complex situations and a boring plot.

• Who is your favorite author(s)?

J.K Rowling

Author Bio

Holly L Nicholls was born in Oxford, in 1992. Growing up being bullied and only having one friend, she turned to her creative side to keep herself happy and deal with the bullies. At the age of 13, she moved to Tewkesbury with her father, to live with his girlfriend and 3 children. She attended Tewkesbury Comprehensive, passing with flying colours in English. From there, she began to attend South Worcestershire College, doing hairdressing, Art & Design, and Ict. After College, she moved in with her boyfriend, and had their son 4 years into their relationship. Unfortunately after 6 years, the relationship failed, rendering her as a single mother, and suffered desperately with depression and suicidal thoughts. Three years on - She’s stronger than ever, and aiming for the sky!

Read Holly's winning piece for the Poetry Prompt Contest: Nature

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Joshua Dyer - Author Spotlight

Flash Fiction Contest Winner

Name: Josh Dwyer

Title: Inside the Lines

How did the picture prompt your story? The emotion in the image sent me in the direction that I chose.

• What genre(s) do you write? I write in horror, fantasy, sci-fi, western, and historical fiction. I’ll dabble in mainstream fiction from time to time, too. I’m a storyteller. So, I don’t confine myself to labels and boxes.

• Which do you prefer to write: short stories, poetry, novellas, novels, essays, nonfiction… ?  I love to write it all! I’ve told stories in all of these formats as well as film scripts. I go where the stories take me.

• What genre(s) do you read? I read in every genre in which I write and take in some war nonfiction from time to time.

• What made you want to become a writer? I love taking people to another place or another time. The escapism drives me the most.

• What is your first memory of writing? I wrote a series of corny stories when I was around eight called, “War of the Wizards”. They never amounted to much, but again, they let me escape the bullying that I underwent in school.

• What and /or Who inspires you to write? My kids inspire me a great deal. Their imaginations help me to keep mine open.

• What is your favorite book? One that makes me forget about who I am and what I’m doing at the moment. I like strong characters and good storytelling.

• What do you look for in a book? I’ll skim the material at a random point. If it’s grammatically jacked up, then I’ll set it back down. If the grammar’s fine, then I’ll see where it goes for a few pages.

• What turns you away from a book? Too much purple prose, poor grammar (some’s forgivable), and a cast of characters that needs its own encyclopedia.

• Who is your favorite author(s)?  Stephen King, Robert Louis Stevenson, and Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman.

• Are you a published writer? If so, what have you published? If not, are you planning to publish or is writing simply for pleasure? Yes. I’ve published several novels, short stories, and scripts.

Joshua Dyer lives in the hills of West Virginia with his wife and children. He has had stories published in the Los Angeles Times, several of which won its Reader’s Choice Award. He loves reading, cooking, sports, and spending time with his family.

Books by Joshua Dyer

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Flash Fiction Contest Winner

Inside the Lines

by Joshua Dyer

The time had come. Carl sat in his car, wrenching the steering wheel until his wrinkled knuckles went white. Beyond the hissing rain on his windshield, loomed the massive complex of DynaCorp.

It’s what I wanted. His chokehold on the wheel loosened. What we both wanted.

He let what remained of his stellar gray stare, as Gina always called it, survey the sleek lifelessness of the compound. “How could something so cold hold the fountain of eternal life inside?”

Shall I turn on the radio, Mr. Mattison?

Carl grumbled. “No. Thanks, Milo.”

Of course, sir, his car responded. Will you be alighting?

Why couldn’t GM have programmed these damned things to just say ‘exiting’?

He released a chestful of stress. “Yes, Milo. I will.”

His sedan’s engine shut off, and the door popped open with a cheerful ding. Carl huddled his blue wool jacket closer and leaned into the whipping rain.

Unnatural. This whole notion made little sense to the retired engineer. An entire existence reduced to a string of code. What a load of shit.

“Hell,” he said, shaking a soggy shoe over the puddle. “Italian leather. Gina will have my ass.”

He shook his head and smiled. The eight months since he and his wife had received their winning notices had flown by in a blur. After the negative prognosis from his Predictive Cardiologist, the DynaCorp lottery didn’t sound half bad. Carl strode through the automated doors and up to the reception desk.

“Name, sir?” the young brunette behind the sleek black desk said.

“Mattison. My wife, Gina, already --”

She lifted a slender arm toward the bank of elevators to their left. “They’re waiting for you upstairs, Mr. Mattison.”

He bobbed his head of white hair and shuffled toward an elevator.

Once inside the lab, a young scientist greeted him.

“Strip to your shorts,” the coppertop man instructed, “and set your belongings in these.”

Carl took the clear bags and went into a changing room. Moments later, he emerged in nothing but his Steelers shorts.

“Ah,” coppertop said. “Right this way.”

Carl forced his arthritic joints to propel his body into the cavernous prep room.

“Gina?” His eyes rested on his wife’s motionless body.

She drifted peacefully in a clear solution within her cryogenic capsule.

“We’ll just verify a few things first,” coppertop said, wiping a red curl from his eyes. “Name?”

“Carl Mattison.”

Red clacked on his virtual keyboard. “Lottery number, XCR-211-4VR7. Predictive Cardiology: ninety-nine percent chance of lethal stroke in six months.”

Carl nodded.

“Okay,” Red said. “Lay in this capsule, and we’ll have you back together with your wife soon.”

It didn’t take long for the warm solution to engulf his body. The aches, gone. Blue lights pulsed within. His consciousness slipped into a void of darkness and static. Somewhere from beyond the black, a shifting silhouette. The streaming binary coalesced into Gina’s youthful form. Her phantom arms embraced his, and they fell into the infinite memory banks of the DynaCorp servers. 

ROSTI - Author Spotlight

ROSTI writes  breathtaking, visceral poetry. Read more of his work here. 

• What genre(s) do you write?  Free verse, sonnets, haiku

• Which do you prefer to write: short stories, poetry, novellas, novels, essays, nonfiction… ?   Poetry

• What genre(s) do you read?   History, humor, fantasy/sci fi

• What made you want to become a writer? I wanted to have voice put to topics of loss, stigmatization and healing

• What is your first memory of writing? As a child - poems for my mother

• What and /or Who inspires you to write? My personal resurrection story inspires my writing, to offer hope to the hopeless

• What is your favorite book? Slapstick by Vonnegut

• What do you look for in a book? Upbeat message

• What turns you away from a book? Darkness

• Who is your favorite author(s)? Vonnegut

• Are you a published writer? If so, what have you published? If not, are you planning to publish or is writing simply for pleasure? I have been published in local writing blogs. I am working on a poetry compilation

Hi! I’m an experienced clinician with over 30 years of clinical experience. I am also a patient with an over 25 year experience in dealing with a terminal diagnosis.

I am a poet, now, and a Certified Peer Counselor. My areas of interest are mood disorders in people affected by HIV-1 and care of mental trauma. I also mentor.

@DJROSTI Twitter, /rosti52 Facebook, @rosti52 Instagram

Poetry Blog: Advances in Mindset

Read We Went On The Boat (a Sonnet for David)

Read 1977

Krisper's Legacy

By Wm Paul DeMent 


Ms. Perchance continued with her daily secretarial duties while keeping an eye on the jittery, uncouth young man as he wandered around the reception office closely scrutinizing the old framed photos and newspaper articles that adorned the walls. “Mr. Page,” she said, “you might want to have a seat. Mr. Rooney is a very busy man, and it might be a while before he has time to see you.”

Carl Page made no move from his current position standing just in front of the collection of the oldest photos on display. He studied them closely, starting with the original Krisper’s factory featuring the old man, and a handful of others, standing stoutly in front of the entrance.

Mr. Krisper himself was decked out in a boulder hat and sporting a stylish handlebar mustache. Each photo was followed in progression of updated offerings as the company grew and the processing plant expanded from it’s humble beginnings to the massive complex as it was today. The management team grew larger in each, the support team filling in behind. As the years rolled by, the photographer found it necessary to move farther and farther from the building to accommodate the ever growing staff, as well as the expanding structure behind them.

Carl shrugged a dismissive shoulder without turning. “I’ve got nothing but time,” he said as he stepped sideways to the next group of photos.

‘You might have,’ Ms. Perchance thought, ‘but it won't be here.’ She shook her head and returned to the department schedules that she looked over before turning them in to Mr. Rooney for his final approval. It was one of dozens of tedious tasks that she performed as the General Manager’s Executive Assistant, but she loved her job here and felt that her work was a benefit to the well-being of thousands upon thousands of lives. After all, the Krisper Cat Feed manufacturing complex was no longer the small town, local commodity that it started out to be, but had been a nationally celebrated brand name for many, many years. After all her years here, most of the work had become S.O.P. (Standard Operating Procedure.)

Literary Magazines and Journals Accepting Unsolicited Submissions

Start submitting your writings to the big boys for publication and build your resume, broaden your audience, and strengthen your author platform — all important portfolio elements publishers look at when considering a writer's work.

The following literary magazines and journals, all highly regarded in the writing community, currently accept unsolicited submissions...

Atlantic
Poetry
Fiction
Nonfiction

The New Yorker
Poetry
Fiction
Cartoons

The Sun
Poetry
Fiction
Creative Nonfiction
Memoir

The Collagist
Poetry
Fiction
Excerpt
Nonfiction

The Kenyon Review
Poetry
Short Stories
Essays
Plays
Excerpts

Rattle
Poetry
Poetry Translations

The Missouri Review
Poetry
Fiction
Nonfiction

Write like it's criminal! 

Microfiction Competition!

I'm happy to announce that Scribblers Chamber is partnering with 121 Words in order to provide yet another opportunity for publication. 

The Scribblers Chamber writing group will host an ongoing microfiction contest, three monthly, each with a seven day duration, each with its own theme. 

Winners will be published on both the Scribblers Chamber site and in the newsletter, as well as on 121 Words. Contest open to group members only, so Join Now! 

First contest open now. Theme: Bloodstained

Three winners will be chosen per contest. 

Submit your story in EXACTLY 121 Words here!

Write like it's criminal!