If Ping posterior is off limits, so to speak, then what about the following possible subjects?
1. moonshine
2 Moon Pies
3. Moon River
4 Also and in addition, New Orleans once had a mayor named 'Moon' Landrieu.

Strangely, a vast swell of approbation has not been heard. (sigh) Back to the old drawing board.

<img src="/images/emoticons/glasses10.gif" alt="glasses8">

The Warrior Princess,
(a recommended read)
by AnnaMayZing

https://www.storiesspace.com/stories/fantasy/the-warrior-princess.aspx

Fantasy fiction at its finest. :)

This is the first in an outstanding fantasy series that now includes Chapter 7 which currently sits atop the main page list. Even if fantasy 'ain't your thang' check 'em all out.

<img src="/images/emoticons/glasses10.gif" alt="glasses8">

* excerpted from the free, online newsletter of 'Authors Publish Magazine' (highly recommended) *

Forty-Two Books: Putrescent Poems
They want horror poetry for this anthology. They want work that is “the horrific, the terrifying, the grind-house, the body gore, the scary, the psychological, the black comedic, the rotten, the exhibition, the mad science, the forbidden, the devilish, the blasphemous,” and the putrescent, according to their guidelines. Poems can be in any form, format, style, type, and meter.
Deadline: 15 July 2019
Length: Up to five poems
Pay: $25/poem

Dragon’s Root Press: Monsters in Spaaaace!
This anthology is in celebration of 2019 being the 40th anniversary of the movie Alien. They want dark speculative fiction featuring one (or more) classic monsters (vampires, mummies, mad scientists, zombies), but in space. Their guidelines say, “We want to see these creatures floating around in zero g, attacking astronauts and colonists, and generally menacing those brave enough to go beyond the confines of our pale blue dot.” Also, “Each story must take place somewhere other than the Earth. It can happen on a spaceship, on a colony, on a new terraformed planet. There should be humans involved, but they do not have to be the protagonists.” Stories must feature at least one classic monster. They’re looking for new takes on the old classics, but they should still be recognizable to the average reader. What they don’t want is actual characters from other books or films.
Deadline: 31 July 2019, or until filled
Length: Up to 6,000 words
Pay: $0.03/word, more if the crowdfunding campaign for raising author compensation succeeds

Mysterion: Christian Speculative Fiction
They want science fiction, fantasy and horror stories that engage meaningfully with Christian themes, characters or cosmology. The stories need not teach a moral or be close to an approved theological position. Nor do they need to be pro-Christian – see their detailed guidelines on the kind of work they see too often, and what they would like to see. They are especially interested in stories that show Christians from cultures beyond those of the United States, Canada, and Western Europe. They accept translations and reprints, and art submissions.
Deadline: 31 July 2019
Length: Up to 9,000 words
Pay: $0.08/word

Left Hand Publishers: Two themes
They are reading for two fiction anthologies. Mindscapes Unimagined will focus on the supernatural, horror, fantasy, urban fantasy, and any speculative fiction. Mysteries Unimagined will focus on mysteries, thrillers, crime drama, and unanswered questions. All short stories have to have a twist toward the end that catches the reader off guard and surprises them with more than a touch of irony or shock. They are open to speculative fiction, suspense, thriller, supernatural horror, mystery, crime, and science fiction genres.
Deadline: 31 July 2019
Length: 4,000-9,000 words for Mindscapes; 4,000-11,000 words for Mysteries (see guidelines)
Pay: $25

Soteira Press: Two themes
Horror USA: California – Their guidelines say, “The first entry in an anthology series showcasing horror in every state, “Horror USA: California” is all about the terrors, horrors, creeps, and shrieks found in the Golden State.” Also, “Stories must be horror, they must be original (no urban legends, creepypasta, or retellings of true crime), and must take place in California.” Submissions will open soon for Texas, Washington state, and Louisiana horror anthologies.
The Monsters We Forgot – This is an anthology of forgotten folklore. Their guidelines say, “We’re looking for tales of urban legends, folktales, and fairy tales that nobody knows. In essence: we want you to make up an urban legend, folktale, fairy tale, cryptid, or piece of town lore and either write it, or write a story about people who are affected by it.”
Writers can submit multiple stories for these anthologies.
Deadline: 31 July 2019
Length: 500-7,500 words
Pay: Royalties

Less Than Three Press: Collection call – Creature Feature
This LGBTQ+ romance publisher wants “your most scintillating, subversive, and scary monster stories for consideration as part of our CREATURE FEATURE collection.” Their guidelines also say, “This collection is an homage to movie monsters of yore and the popularity of paranormal fiction. We’re happy to see stories queered and subverted about classic monsters or those of your own creation—and we suggest authors using classic movie or pulp monsters make sure their creature is in the public domain.” Stories must have a happily ever after (HEA) or happy for now (HFN) end. The primary genre is by nature speculative, but can contain any sub-genre or genre mashup: mystery, historical, contemporary, space opera, cyberpunk, etc.

Deadline: 31 July 2019
Length: 20,000-60,000 words
Pay: Royalties

Blood Bath Literary Zine Issue 3: Hauntings
They want fiction, poetry, and art on the Hauntings theme. Their guidelines say, “Haunted houses, poltergeists, haunted objects, personal hauntings; all are welcomed, the only criteria for written submissions being that there must be a ghost (or a character’s belief in a ghost) that is linked to an object, place or person. We very much encourage you to get creative on the definitions and implications of these criteria. … Ghosts and hauntings have traditionally been used to exorcise our cultural and societal fears, and the ones that have the most lasting impacts are ones that address and challenge those in a deliberate way. Social issues like race, class, gender and mental health all have a place in horror and we want to read stories about them.” They are open to all genres – science fiction, fantasy, erotica – but stories must also contain an element of horror. Writers can send up to two prose pieces.
Deadline: 1 August 2019
Length: Up to 2,500 words for fiction; up to four poems
Pay: £20 per 1,000 words for prose, £20 per 15 lines for poetry, and £20 per image for visual art

Dark Peninsula Press: Negative Space – An Anthology of Survival Horror
They are reading survival horror fiction for their first anthology. The focus is on the survival horror genre (in which protagonist(s) must face dire situations in locations far off the beaten path by using the environment, or items found in the environment, to survive) of video games, and to incorporate elements of the survival horror tradition into narrative fiction writing. This anthology will favor active horror stories over quieter, literary pieces. Think dangerous locales, overwhelming odds, makeshift weapons, cryptic journals, secret underground facilities, and deadly traps. Their guidelines also say, “Although this is a sub-genre created by video games, you don’t have to have knowledge of video games to submit. You could look at this as a “survival against the elements” type of story, or a “survival against something in the woods” type of story.”
Deadline: 1 August 2019
Length: 3,000-8,000 words
Pay: $25

Silent Motorist Media: The Nightside Codex
They want weird horror fiction about haunted or cursed books, manuscripts, or online media for their second anthology. Think Thomas Ligotti, Nathan Ballingrud, Caitlin R. Kiernan, and the fiction published in Vastarien.
Deadline: 1 August 2019
Length: 2,000-6,000 words
Pay: At least $25 (more if Kickstarter is successful)

Horroraddicts.net: Dark Divinations
They want horror fiction on divination. Stories must be horror, set in the Victorian era (1837-1901), and can be set anywhere – England, American West, Colonial India, or Africa. They must also concern a method of divination (the practice of foretelling the future through supernatural means, including Ouija boards, cards, scrying, entrail reading, and necromancy).
Deadline: 31 October 2019
Length: 2,000-5,000 words
Pay: $10

* And finally, for those who hate and/or allergic to cats, something really scary *
Tyche Books: Swashbuckling Cats – Nine Lives on Seven Seas
This is a call for an anthology “full of feisty felines on the high seas! We want pirate cats, and Viking cats. Submariner cats and explorer cats. This book is going to be filled with adventure-loving cats, puns and fun. We want it to be a wild, rollicking ride complete with sword fights, sea monsters, treasure hunting, discovering new worlds and lots and lots of kittehs.” They also want a strong plot and detailed characters.
Deadline: 31 July 2019
Length: Up to 9,000 words
Pay: CAD50

A new list of publishers has just been posted in the 'Calls for Submissions' forum. The good news is there are 33 romance publishers on the list. :)

The bad news is there were 44 on the same list last year. :(

So make like Pat Benatar and '...hit 'em with your best shot'.

<img src="/images/emoticons/glasses10.gif" alt="glasses8">

33 Romance Publishers Open to Direct Submissions


In 2018 and 2019, after a sustained period of growth, the romance publishing market started to see a number of changes, mostly in terms of romance publishers going out of business. A year ago this list had 40 publishers on it. It now has 33.

Part of this is because of diminished eBook sales and part of this is the fact that there were too many romance publishers for the market to support.

In this list there are traditional print publishers, established romance stalwarts, up and coming eBook publishers, digital imprints of the big five publishers, and everything in between. We do not review publishers who have been around for less than a year. So all of these publishers have at least a small track record.

These publishers offer traditional book contracts, and a number of them offer advances. To learn more about the publisher, click on the link in their name; most of these link to our full review. The full review contains information about submission guidelines and links to their website.

Some of the publishers only publish romance, but many are also open to erotica. The list is in no particular order.

Most of the publishers contained on the list are currently open to submissions, but not all of them are. So make sure to check on the publishers site before submitting.

Shadow Mountain

Shadow Mountain is an imprint of Deseret Books. Both publishers are Mormon, but Deseret Books focuses more on producing faith-based content. Shadow Mountain publishes primarily fiction and they have published a number of New York Times bestselling books. Because the company is Mormon run, books have to be approved by in-house censors in order to be published. They are very firm about publishing “clean books only”. However the authors need not be Mormon.

Head of Zeus

Head of Zeus is a UK based print publisher that was founded in early 2012. They publish a wide variety of work including non-fiction, literary fiction, general and genre fiction. They have a number of imprints and have good distribution in the UK. A number of the books they have published have been subsequently picked up by American publishers.

Inkspell Publishing

Inkspell Publishing started out as an eBook and print on demand Romance publisher in 2011. They now seem to focus on publishing eBooks primarily.

Lakewater Press

Lakewater Press is a newer eBook and print on demand (POD) publisher. They were founded in early 2015. They publish a wide variety of fiction. They appear to be open to all genres of fiction including young adult, new adult (18-30), and romance.

Harlequin

Many famous romance writers, including Mercedes Lackey, Nora Roberts, and Christopher Rice got their start at Harlequin. Their submission process is very user friendly.

Entangled Publishing

Entangled Publishing is an independent publisher of adult and young adult romantic fiction. Since its first release in July 2011, Entangled has published more than 970 titles. This number includes 14 titles that have made it onto the New York Times Bestsellers list and 42 titles that have placed on the USA Today Bestsellers list.

Soul Mate Publishing

Soul Mate is a romance eBook publisher. They encourage authors to blur genre lines and to experiment. They respond to every manuscript submitted correctly, personally. They try to respond to all submissions within 4 weeks.

Filles Vertes Publishing

Filles Vertes Publishing was founded in 2016. It is a new publisher with only a few books under their belt and a few forthcoming books as well. They have print and electronic versions of all their books. They accept submissions of middle grade readers, young adult books, adult fiction, and adult fiction in all genres, which is a broad spectrum to publish. They have previously published a historical thriller/mystery, a memoir about life at sea, and a mystery book set in the Pacific Northwest.

NineStar Press

NineStar Press is an LGBTQA+ ePublisher based out of New Mexico that was founded in 2015. They primarily publish romance and erotica but are also interested in literary works about characters that are generally under-represented in fiction, for example ace, aro, trans, nonbinary, genderfluid, bi, pan, etc. They are also interested in genre-bending and fusion genres.

Regal Crest Enterprises

Regal Crest Enterprises historically specialized in publishing books of interest to lesbian readers but now their focus has expanded to include gay readers. They mostly publish popular fiction, but they have also published short stories, essays, and anthologies. They have a non-fiction imprint as well. Writers who have worked with them have generally good things to say, particularly about the editing and cover design process. They have been around a long time now and they have a reputation for always paying their royalties promptly.

Lyrical Press

Lyrical Press is an electronic only imprint of Kensington, a large independent publisher. Kensington and Lyrical both publish mainstream novels and seem to put a fair amount of pressure on the author to promote their books. They publish a large number of books per year.

eXtasy

eXtasy is an eBook publisher that pays 40% royalties to all of their authors. They only publish erotica.

Tell-Tale Publishing

Tell-Tale Publishing is a small press founded in 2009. They seem to focus primarily on eBooks but also they have print options (largely print on demand). They publish six imprints which include Dahlia (Romance, and various romance subgenres), Stargazer (fantasy, steampunk), Nightshade (horror), Casablanca (mystery), Thistle (middle school, YA, New Adult), and Deja Vu (reprints for all genres).

Devine Destinies

An imprint of eXtasy, they publish romance books in various subgenres.

The Totally Entwined Group

The Totally Entwined Group is an eBook and print publisher that was successful in its own right, before being purchased by the Bonnier Publishing group. There have been some shifts in focus since Bonnier purchased it in 2015, but the group still has a good reputation and its focus is still on its two flagship established imprints — Pride and Totally Bound.

Carina Press

Carina Press is Harlequin’s digital-first adult fiction imprint, publishing first in digital, and then depending on the numbers releasing audio and print versions as well. Unlike most of Harlequin’s imprints they don’t just focus on romance, although they are open to all subgenres of romance, including contemporary, paranormal, LGBTQ+, and science fiction. They also publish mysteries of all flavors— from cozies to thrillers, with and without romantic elements.

Forever Yours

Forever is the romance imprint of Grand Central Publishing. Grand Central Publishing is an imprint of the Hachette Book Group, one of the big five publishers. Forever Yours is the digital sister of Forever, they focus on publishing unagented authors, and often publish authors without a publication history. They publish eBooks, but they have an option to print on demand any book over 50,000 words in length.

Pelican Book Press

A print and eBook publisher of Christian romance novels. They have a number of imprints and accept unsolicited submissions for all but one of them.

Bold Strokes

Bold Strokes Books publishes only LGBTQ books. Which means that its books feature characters that are Lesbian, Gay, Bi-sexual, Trans, and Queer. They publish general and genre fiction, with an emphasis on romance. They have great print distribution.

Boroughs Publishing Group

Boroughs Publishing Group is an e-publisher that focuses on publishing romance novels, novellas, and short stories.

Siren-BookStrand

Siren-BookStrand is a popular publisher of romance and erotica. They only publish books that end happily ever after. They publish many books every year and most authors seem happy with the work that the Siren-BookStrand editors do. They are primarily an electronic publisher but they also have print editions.

BelleBooks/BelleBridge

A successful independent print publisher of genre books, including romance novels.

Avon Impulse

Avon Romance is a romance imprint of HarperCollins. Avon Impulse is their digital first imprint and they publish primarily new authors. If a book is successful, Avon publishes a print edition of it. They have an excellent marketing team.

Anaiah Press

A new Christian publisher interested in publishing Christian romance novels.

SMP Swerve

St Martin’s Press is an imprint of Macmillan, one of the big 5 publishers. SMP Swerve is the digital first romance publishing imprint of St Martin’s.

Black Lyon Publishing

Black Lyon Publishing is a small but established publisher of romance novels, eBook and printed.

Evernight Publishing

Evernight is an ebook publisher of romance and erotica novels that is currently open to submissions from writers. They also publish print versions of some books. A number of the books they have published have been on the Amazon Bestseller list.

ImaJinn Books

ImaJinn books is a print and electronic publisher of a wide spectrum of romance novels. They publish everything from new adult to contemporary to fantasy. Their print books are published on demand, and they seem to sell most of their books through Amazon, so don’t expect a distributor.

Beachwalk Press

They largely publish romantic eBooks, but some of their books have been released in print as well. Most of the books they publish are on the sensual side. They are open to romances in all sub-genres except for young adult romances.

Black Opal Books

Black Opal Books accepts submissions between 1 June and 31 December each year. They publish all romance genres, including paranormal and erotic, as well as YA, Women’s Fiction, Chick Lit, Historicals, Mysteries, and Thrillers.

Text Publishing

Text Publishing in an Australian press that has published a wide variety of best sellers. They have won the small publisher of the year award three times. You can get a feel for what they publish here. One of their biggest hits in recent years is the internationally bestselling novel The Rosie Project, by Graeme Simsion (the first in a series of Rosie novels).

Transmundane Press

Transmundane Press is a small press that is always open to submissions and publishes print and electronic books. They don’t say a lot about the genre they publish on their site, but based on browsing their back catalog I would say they publish largely genre (paranormal/horror) romance aimed at young adults and adults.

Cobblestone Press

A small print on demand and romance ePublisher. They publish sensual & erotic romance stories and short story erotica. They have different guidelines and expectations for each of these categories. They release five to eight titles a month in a variety of eFormats.

xxx

Copied from the free, online newsletter of, Authors Publish Magazine (highly recommended)

(puts on a fresh pot of dark roast coffee) Sure hope that last pot didn't harm Larry. Ya never can tell about those things, ya know. ;)

Keith's latest story 'Springtime Is For Lovers' is a first-rate quick read (1200 words). As the title suggests, it's in the 'Romance' category. Check it out.

<img src="/images/emoticons/glasses10.gif" alt="glasses8">

So who, I say, WHO, in the name of both Strunk and White is in charge around here? (Inspirations is blanketed in total silence) (sigh)

If this coffee maker will act right there will be some extra strong coffee coming up.

Anna May, loved that link to 'Moon River'. But for a morning wake-up call, what about:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wGnIiGszOSQ

Okay, coffee's ready. (sip) Ain't half bad but I suspect the Mendalla Man will want to crank up his own brew so y'all better get some of this one while you can. ;)

<img src="/images/emoticons/glasses10.gif" alt="glasses8">

Cricket Media produces literary magazines for children of various ages – Babybug (for ages 6 months to 3 years), Ladybug (ages 3 to 6), Spider (ages 6 to 9), and Cricket (ages 9 to 14). The magazines have several themes coming up. They publish fiction, nonfiction, poetry, puzzles, crafts, and recipes.
So Silly – They are looking for “your silliest stories, poems, action rhymes, and fingerplays. We welcome pieces about funny games and goofy situations as well as nonsense rhymes and wordplay that elicits little ones’ laughter. We’re looking for rhythmic writing that babies and toddlers will want to hear again and again.”
All Aboard – For Ladybug: They want “short stories, retellings of folk and fairy tales, rebus stories, poems, action rhymes, nonfiction, and songs about travel. For a young child, a walk to the park, a trip by boat or airplane, or a game of make believe might all seem like voyages. We like playful stories with childlike points of view; they need to be short, too (under 800 words). Most of our readers live in the United States, and sensitive explorations of different cultures are welcome.”

Hey, Neighbor! – For Spider: They want “stories, nonfiction, poems, and short plays about neighbors and neighborhoods: urban or suburban, rural or fantastical. What unique relationships blossom between people (and animals) who live near one another? Who would be neighbors on a space station or in a magical kingdom? How can kids, real or fictional, make an impact in their neighborhoods? Inter-cultural and inter-generational relationships welcome. Humor always encouraged.”
Art and Music – For Spider: They are looking for “stories, nonfiction, poems, short plays, and activities for the theme Arts and Music. We want pieces that capture the magic, creativity, frustration, and many hours of practice that come with learning an instrument or new art skill. We’re looking for all kinds of stories about kids and their creative outlets, as well as true stories about unusual instruments, strange stories about familiar instruments, odes to artistic practice, and activities to inspire young artists.”

Encountering Nature – For Cricket: They are interested in “fiction, nonfiction, and poetry on the theme of an encounter with nature. You might write about a record-setting blizzard or the joy of the first day of spring; conquering Everest or exploring a local cave; meeting a mountain lion while hiking, a squirrel in the backyard, an itsy-bitsy spider in the shower; or about a young nature lover who helps an injured animal or strives to preserve something of wild and natural beauty.”
A New Beginning – For Cricket: They are looking for “fiction, nonfiction, and poetry on the theme of making a new beginning. Stories might focus on the immigrant experience; on a middle schooler facing up to responsibilities or changes in the family; the end of one friendship and the start of another; try-trying again after a setback; or taking on a new hobby, sport—even a whole new persona.”
Deadline: 1 July 2019
Length: Varies
Pay: Up to $0.25/word for fiction, $3/line for poetry

xxx

excerpted from the free, online newsletter of, Authors Publish Magazine -- recommended.

(Haley, loved your lawyer joke)

PRAISE THE LORD

The pastor asked if anyone in the congregation would like to express praise for answered prayers. Suzie Smith stood and walked to the podium. She said,
"I have a praise. Two months ago, my husband, Tom, had a terrible bicycle wreck and his scrotum was completely crushed. The pain was excruciating and the
doctors didn't know if they could help him." You could hear a muffled gasp from the men in the congregation as they imagine the pain that poor Tom must
have experienced. "Tom was unable to hold me or the children," she went on, "and every move caused him terrible pain." We prayed as the doctors performed
a delicate operation, and it turned out they were able to piece together the crushed remnants of Tom's scrotum, and wrap wire around it to hold it in place."
Again, the men in the congregation cringed and squirmed uncomfortably as they imagined the horrible surgery performed on Tom. "Now," she announced in a
quivering voice, "thank the Lord, Tom is out of the hospital and the doctors say that with time, his scrotum should recover completely." All the men sighed
with unified relief. The pastor rose and tentatively asked if anyone else had something to say. A man stood up and walked slowly to the podium. He said,
"I'm Tom Smith." The entire congregation held its breath. "I just want to tell my wife the word is sternum."

As of May, 31, there are four new poems along with four new stories on the main page. (wrote that before my second cup of coffee so cut me some slack if the numbers are off a bit)

Check 'em out.

<img src="/images/emoticons/glasses10.gif" alt="glasses8">

Newly polished toenails safely propped on the crowded coffee table, Darlene Barnes let out a long plume of cigarette smoke and waited for her friend to come back from the kitchen. Waiting in silence, however, had never been her 'thing'. The thirty-something bottled-blonde looked around at the empty doorway to the kitchen. "You know it's hard for me to believe you're this messed-up....

Added 13 May 2019 | Category Young Adult | Votes 4 | Avg Score 5 | Views 318 | 3 Comments

“You guys are nuts.” The Skeptic was in rare form as the four men studied the petite singer flitting around on the dim stage.   “I mean, sure she’s cute, but in a small-town high school cheerleader sort of way. No way is she this smoking’ hot sex object you guys keep raving about. But…”   The Skeptic stopped as the singer approached the microphone stand. Waited for A bright spotlight...

Added 05 Feb 2019 | Category Micro Fiction | Votes 9 | Avg Score 5 | Views 717 | 8 Comments

For the benefit of any unsuspecting reader, let me state now that this is NOT an article about how one might become a contented courtesan or smiling strumpet. Nope, not even a titillated trollop. Sorry about any confusion, honest. Truth be told, this assault on good taste and English letters is concerned with the fine art of creating attention grabbing hooks in the opening lines of your...

Added 18 Dec 2018 | Category Musings | Votes 11 | Avg Score 5 | Views 311 | 7 Comments

Now and Forever: a love story The dream was back--so were the eyes. They hovered in an angry sky just above the horizon, seeing everything but focusing on nothing. Amy knew those eyes—knew a time when they’d been filled with happiness and a love of life. But that had been before her brother came back from Vietnam. Young, naked, and skinny, she stood alone and vulnerable on a hill surrounded...

Added 14 Aug 2018 | Category Romance | Votes 8 | Avg Score 5 | Views 269 | 5 Comments

How’s by you, Grady Lee? Funniest thing happened yesterday. This nice lady from the Veterans Administration stopped by and said what I really needed, I mean with my having gone from hard of seeing to being blinder than any known bat, was one of those so-called smart Apple iPhones. I told her I knew a bit about the thing, how you made gestures to work it, and let her know I'd been...

Added 04 Aug 2018 | Category Flash Fiction | Votes 14 | Avg Score 5 | Views 371 | 12 Comments

On a hot Friday afternoon in the summer of 1970, a young nursing student left work at the VA hospital, and hurried out to the nearby bus stop on First Avenue. The usual stop-and-go Friday traffic appeared to be stuck on stop. From the open windows of a gypsy cab came the sound of an all-news station. “In other national news, a Defense Department spokesman said 18,000 of the 31,000 US...

Added 28 Feb 2018 | Category Flash Fiction | Votes 12 | Avg Score 5 | Views 555 | 10 Comments

   The official plan, as carefully explained to all parental units, had called for Amy and Libby to share a motel room. The guys would stay with Mark’s roommate who was supposed to be in summer school. In reality, Mark’s roommate had just flunked out. And no one questioned that Bob and Libby would have the motel room to themselves. Once they were dropped off, Mark and Amy headed for...

Added 01 Nov 2017 | Category General | Votes 2 | Avg Score 5 | Views 743 | 2 Comments

  Alexandria, a small, nondescript city on the Red River in central Louisiana, is the symbolic checkpoint separating the state’s French, Catholic south from its Scots-Irish, Protestant north. In the pre-interstate days, a two-lane highway weaved its way south from town toward Baton Rouge. A picturesque, tree-lined bayou flanked one side of the road. On the other side were pastures and a...

Added 18 Oct 2017 | Category General | Votes 3 | Avg Score 5 | Views 506 | 4 Comments

 The phone wouldn't stop ringing. Amy, sitting at the table on the other side of the kitchen, eating a bologna-on-white-with-mayonnaise sandwich and heading into what she sensed would be one of the   steamier parts of,"The Carpetbaggers," tried to ignore the noise, though she couldn’t help wondering what had happened to her sister who always tried to beat everyone else to the phone. Jan...

Added 09 Oct 2017 | Category General | Votes 5 | Avg Score 5 | Views 557 | 5 Comments

Delmar Bullock wasn’t impressed, not one little bit. The three young farts standing just inside the door to his storage shed didn’t seem good for much, most of all a Klan job. At first, they tried to act cocky like this was no big deal. But none of  ‘em said a word after seeing the cross he put together that afternoon. He wondered why Jack Boudreaux, who always worried about security...

Added 25 Sep 2017 | Category General | Votes 5 | Avg Score 5 | Views 492 | 5 Comments