Showing results by author "Short Story Press" in All Categories

Kingdom Come is the most successful amusement park in the country, and every Halloween, the park turns into a haunted event with hundreds of actors to scare guests silly. 

Welcome to Colorful Colorado is the sometimes-humorous tale of one man’s decision to begin an adventure on the other side of the “world”, when that world is 1,000 miles away.

Jennifer McCain has dealt with more than her fair share of mishaps over time. Her wife’s ex, institutionalized for attempted murder, seems to be the ultimate culprit yet is unable to perform the crimes that she has been accused of. Her health has failed her miserably, but Jenny has insisted that Casey is out to get her still. But if Casey is locked away, how can Jenny even think it would be her?

Cora and Lewis, two youths with seemingly nothing in common, come together in spite of their peers. Unlikely friends fall in love, and four years later, their life together seems perfect: Lewis has a high-paying job, the two share a luxury apartment in the city, and Lewis is ready to ask Cora to marry him. But what happens when Cora disappears without a word? How does Lewis react when he sees her lurking in the doorway at one of his conferences? 

Jack has recently graduated from high school with his best friend Lilac. They go back a long ways, but they never imagine they will be working at the same grocery store during the same shift. Guise Markets is not Jack’s ideal choice for a job, but there is more to the store than it seems. What might have been a typical boring job proves more exciting than Jack has bargained for. The other night employees reported seeing strange things, objects falling off the shelves. It is even rumored that the company’s founder may have died in the store.   

This story includes a universal theme that, though expressed through events that occur in the future, is still highly applicable to the world of today. Listeners will be able to view the events of the short story as a warning of the future that will come to be if the illustrated morals are not observed. 

Everyone it seems wonders, at some point in their lives, what will happen when they eventually stand before the “Pearly Gates”. One man seems stuck somewhere between, in a groundhog effect, approaching and reapproaching the gates in a repeatedly futile attempt to attain a bottle of whiteout. 

On the Way to New York is the story of a workplace romance that takes more than seven years to develop. Ella is an ambitious, advertising executive vying for a promotion to an office in New York City, effectively escaping Cleveland, Ohio. Only one man stands in the way of her realizing her dreams.

Jillian lives with a trusted and dependable friend, Charlie. They have a unique friendship and a comfortable living arrangement they both enjoy. Jillian, although happy with the arrangement, feels that one day it will end. She wants a typical life with a husband and family and does not see that as something Charlie desires for his future.

“Why You” is about two seniors. One has a rough and troubled home life. The other has a strong close knit family. Collin takes charge after his girlfriend Cleo disappears for a short time. He looks for her at work and school. He goes to her home and there discovers the root of Cleo's life problems. Not knowing what to do, Collin talks to his parents about the situation and finds they are his best allies to help Cleo break away from a horrible mother and make a life of her own.

Randall cannot remember a day in the last 10 years he has not spent beside his canine friend, Eduardo the Magnificento, or Ed. Ever since Rand found the pup nestled against a hot-water pipe, the two have been inseparable, spending countless hours together wandering through the woods on adventures, some make-believe and some real. But now, Ed's gone missing, and Rand takes it upon himself to seek out his four-legged friend. Unfortunately, the hunter loses his friend's tracks among those of a much more sinister type: ogres. 

“When Love Leaves” by Elizabeth Owens is a story many people can relate to: What do you do when love leaves, and you are left heartbroken and alone? Cassie is a divorced woman who had gone through years of abuse from a man she once loved dearly. When the abuse leads to a life shattering loss, she realizes she must escape the cruelty and try to make a life of her own. Leading a successful life as a social worker and making changes in children’s lives gives Cassie a feeling of contentment and satisfaction. 

Celest didn’t expect to start her new life with the love of her life on such a devastating note. Luckily for her, Dina, a lifelong friend, is always by her side to support her. In her journey to recovery, a handsome stranger moves into the neighborhood. If only she knows how much they have in common. 

Sense and Super-Abilities is a pastiche of the settings, style, and sort of characters usually associated with Jane Austen and Superlatives subjects, superhuman characters similar to modern comic book heroes. Though it combines two previously existing elements, it is an original story and not a mash-up. Sense and Super-Abilities is the tale of one girl’s coming of age, and how she learns to do what is right, even if it is not what comes easily. 

John is thrown into a world where he has no idea what is going on. First he’s chased by zombies and they aren’t real. He is then thrust into the world of fantasy. For a boy who plays Dungeons and Dragons it’s just like an adventure that he and his friends have played before. However, this time around he’s not a boy, and it’s all real. He can tell by the broken nose he gets the first few hours he is in that other world. But how did he get there, and where can he find a way back to his own world? 

One of the most miserable and lonely places in the world is in a prison cell. One of the hardest decisions is figuring out exactly what path you will take once released from prison. This is vital because essentially the release date is the first day of the rest of your new life. The main character must make this decision but has to use his heart to guide him.

Archer, a hunting dog bred solely to devote his abilities to catch his prey at any cost, is taken on the strangest hunt he’s ever experienced. Hagar, his master, is set on catching the elusive legendary creature, the unicorn. Once caught, Hagar plans to cut off her horn and use its magic for his own purposes. Archer gives chase and corners the beast in a cavern, and unforeseen danger gives way to a cave in, leaving both creatures alone together. 

“Anacrusis” is a unique work of fiction exploring the topics of musicality, anarchic hand, and the supernatural. This work allows the listener to take a seat behind the wheel of a professional musician as his burgeoning career swirls disastrously and inexplicably off course.  

Brianna is an author, hunkered in her cabin for relaxation and work. She uses the cabin as her office and her home, away from the hustle from the city. Divorced and focused, Brianna wants nothing to do but to take care of her world. She enjoys the nature around her and what it provides, until her ex-husband comes knocking down her door. Her Southern ways taught her many things, including ignoring people she doesn’t want to be around or talk to. Nathaniel brings bad news from the lower country, cuing Brianna to pack and go with him to her father.

A young girl’s family is murdered, leaving her an instant orphan. When her aunt realizes the child’s trauma had left her mute, she decides the trouble isn’t worth the financial incentive. Justice is placed into a foster home on a beautiful Texas ranch where she meets Bruce, the ranch hand, and Cammy, the housekeeper/nanny. Her passion for the horses and ranch hand’s dog begins to tear down the walls she’d been stuck with since the tragedy. But when a family decides to adopt the girl, after months of being at the ranch, Justice runs away.