Tales From The Crying Room

short stories & flash fiction with a twist in the tale

By: John West

Narrated by: Virtual Voice

Three full short stories.
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Family Obligations - A female private investigator meets the family from hell. Chaos ensues when a demon tries to enforce his traditional contractual rights over his offspring.
But we’re not in Alabama, now, are we?
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Mark’s Mistake - The devil came down to Mark’s house, she was looking for a soul to steal. Can Mark outsmart the devil? Many have tried. And failed. But Mark has special abilities.
Pssst… Mark… She gave them to you. Remember?
Oops.
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Olaf’s Quest - A Viking warrior bites off more than he can chew when he underestimates three local girls in a winter wasteland.
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One radio play.
Fiddlesticks - Corporate politics, office relationships, lies, deceit, dognapping, and bodies buried in the backyard.
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And 20 snippets of Flash.
At weekly meetings, aspiring writers are often expected to write something at the drop of a hat. Sometimes it works. Sometimes it doesn't.
Sometimes the exercise spawns a semi-decent idea, that can be tweaked and prodded into pretending it's a real story.
These aren't those.
These are the ones left bleeding on the floor of the operating theatre. They are not full stories. Just bits of scenes. Paragraphs. Flash fiction. Snippets.
Most writers leave these tucked away in private notebooks. That's probably where they belong. But on the off-chance anyone wants to peek inside the mind of an aspiring writer to see how ideas develop - and often die - here's your chance to read 20 ad hoc short shorts that might at least raise a smile.