Story Discovery Podcast [Short Stories | Poetry | Flash Fiction | Audiobook]

On today’s show we hear five poems by Sandra Newton. Travel to faraway lands with memories that are not your own. Know the challenge of creating verse from thought. Disappear like the memories of childhood, and laugh at the loss brought by aging. Sandra’s poems explore the experience of being human with all its wonders and regrets. Afterward, she shares her journey to writing, which might include a stop in the middle-ages, and advice on improving your craft through determination. If you’d like to read these poems or learn more about Sandra, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, story, and poetry material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

A co-ed middle school sleep over, filled with awkward boys and confident girls, leads to competitions, dares, and firsts -- pleasant memories that not even chocolate can destroy. During the interview, Francis Miller reveals the inspiration for the story, and how memoir-turned-fiction equals fun and creative story telling. He also elucidates his path for leaving a high-paying day job to pursue his passion. If you’d like to read this story or learn more about Francis, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, story, and poetry material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

You’re sitting shirtless on the front porch with a coffee and no job. You imagine your self-loathing is seated beside you, awaiting your next dumb-ass move, ready to spin you further into derision. Does redemption await across the street, or is that another step toward alcoholism? After the story, we talk with Rebecca Cuthbert about her cobbled together path toward writing, her work as an editor, and the inspiration behind this story. If you’d like to read this story or learn more about Rebecca, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, story, and poetry material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

On today’s show we hear four poems by award winning writer and newspaper editor, Dana Yost. Escape into the woods. Laugh about the joke gone wrong. Discover solace in a lonely super power. Know the lure of obsession. Dana’s poems are raw and honest, as is his interview.  After the reading, Dana shares details about struggles with an illness always jockeying for the front seat of your mind, and provides insight on believing in your writing. If you’d like to read Dana’s poems or learn more about him, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, story, and poetry material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

An unexpected visit by his father-in-law while his pre-teen daughter and friend are crafting ‘happy memory’ homework is enough to make Paul see phantoms of his dead wife. The question is, does anyone else see them too? During the interview we talk with Stephen Policoff about this chapter from his upcoming book, The Dangerous Blues, as well as his fascination with delusional beliefs and the supernatural. Stephen discusses how playwriting has improved his fiction writing and give tips for minding your writing feedback. If you’d like to read this story or learn more about Stephen Policoff, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio and story material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

On today’s show we hear five poems by Kimberly Thornton. Her works take you from soaring skies and intimate connections to dark places where death worms its way into your being. Afterward, we talk with Kimberly about how relationships are key to her writing and the importance of observation in understanding others and ourselves. If you’d like to read these poems or learn more about Kimberly Thornton, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, poetry, and story material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

Heather welcomes the challenges of modern frontier living with her childhood sweetheart and their children, but as time and things change, she wonders if the parts of her she’s lost are gone for good. During the interview, we talk with Jerri Jerreat about her love and respect for nature, and how that weaves its way into her work. You might also learn a surprising lifelong wish, and we guarantee it will surprise you! Jerri also offers insight into ways writers can improve their craft by riding the bus.

If you’d like to read this story or learn more about Jerri, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio and story material are copyright 2022, all rights reserved.

Peter is wrestling with the passing of his mother and what it means for the choices he’s made and is making. A chance meeting at a local bar finds him wandering small town backroads looking for something -- maybe even answers. After the story, we talk with Tacheny Perry about the roots of this story and how her personal experiences filter in. She also provides a perspective on getting an MFA in Writing and how that helped focus her energy.

If you’d like to read this story or learn more about Tacheny, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio and story material are copyright 2021, all rights reserved.

An energy healer struggles through the pandemic by lightening the load of the locals. When the lockdown restrictions are lifted, she finds that the tangled past of her newest client is irrevocably enmeshed with her own. After Tiffany Vojnovski reads her own work, we talk with her about the inspiration for the story and how the struggles in her childhood impact the way she creates, as well as the unique process she uses to take a story from notes to manuscript.

If you’d like to read this story or learn more about T. Vojnovski, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, story, and poetry material are copyright 2021, all rights reserved.

Patrice worries about her determined aging mother who refuses to leave her three-story Queen Anne Victorian home. In search of a caregiver, mother and daughter discover the challenge and gravity of taking care of one another. During the interview, author Kendall Klym explains the motivation behind the story, the impact of dance on his writing style, and how he interprets storytelling. It might just ‘move’ you.

If you’d like to read this story or learn more about Kendall, head over to Etched Onyx Magazine at www.onyxpublications.com. All audio, story, and poetry material are copyright 2021, all rights reserved.