Uncle John’s Bathroom Reader Presents Flush Fiction

by Bathroom Readers' Institute

  Skye Hillgartner attends Smith College where she studies English literature and costume design. She plays the ukulele, has attended Elf School in Iceland, and calls Ashland, Oregon, home.

  Jess Del Balzo’s work has been published in various journals and anthologies, most recently Knocking at the Door: Poems About Approaching the Other. In 2007 she released an album of spoken word and music called Lampshade Girls & Other Renegades. She lives in New York City. “The Newest Edition of Richard Phlattwaire” appeared in Thieves Jargon in 2003.

  James Sabata obtained an M.A. in creative writing from the University of South Dakota. His short story “The Gossip Hounds of Sherry Town” was published in the Library of the Living Dead’s anthology Malicious Deviance. His short story “The Hole” is available in Static Motion’s Like Frozen Statues of Flesh.

  Johnny Gunn’s story collection Out of the West: Tales of the American Frontier (Bottom of the Hill Publishing) was released in December 2010. He recently published a story in The Storyteller. He lives with his wife, Patty, two horses, and many chickens about twenty miles south of Reno, Nevada.

  Phil Richardson lives in Athens, Ohio. He is married and has two sons; one of them is a clown and one isn’t. Two of his stories, “The Joker is Wild” and “Garden Ornamentals,” were nominated for the Puschcart Prize. More stories can be found at web.me.com/philrichardson.

  Adrian Dorris’s short fiction has appeared in Blackbird, Portland Review, Slush Pile, and subTerrain. “Precision Forged” was published in Pindeldyboz in September 2009.

  Siobhan Gallagher graduated from Arizona State University. She lives in the Tucson area.

  Charles N. Beecham spent the first half of his life in the Air Force, earning the distinguished Flying Cross in World War II and retiring as a lieutenant colonel. He became an artist, sculptor, and actor, appearing in movies and TV shows such as D.O.A., Dallas, and Walker, Texas Ranger. His paintings are displayed in museums in Ohio, Oklahoma, and Oregon. He was inducted into the Oklahoma Military Hall of Fame in 2007. “Jiggs and Bob” appears in Grandpa Remembers, written for his grandchildren.

  Desmond Warzel is the author of two dozen science fiction, fantasy, and horror short stories. He lives in Pennsylvania, and has been a wrestling fan since 1986 and doesn’t care who knows it. “Wrestling With Alienation” appeared in Redstone Science Fiction (Nov. 2010).

  Courtney Walsh’s longer, more serious stories have appeared in Hunger Mountain, New Orphic Review, The Long Story, and Callaloo. He is a retired English teacher.

  William R.D. Wood lives in the Shenandoah Valley. He grew up in the U.S. Navy and now spends his days troubleshooting other people’s problems. His fiction is spreading, but his truth will always be found at home: writebrane.blogspot.com. “Headhunter” originally appeared in the October 2009 issue of Flash Me.

  Robert Perchan‘s poems, stories, and essays have appeared in scores of literary journals, and in anthologies published by Dell, Black Sparrow, City Lights, and Global City Press. His prose poem novella Perchan’s Chorea: Eros and Exile (Watermark Press, 1991) was translated into French and published by Quidam Editeur in 2002. His poetry chapbooks Mythic Instinct Afternoon and Overdressed to Kill won the 2005 Poetry West Chapbook Prize and the 2005 Weldon Kees Award, respectively. “My First Foreign Woman and the Sea” was first published in Furious Fictions.

  Edward Palumbo holds a B.A. in English from the University of Rhode Island. His fiction, poetry, and comic shorts have appeared in periodicals and anthologies including The Poet’s Page, Rough Places Plain, Tertulia Magazine, Reader’s Digest, and Ancient Paths.

  Tom J. Lynch is a web developer in Washington, D.C., a graduate student in Illinois, and a father in central Virginia, where he lives because it’s hard to parent over the Internet. His previous credits include a poem scrawled on the wall of a bathroom stall, and some flash fiction scribbled on a piece of paper that was later folded into a toy boat, set adrift in storm runoff, and sucked into a sewer.

  Kenton K. Yee has placed stories in Brain Harvest, Word Riot, and Bartleby Snopes. A Ph.D physicist, Ken adores irrealism, quantum mechanics, and orange sorbet. “Irreverisble Dad” previously appeared in Brain Harvest, August 2011.

  A.J. Sweeney is a freelance writer in Brooklyn. She lives with her husband across the street from a cemetery and a high-voltage ConEd substation and hopes that one day, maybe during a thunderstorm, this combination will result in some really cool zombie action.

  Beth Cato is an associate member of the Science Fiction & Fantasy Writers of America. Her recent publications include Daily Science Fiction, The Pedestal, and a story in Mountain Magic: Spellbinding Tales of Appalachia (Woodland Press). “Brains for Breakfast” was published online as an honorable mention in the 2009 Ligonier Valley Writers’ Zombie Flash Fiction Contest.

  Eric Pinder is the author of North to Katahdin, Cat in the Clouds, and other books about animals and nature. He lives in the middle of moose country in northern New Hampshire. “Clueless” first appeared in the literary journal Happy in 1996.

  Kirk Nesset is the author of two books of short stories, Paradise Road (University of Pittsburgh Press) and Mr. Agreeable (Mammoth Books); as well as a book of translations, Alphabet of the World: Selected Works by Eugenio Montejo (University of Oklahoma Press); and a nonfiction study, The Stories of Raymond Carver (Ohio University Press). He was awarded the Drue Heinz Literature Prize in 2007 and has received a Pushcart Prize and grants from the Pennsylvania Council on the Arts. He teaches creative writing and literature at Allegheny College. “Mr. Agreeable” previously appeared in Nesset’s book Fiction.

  Rebecca Roland’s work has appeared in The Absent Willow Review, Everyday Weirdness, and in the anthology Shelter of Daylight. She lives in New Mexico with her family and works as a physical therapist when she’s not writing. “The Secret Ingredient” appeared in the anthology Shelter of Daylight in October 2007.

  David O’Neal’s work has been published in Sensations, Writers’ Forum, The New York Times, The Marin Poets Anthology, Vision, The Eclectic Muse, The Lyric, Red Heart/Black Heart (anthology), and The Poetry of Science.

  Over thirty years, Gail Denham has had short stories, poetry, essays, news articles, and photos published in many national and international publications.

  Marsh Cassady is a former professor of both creative writing and theater. He is the author of 52 published books—fiction, nonfiction, drama, and haiku—and many short pieces. His play To Ride a Wild Pony appeared Off-Broadway.

  Corey Mesler has been published in numerous journals and anthologies. He has published four novels, two books of short stories, numerous chapbooks, and two full-length poetry collections. He has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize numerous times, and two of his poems have been chosen for Garrison Keillor’s Writer’s Almanac podcast. He runs a bookstore in Memphis. “Aftermath” appeared originally in Notes Toward the Story and Other Stories (Aqueous Books, 2011).

  R.W. Morris is a twice-retired (once from the army and once from the post office) senior citizen and sporadic writer with some success at being published over the years. His biggest coup with to CBC Radio in 1980 for “just under a thousand bucks.”

  Daniel Chacon is the author of three books and is a winner of the American Book Award, the Hudson Prize, and a Christopher Isherwood Foundation Grant.

  Nathaniel Lee’s fiction has appeared in Podcastle, Pseudopod, and Abyss & Apex. He lives in North Carolina with his wife and obligatory cats, and he works as a phone monkey to keep them all fed.

  Robert Taylor is a freelance writer and novelist with a special interest in the humor and fantasy genres. Lindsay Gillingham Taylor is a freelance writer, poet, and musician. The couple resides in Oregon with their kids, dogs, cat, and, yes, goldfish. More at smashwords.com.profile/view/rjt.

  Darren Sant is a writer who lives in Hull, U.K. His stories have been published both in print and online. Find him on Twitter @groovydaz39. “Duel” was first published at Flash Fiction Offensive (June 2011
) It was also included in Sant’s collection Flashes of Revenge (Trestle Press, 2011).

  Sonia Orin Lyris’s stories have been published in Asimov’s SF, Pulphouse, and Expanse, as well as anthologies New Legends (Bear), Infinite Loop (Constantine), Cyberdrams (Dozois and Williams), Tapestries and Distant Planes (HarperPrism), and The Tomorrow Project (Intel).

  Robert Pepper specializes in bringing dark humor and irony to stories from his own life and his own imagination.

  Douglas Hutcheson (twitter.com/DouglasHutch) co-edited Harvest Hill: 31 Tales of Halloween Horror. His stories include “The Travellin’ Show” in History Is Dead, “An Uncloudy Day” in Groanology 2, “Do Us Part” in Ghostology, “No Brother to Hold Me” in Hellology, and “As the Worm Turns” in Zombies Without Borders.

  Katherine A. Turski lives in North Texas with her husband and clerks by day for a local library. When she has time, she enjoys reading, baking, and watching corny B-movies from the ‘30s and ‘40s.

  S. Michael Wilson is an author and screenwriter in New Jersey. He is the author of Performed by Lugosi, the editor of Monster Rally, and a regular contributor to the film review podcast Moviesucktastic. For more, go to smichaelwilson.com.

  Daniel Kason graduated from Union College with a B.A. in English. His short story “Dark Creation” appeared in Indigo Rising, and he is currently seeking an agent for his science-fiction novel. He is pursuing a Ph.D. in English at the University of Maryland.

  S.G. Rogers’s short fiction has been published by Absent Willow Review, ReadShortFiction, Aurora Wolf, and Luna Station Quarterly. Her novel, The Last Great Wizard of Yden, was published in 2011 by Astraea Press.

  Jason Schossler’s first book of poetry, Mud Cakes, is available from Bona Fide Books. He is the inaugural recipient of Bona Fide’s Melissa Lanitis Gregory Poetry Prize, and the recipient of Reed’s Edwin Markham Poetry Prize, two Pushcart Prize nominations, and the 2010 Emerging Writer award from Grist: The Journal for Writers. “For Wile E. Coyote, Apetitius giganticus” appeared in a slightly different form in Green Mountains Review.

  Colleen Shea Skaggs loves to write and read good fiction. Her short fiction has appeared in various literary journals. She is an active member of the Idaho Writers League.

  Douglas Smith’s stories have appeared in over 100 magazines, including InterZone, Amazing Stories, The Third Alternative, The Mammoth Book of Best New Horror, and On Spec, as well as in anthologies from Penguin/Roc, DAW, and others. He was a John W. Campbell Award finalist for best new writer and has twice won the Aurora Award for best speculative short fiction by a Canadian. “Nothing” appeared in Smith’s collection Chimerascope (ChiZine Publications, 2010).

  K.G. Jewell lives in Austin, Texas. He once rode his bicycle across the country. He stopped counting the flat tires somewhere in Nebraska. His website, which is never updated, is lit.kgjewell.com

  Steve Cushman has published a short-story collection, Fracture City, and two novels, Portisville and Heart with Joy. Visit stevecushman.net. “The Boat” previously appeared in Fracture City.

  Celeste Leibowitz writes articles, short stories, and grant proposals. She lives in Brooklyn with her husband, Bruce, and son, Jason. She works as a development associate with Big Apple Performing Arts. A longer version of “Grandma’s Pillbox” appeared in The Electric Dragon Café.

  Janel Gradowski‘s work has appeared in Litsnack, Luna Station Quarterly, Yellow Mama, Long Story Short and Every Day Fiction. Visit her blog: janelsjumble.blogspot.com

  Sealey Andrews writes horror and dark fantasy from her home in Seattle. When she’s not writing, she can be found reading slush at Every Day Fiction, or at the sushi bar down the street from her house. “Kitchen Basics” was originally published online at Everyday Weirdness in early 2010.

  Sean Flanders received an English/creative writing degree from Minnesota State University, Mankato, and currently lives in Rochester, Minnesota.

  Deirdre M. Murphy is a writer of speculative fiction, as well as an artist and musician. You can find her work a number of places online, including tornworld.net and her blog, wyld_dandelyon.livejournal.com

  Noel Sloboda lives in Pennsylvania with his wife and several German Shepherd rescues. “Detached” originally appeared in The Angler.

  Cindy Tomamichel has worked as a geologist and is currently an environmental scientist. She has three finished action-packed novels, one science-fiction, one romance, and one fantasy.

  Thomas Pluck lives in New Jersey with his wife, Sarah, and their two feuding cats. He is a systems administrator and trains in mixed martial arts. He is working on his first novel. Find him online at pluckyoutoo.com

  Peggy McFarland has worked in radio and restaurants, sometimes simultaneously. Her many years behind a bar have helped her write interesting characters. (If anyone asks, they are all fictional.) She lives in New Hampshire with her family and a neurotic dog. “Charlie Makes His Way” was published as an honorable mention in a content by Silverthought Online.

  Sally Clark lives in Fredericksburg, Texas, where she does not garden or eat vegetables. Her poetry and stories have been published in numerous magazines, journals, and anthologies. Find her at sallyclark.info. “Milk Jug Garden” has previously been published in Green Prints: The Weeder’s Digest (Green Prints, Spring 2006) and under the title “Tomato Libations” in The Ultimate Gardener (HCI Publishers, 2009

  Brent Knowles is a game designer and author. He has been published in Neo-Opsis, On Spec, and Writers of the Future (Volume 26). He can be found at brentknowles.com.

  Elizabeth Creith writes fiction and poetry, primarily fantasy. Her work has appeared in Thema, Odyssey, and Silver Blade, among other publications. Elizabth writes in Northern Ontario, distracted occasionally by her husband, dog, and cat. She blogs at ecreith.wordpress.com.

  Cathy C. Hall is a humor writer from the metro Atlanta area. Her essays, articles, and (very) short stories have been published in both adult and children’s markets. She’s currently working on a (very) funny middle-grade novel or two while planning her takeover of the (writing) world.

  Kathy Allen attends high school in Bakersfield, California. Kathy enjoys working with special-needs youth as a peer counselor. She is a voracious reader and also loves writing short stories and creating original pieces of art.

  Michael Penkas’s short stories have most recently been published in Shock Totem and One Buck Horror. He also has stories slated to be published in Lady Churchill’s Rosebud Wristlet and Black Gate. “Return of the Zombie” was published online at Everyday Weirdness in May 2009.

  Cynthia Rogan has seen three of her one-act plays produced and seven of her short works included in various anthologies and periodicals. Her novels The Courier, Symphony of Dreams, and Switch are forthcoming.

  Ginny Swart is a South African writer, living in Cape Town. She’s had nearly 300 stories accepted by magazines around the world and four romance novels published by Ulverscroft UK. She’d love to write a serious, meaningful book one day, but every time she sits down to her keyboard, short stories come jumping out. “Coffee With Anna” appeared in That’s Life (2009).

  In addition to writing TV animation on shows such as Pinky and the Brain and Freakazoid!, John P. McCann has penned short stories for various publications, including Journal of Microliterature and Necrotic Tissue. He is working on his first novel and keeps a modest, cleanly run website at writeenough.blogspot.com. “Fresh Ideas” has been published online at Every Day Fiction in May 2010, and in the print anthology The Best of Every Day Fiction Three in May 2011.

  David Steffen has published short fiction in Bull Spec, Pseudopod, and Brain Harvest, among others.

  David W. Goldman paid off his loans from a well-known Boston trade school by moving to the Pacific Northwest, abandoning his trade, and becoming a software company. He now lives in Portland, Oregon. More of his stories can be found at DavidWGoldman.com. “Health Tips for Traveler” was originally published in Nature (Vol. 467 Sept. 2, 2010).

 
Barry Ergang is the winner of a Derringer Award from the Short Mystery Fiction Society for the best flash-fiction story of 2006. He is a former managing editor of Futures Mystery Anthology Magazine and first senior editor at Mysterical-E. His fiction, poetry, and nonfiction have appeared in numerous publications, print and electronic. Visit writetrack.yolasite.com. “The Loom of Doom Galls Mainly in the Tomb” was first published in Crime and Suspense (November 2006).

  Sue Burke was born in Wisconsin and lived briefly in Texas, y’all, before moving to Madrid, Spain. More information at www.sue.burke.name. “The Souvenir You Most Want” won second place in the 2002 PARSEC Science Fiction and Fantasy Short Story Contest and was published in a booklet of winners.

  Elaine Isaak is the author of The Singer’s Crown and sequels The Eunuch’s Heir and The Bastard Queen. A mother of two, Elaine also enjoys rock climbing, weaving, and taiko drumming. Visit elaineisaak.com to read sample chapters and find out why you do not want to be her hero.

  Megan Todd Boone is a writer and photographer who lives in Southern Oregon. She cheats at Monopoly.

  Steve Koppman has contributed to literary and regional magazines and stories and essays to anthologies. His short plays have been produced Off-Off-Broadway and in California, Chicago, Michigan, and Pennsylvania. His satire, commentary, and journalism have appeared in The Nation, San Francisco Chronicle, Chicago Tribune, and Village Voice. He lives in Oakland, California. “My Wife” originally appeared in the Spring 1996 issue of ZYZZYVA.

  Tara Laskowski is from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, and now lives outside of Washington, D.C. Her short-story manuscript “Black Diamond City” won the Santa Fe Writers Project 2010 Literary Awards Series, and she has stories forthcoming in three anthologies. Visit taralaskowski.com. “The Hamster” was published in the online journal SmokeLong Quarterly in March 2009.

  Jason Sanford has published a number of stories in the science-fiction magazine Interzone, and has won their last three Readers’ Polls. Interzone recently released a special issue focused on his fiction. His other credits include Year’s Best SF 14, Analog, Intergalactic Medicine Show, Tales of the Unanticipated, Mississippi Review, Pindeldyboz, and Diagram. His short-story collection Never Never Stories has been published by a small press. He was a finalist for the 2010 Nebula Award for Best Novella.