Before the Fall by Scott Elder
Dumpty sat for hours listening to the whispers of swallows in a dingle dangle dusk. The mist was thick, his thoughts inconsequential. He sorted the best in the palm of his hand, and slipped the rest into his waistcoat pocket. Nothing of the moon was Dumpty’s concern. Yet, she, too, was no sloven,…
Lost Girl by December Lace
I saw your storybook ship sailing in the clouds again, my love. My blood pumped pirate fire unlatched window,my heart a compass your ship wheel steering to me. I’m starting to grow closer to the ceiling now,my chest swellingagainst rich fabric Mother makes me wear. Take me back to your island vicious danger, sunny lagoons, cobalt…
The Spectral Lady; or, Queen of the Stars by Clay F. Johnson
Within the outer darknessOf etherealized gold-stone,Orphic from crystalized music,Drifts & floats a LadyOf spectral mystery Weaving through opal-spiraledNebula clouds of dead star-dust—A glowing graveyard of once-Living star-decay—she drifts,Alone, self-reflecting eachVivid color as if made fromThe shards of witch-crystal For eternities the stars burnedWith the flames of living fire,Until they died…
Amidst the Junktique Dealer’s Goods & Moveable by Paula Bonnell
The genie is leaking out of the jar . . .The entire shop is filled with a bluegreen sense of expectancyThis is not like the times when he comes whooshing out of the neck, to attain his fullblown transparent magnificence, his head resting against the pressed-tin ceiling (so that his turban takes on a knobbled look) and his feet…
The Little Mermaid Contemplates the Knife by Allison Armstrong
The gush of my heartis a love songtirelessechoingin the shell of my own ear the cavity of my chest Quiet trickle of a background hum orfull throatedso powerful she takes out a damRiverfloodShe never stops singing She saysForgive yourselffor the times you couldn’t hear me thought love was a zero-sum game and abandoned yourself…
On the Glass Mountain by Neil Willcox
On the glass mountain there is one immutable lawTake one step forward, slide two back, down the slick wallPrince and knight and rogue, they have tried it allOne step forward, slide two back, boot or foot or claw. The man shivering, trapped halfway up the crystal slopeKnew the woman on…
The Texas Fairy Tale by Parul Yadav
Stories breathe fire, sets your heart aflame. Fairy tales oh pity your poor heart would you ever wanted to stay? Your mother taught you, never throw yourselves to wolves. Why did you lean yourself in the size of pole? Imagine how much the universe focused on the gold spoons, jaws…
If Someday by Sarah Marquez
If someday is today, periwinkle cloudswill bow at my feet, you’ll put the moonyou promised to deliver on my doorstep. We’ll tie the rope we made round rebel bodies to keep them chaste, break through rows & rows of witnesses, a rite of passage, bite into sponge cake adorned in white lace.…
Loneliness and the Seduction of Fairy Tales by Robin Michel
She is again lost in the Forest of Loneliness hoping to find her way out, knowing that whichever path she takeswill eventually wind back here where she started. She imagines herself a Gretel abandoned by her brother.Before that, abandoned by their father, both followinga trail of bread crumbs leading nowhere. Self-pity…
The Red Dress by Lucy Whitehead
Fairy tales taught us the magic of a dress. How the perfect frock worn to a suitable social event results in a wedding to the man of our dreams. As girls, we knew with absolute certainty that the right gown could capture a heart. We learnt in books that’s how it happens. So we went hunting for…
Take Us On A Journey To Somewhen
