Excerpt from Stanley L.

Third-Way Fiction

Good morning, readers! Today we feature an excerpt from Stanley L. by Australian author Dominic Ward– this beautiful gangster story has one of the best laid hooks that we’ve seen at NPL. Enjoy!

 

Stanley rolled over at the interruption of the call. He’d spent some time on the shop floor deciding on this bed and he was very comfortable. But the phone persisted. A few further moments later he acceded that it just wasn’t going to quit. It just seemed, right then and there, that it was going to be one of those days. The sun was in the bedroom now anyway. He sighed, an admission that he was now entirely awake and that sleep had fled, at least until the world went dark again. He reached over his side of the bed and took up the handset from where it sat on the floor.

– Stanley, we need to chat.

That voice – Willy’s; a younger man and technically his subordinate.

Interview with John A. A. Logan

Announcement

Karl and I caught up with Scottish thriller author John A. A. Logan, who offers up some thought-provoking insights to the recent skirmish between Amazon and Hachette in this week’s interview. John shares his publishing experiences, current projects,  as well as reflections on what it means to be “literary” and “popular”. Enjoy!

 

I find authors who might be described as “literary-by-stealth” quite interesting – authors who seem to write popular genre titles, but whose style is so well-written, with a “voice” that might be called literary. Peter Straub’s Ghost Story seems to fall into this category. Or Harvest Home, by Thomas Tryon. Or Jim Thompson, known as the “dime-store Dostoyevsky”. Or James M. Cain, author of The Postman Always Rings Twice, Double Indemnity etc.

With these authors the style and theme are popular and accessible, but there is a depth there that gathers in upon the reader, as the story continues.

A Lack of Leisure

Third-Way Fiction

NPL readers, we have a really devious, darkly funny one for your today. J.E.G. of Britain’s Hand Job Zine gives us Lack of Leisure, a short with a perfectly executed twist!

 

 

The balcony corridor ran above the mass of smooth wooden floor that made up the sports hall. I strolled slowly across the balcony as the sports hall lit up by my side, one by one as I passed underneath, each light being triggered by my presence. This was probably the highlight of the work day and the most exciting thing that happened. The run down old leisure centre was now hardly used, the new one down the street with is crystal swimming pool and talking gym had machines that shouted at you to work harder. It was always going to make this one incomparable. Who’d want to go to a school that doubled up as a leisure centre at night, when even the school was a shithole, filled with the children that they didn’t want their own to meet? The lights were the only new feature for around 25 years. They still had to close if there was a heavy downpour; the school had promised to fix the roof but never got around to it or never had the money… one of the two. They never told me too much.

The Roomba Variants

Third-Way Fiction

Howdy, NPL’ers! Wacky robot fiction from Dave Petraglia! Loading… The Roomba Variants.

 

Goomba travels the dance floors of Italian weddings, accepting gift checks through a slot on top. Notes the guest’s name and the number of zeroes in the amount. Then, somebody could either have a good time or get their ankle broke. It could happen. I’m just sayin’.

Assumeba keeps people from jumping to conclusions. Deployed in courthouses, it blocks the exits of jury boxes if the sworn have reached verdicts prematurely. Has special rubber wheels to help grip the slippery slope of illogical reasoning. Ejects copies of the judge’s revised instructions to the jury, when needed, from a slot on top.

Cine Malebolge: A Movie Inferno

Third-Way Fiction

A poem today, readers! Blake Biskner has a chuckle at Hollywood’s sloppy storytelling– a great start to the morning for everyone who remembers Blockbuster. Treat yourself to Cine Malebolge.

 

Midway upon the journey of life
I faced an adventure fraught with much strife.
Through hell I did venture and back again,
A trip not for children, only for men.
But the venue I entered was not Dante’s abyss,
There was no Acheron no City of Dis
It was a place most foul, ‘twas a rancid realm
Wherein there were punished sinners of film.

The quest began on a typical day
One devoid of excitement, I had nothing to play.
At the request of my mother I tidied my room,
Scooping up all my trash, not needing a broom.
When all of a sudden, under my bed,
I spotted an item that filled me with dread
Something that had vanished under my mess
In need of return… A rented VHS.

An Angel Within

Third-Way Fiction

An Angel Within is a reflective story from NPL contributor Anne Leigh Parrish, a Seattle-based writer. Adversity is the true test of character! Enjoy…

 

Deep in the heart of a dirty, windy city stood a tired wooden house; and inside the house lived a woman with busy hands; and inside the woman live an angel. The angel sat on the head of a pin. Her balance was poor, and she tended to teeter this way and that.

Magic

Third-Way Fiction

We’ve got a zinger for you this morning folks, Alan Swyer takes us behind the scenes in the glamorous, duplicitous world of Stage Magicians! Not all is as it seems in Magic.

 

Brought in as a consultant because of his experience unmasking charlatans and debunking cons, the man known to the world as Roger the Remarkable – and to his friends simply as Roger Barnes – came up with rules and guidelines that were swiftly adopted by scores of corporations, then embraced by law enforcement agencies far and wide.

A compilation of old adages: If something seems too good to be true, it probably is; pearls of wisdom: When given a specific name at a company as a reference, check instead with someone else in that person’s department; and fresh takes: Cynicism is man’s foremost line of defense; it listed ten key points for fiscal survival. The most important? Haste not only makes waste, it also breeds disaster!

Interview with Delphine Pontvieux

Announcement

Something extra special today! Author Delphine Pontvieux shares her experiences with writing and running her own publishing company: Miss Nyet Publishing.

Delphine’s first novel, ETA Estimated Time of Arrest, looks at Basque history and politics through an artistic lens with the help of critically acclaimed Basque musician Fermin Muguruza.  Her upcoming work MIA Missing in Actun will fuse socioeconomic concerns with reader-centered writing. Learn more from Delphine’s delightfully candid answers to our questions… Interview with Delphine Pontvieux.

 

Your first novel, ETA- Estimated Time of Arrest is a political thriller inspired by Basque history. What was it about Basque culture that drew you to this topic?

It is an interesting chain of events, for I have no roots or family originating from the Basque country at all, other than the fact that my mother lived in the French side of Pays Basque for a couple of years, when she was a child. (And I remember her telling us how she had to recite her prayers in Basque language every morning at school.)

I think that my fascination for the language, the culture and the social and political history of the Basque people stems back from my first trip to Spain, when I was 11 or 12 years old. I was at a summer camp near Barcelona. One night, as we were all sitting around the fire after dinner, a friend gave me a cassette tape. On one side, there was this band called La Polla Records.

Starstruck On Tuesday

Third-Way Fiction

Today’s the day readers: Super Bowl Sunday. We’re reaching out to everyone whose team didn’t make it this year with a story that will take you inside the head of a would-be Hollywood heartthrob. Is our protagonist mad, or has he adapted to the madness around him? Treat yourself with a light visit to Crazytown through this story by author Lloyd Poast! Starstruck On Tuesday.

 

Remember the name Brandon Quinn. You’ll be seeing it very soon at a theatre near you. And no, I’m not psychic. I’m an actor, or should I say a major star on the horizon. I’m that rare combination of talent plus charisma that equals superstardom.

I’ve heard some describe me as brash, or dare I say cocky, but even I can hardly believe the whirlwind that has been the last few months. Leaving my small hometown for the media staccato of New York has allowed me to showcase my considerable talent in important, albeit small, roles on both Broadway and television. Film is the next logical step and my ultimate destiny.

 

Thank you CDennis Stock/ Magnum Image.

Football, Part Two!

Third-Way Fiction

Hello, NPL friends! In honor of Super Bowl Weekend and literature that embraces pop culture, here is the second of two excerpts from NPL editor Karl Wenclas’s book The Tower. Enjoy The Game! Send us your pop cultures stories!

 

A few drunk-already fans with fair throwing arms at the front of the stands bounced paper beer cups off Bobo’s head, which the mascot enjoyed, waving his fake furry arms wildly. “He wants more beer!” one of the drunks laughed. “Give him more beer!” Half full cups flew at the multicolored creature.

Catch the first excerpt, The Press Conference, too!