** The CORNER CAFE is open again. If you missed it the first time, stop by and pick up an e-copy Friday 7/20 and Saturday 7/21 for free! And enjoy a cup of coffee and some pie while you're at it! - #1 in Short Stories!!
THE CORNER CAFE: A Tasty Collection of Short Stories is the local place where 15 authors offer their takes on the guests and visitors who come in. The menu includes stories by Marian Allen, Shonell Bacon, Karen Casey Fitzjerrell, W.S. Gager, Helen Ginger, Dani Greer, S.B. Lerner, Audrey Lintner, Morgan Mandel, Maryann Miller, Bodie Parkhurst, Bob Sanchez, Mary Montague Sikes, Red Tash, and Christine Verstraete. (And it's better than a cup of joe - and only 99 cents!!)
* In my story "Perfect Timing" by Christine Verstraete, a rescued pup helps cafe owner Gina Mason find love and thwart a would-be robber.
THE CORNER CAFE STORIES:
* "The Catfish Enchantment" by Marian Allen: Cosmo’s father deserted the family and died unforgiven, his mother is sinking into depression, he’s started cutting himself to relieve the pain, and his boss suggests…a tattoo?
* In "I Wanna Get Off Here," by Shonell Bacon, a bus driver with a dream to write must first unchain herself from a relationship and inner thoughts that keep her hopes from coming to pass.
* In "What's Next" By Karen Casey Fitzjerrell, a young woman who sees herself drifting aimlessly through life, hires a crop dusting pilot to fly her over the Gulf of Mexico in the middle of the night and is enlightened by "What's Next" in her life.
* "The Eyes Have It" by W.S. Gager: Crimebeat reporter Mitch Malone hates going to church, but when he gets rooked into speaking to the Bible-toting ladies, he may be facing the devil himself as he investigates the prayer group's missing purses.
* "Gila Monster" by Helen Ginger: Neree parked her beat-up truck, Gila Monster, in the senior parking lot, hoping it'll still be there at the end of school. Instead, she finds an unexpected possibility...
* "One Last Run" by Helen Ginger: When a couple ski a black diamond run in a blizzard, the truth of what happened is in the blood.
* In "Saturday Night Special" by Dani Greer, a jaded old codger learns it's relationships old and new that make the Corner Cafe a treasure, not just the down-home cooking.
* Also by Dani Greer: When Mick decides to apply for "A New Job," he discover one too many damning things about the Corner Cafe manager.
* Also by Dani Greer: Nell Crisp likes the ambiance and Wi-Fi at the Corner Cafe, but little does she know it will be her "Home Away From Home" when the police pay a visit.
* In "Since You Left" by S.B. Lerner, a young lawyer is unsettled by a phone call from an old boyfriend, and forced to make a decision.
* In "The Consequences of Breaking and Entering" by Audrey Lintner, Goldilocks gets an update and her comeuppance."
* "Over the Threshold" by Maryann Miller mixes a bit of Raymond Chandler noir with "The Twilight Zone."
* "Love Song with Holsteins" by Bodie Parkhurst is about Halloween, magic, Russell the dairy bull, love, and the private memorials we make to it.
* "In A Face in the Window" by Mary Montague Sikes, can Arianna ever forget the tragic loss that changed her life, especially on the 10th anniversary spent in a museum where memories lurk in the art and later among the shadows of the Corner Cafe?
* In "You Can't Be Too Careful" by Bob Sanchez, George prepares for the expected Y2K catastrophe.
* In "Living Well," Red Tash gently pokes fun at the Star Trek fan culture and the ups and downs of long-term love, in the fan-favored setting of This Brilliant Darkness' Corner Cafe.
