I Wanna Story!
A small collection of short word challenge stories presented by The PoetsPub quite a while ago. Just some idle reads for anyone interested with a few minutes to spare.…
The Trust
This story was written about nine years ago, and resurrected now because I've hit a wall with another story I was currently writing. It follows a wannabe detective through a maze of characters and bizarre situations involving a family trust. It came from a previous book called The Mistake which had a bevy of characters I grew quite fond of, and on occasion, are referred to in this story.…
The Comic
Parker Nevens, stand up comic in a seedy roadhouse, and fed up with the way his career is going, barges in on his boss to say he's quitting and discovers him being strangled. While fleeing, he gets help from the club's lead pole dancer, and gains some sympathy from a detective who has a thing for the same dancer.…
The Pirate Queen
The sequel to PIRACY where Hollick's wife, Alicia, continues the pursuits of her husband, as Captain of the newly renovated Bold Sea, captured from the naval fleet in Hispaniola. Lieutenant Phillip Downs was first officer of the Bold Sea when it was partially destroyed in the attack on the pirate haven in Tortuga. He is out for revenge and is using the very enemy he was fighting to attain that measure.…
The Friendly Skies
After achieving success in business, and anticipating similar success in marriage, Mathew Hayward boards his flight from Toronto to Vancouver. In order to meet him and complete their plans, his fiancée has already given notice at her place of employment and requested additional time off.Both anticipating the friendly skies of a shared future.…
No Good Deed
Yamashita's Gold. During the occupation of the Philippines, Japanese military looted everything - temples, homes, and government offices, amassing a huge fortune in treasure. When it could no longer be shipped back to Japan, Prisoners of war were forced to bury it.Much has been recovered since the war - but not all. Our story concerns a number of competing groups vying over information of a site, uncovered through a letter delivered by a dying man, as a last act of a promise made.…
The Dossier
Three agencies. An international criminal organization. A mother and daughter. Moles. Assassins.All of the above in a deadly competition for The Dossier.…
A Duplicitous Death
Reginald Harrison is found dead in his apartment. His guilt and secrets died with him. No witnesses. No fingerprints. No murder weapon, and a time frame that defies plausibility. Detective Art Springer and his partners, Detectives Gary Crawford and Grace Champion, have a department deadline to meet, or the mayor will be chopping budgets, personnel, or both.…
Room with a View
When Miller Hunt lands at his all expense paid, dream vacation resort it quickly turns to a chaotic nightmare of confusion and misadventure involving swindlers, cheaters, killers and a frustrating romance. An adventure/mystery/comedy…
Bad Business Practice -Long Listed ONC2021
PROMPT #59 - MYSTERY/THRILLER ENTRY IN THE 2022 STORMY NIGHTS READING CHALLENGEHarold Pope, contract killer by accident, takes advantage of that fact and crafts a successful, financially beneficial career until, through another accident, becomes his own contract!…
Postage Due -Long Listed ONC2022
PROMPT 49 CONTEST ENTRY - Getting in the back of a taxi, your character finds a thick envelope. It's addressed but has no postage. After getting stuck in a downpour, Warren Daly ends up in a taxi waiting for better driving conditions. When he notices a package on the floor in the back, he and the driver agree to deliver it on the way to Warren's house. The following several weeks of their lives are drastically changed by that choice.…
The Janus Discord (ONC2024)
Based on ONC Prompt 53 - The co-worker who irritates you the most just asked you for a big favour. They're not who or what they appear to be. And they know you're not either.…
Once Upon a Life - Short Listed on ONC2023
SHORTLISTED FOR THE ONC2023 CHALLENGE!One dark and stormy night a family went missing, they left taking absolutely nothing with them. When their disappearance was reported, nobody, including the police could figure out what happened. The mystery has gone unsolved for almost 10 years, then a call comes in from an unknown source that changes everything. The job now is to figure out who the caller is, if the family is still alive, and how you will expose what happened.…
The Humpty Dumpty Circumstance
Private Detective, Rick Hart reluctantly accepts what he believes to be a forty year old case of a missing person from an intriguing, determined woman who prefers to keep her reasons secret. His investigation quickly turns out to be something far different . . . and much uglier.…
The Viking Seal
A map fragment is found among the belongings of an archaeologist that died working on the site of a dig in Egypt. before any action can be taken, the rest of the belongings are stolen before any more could be retrieved and protected.The map, a possible confirmation of the Viking visits to North America, draws the attention of the Congress of International Antiquities, and their investigator, Gretta Lawrence.From Canada's northern country all the way to the east coasts of Newfoundland, and Labrador, the Congress team races to beat a criminal opposition to the prize believed to be buried there.…
A Town Called Sunrise
When miners and prospectors visit the town during a yearly celebration in order to meet the government assayer, a notorious land grabber starts preparing to obtain a claim from an elderly prospector who has finally struck it rich. The sheriff and his deputy have other ideas. Bits of fun, humour, and romance sprinkle the story throughout, but in the end the plan turns ugly and dangerous.…
Puttin' on the Ritz
BREAKING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS! BREAKING NEWS!Coaxed out of retirement for a last time, one time performance, Ratty Kat, live on stage at the Oomph Theatre, with his adaptation of an old favourite. Ratty's career began back in the late 20th century with the production of cartoon books for tots. The last of that series was Ratty Kat and the Robber Rabbit. After that, he moved into more slightly mature projects, appearing in parodies of both James Bond and Indiana Jones. Finally, after his legendary successes in books, Ratty returned to his original roots on the Broadway stage, appearing in several performances of classic plays, at last retiring to his cat box to relax and reminisce. Our intrepid user managed to track him down and convince him that the world would love to see Ratty Kat on stage once more. So now, I present to you, live on stage - RATTY KAT - PUTTIN' ON THE RITZVideo property of German TV show "ZDF Silvester-Tanzparty" at the New Years Eve TV Show in 1983.…