Writer
Robert J. McCarter 
I was lucky enough this year to attend the Austin Film Festival, which is about film, but is focused on writers. I went to four days of an amazing conference listening to and meeting some successful screen writers and podcasters. It’s a different world, but it’s still storytelling and I learned a lot I bring it up because I really wanted to hit the story-a-day goal this month and knew I wouldn’t have time while …
Hugh is a holographic surrogate, one he created of himself while he was alive, while he was dying. Now he has to find a way to help his grieving wife, Elizabeth, find a way to get on with her life. This story was a semi-finalist in the Writers of the Future Contest in 2013 A Postscript for Elizabeth (Excerpt) Robert J. McCarter Day 1 “Hello, Elizabeth,” I said as you dropped the bag of groceries …
Well, September was not like last month, I actually got some short stories read, but not up to the old pace. Earlier in the challenge I worked well ahead of that one story per day pace, but with August off and September at half speed, I’ve really got to step it up. Streaks have power (like when I never missed a day) and losing the streak has made it hard to get things going again. …
Smith erases memories, he’s one of the best. He can remove your traumatic or dangerous memories and and lighten your spirit. But the Order of Mnemosyne requires that the Eraser then erases their own memory of the encounter, leaving Smith with very little left of himself. Now’s he’s met a client whose memories put her in danger. Can Smith erase her memories, protect her, and somehow keep something of her for himself? Memories of the …
Last month I said I was going to take a break from reading short stories, and boy did I. I did’t read any. Not one. And this is a good thing. My wife and I desperately needed to get out of town, so we did just that, rambling through beautiful locations in Utah, Arizona, and Colorado. For some of this time, I didn’t read any fiction, didn’t watch any TV, or really consume stories beyond …
Jack is just another orphaned kid working the tourists, except Jack lives on Mars and works the Pavonis Mons Beanstalk Terminal guiding visitors through the delights and dangers of New Chicago City. But his new client is a mysterious man named Aldan who wants to go into the Maze and take on one of New Chicago City’s most dangerous men. There is something different about Aldan, but Jack needs money to save Mary and can’t …
Time has a way of changing the game on you. My initial goal for this challenge was not to read a story every day, but to read 365 short stories this year (subtle difference). But, through July, I managed to not miss any days and to read at least one story a day (I can be a bit of an overachiever). But, that goal, was carefully worded to give me wiggle room that I am …
Connor Bright dresses and talks just like Crocodile Dundee, but that’s just his way of hiding from his past. He’s a private detective in Phoenix, Arizona and his next case involves a man slain by what appears to be a purple unicorn. He doesn’t think unicorns are real, but Irene, his new eight-year-old client, saw her great-uncle run down by one. Now Connor has to solve the murder, keep his own demons at bay, and …
Read moreSaturday Stories: Connor Bright and the Case of the Purple Unicorn
I write a lot of short stories (I’ll be hitting 100 finished short stories and novelettes later this year) and I am looking for a way to both get them out and share them with all of you. So I’m going to post some of them here, on this website, for free. This whole free thing is a “thank you” to all of you that follow along here or on facebook or twitter. I’m coming …
So, the 2018 is halfway over, how did that happen? Somehow spring always seems to be that way, gone in a flash of lengthening days, a warming sun, and fresh air. I’m well over half way to my goal of reading 365 stories this year and haven’t missed a day yet (thanks to the abundant supply of very short stories being published). I’ve been thinking about beginnings a lot. Short stories in particular. When a …