On "Would You Mind Not Talking to Me?" by Robert Cormack (1730 words) ***

Out of work and drinking--or just at work and drinking--it makes little difference. Our lives are full of terror: fear of the people around us, whether potential bosses or the women and men next to us at the bar, or the circumstances we find ourselves in: down to our last dime or starting a new job. Cormack mines this arena with intriguing dialogue. Read the story here at Northwind.

On "Mazes" by Lisa Martens (6331 words) ***

An exploration of real life mazes is what this story is about. In the center of the story, the narrator draws a maze that looks like a brain--three ways in. The goal is to get out the other side, but most often you end up circling around to the place you've come from. Indeed, the story itself works that way. It's a story about domestic abuse, an overprotective--even obsessive--boyfriend and other unpleasant characters. Read it here at Northwind Magazine.

On "The Marauders" by Laney Arbelaez (5469 words) ****

Here's a story to get lost in. It begins with a piece of jewelry and the memory of a woman. It follows jewelry through two other relationships, eventually collapsing all of them into one stream-of-consciousness narrative to beware of. I was Arbelaez's lively voice and then by the wonder of her strange technique. Read the story here at Northwind.