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Lunch At Café 86 by Michael Smith
“The customer ordered the fish and chips, and it all seemed normal until I delivered the fish and chips and he asked for vinegar.” – …
The Metaworker Podcast | 023 Pushcart Prize Nominees, Part 1
Listen to the newest podcast episode! Elena, Mel, and Cerid discuss three of their nominees for the 2024 Pushcart Prize, plus readings and interviews with …
Anatomy of a Memory by Anthony Ikeh
“in this dream we’re all sharp objects and try, please, dance with me & ignore the burning roof.” – excerpt from Anatomy of a Memory, …
Brownie Points by Jennifer Peaslee
content warnings Mention of death, implied suicide [1904 words] How much would you charge for a tray of brownies baked from scratch? Consider the simple …
Morning by Anthony ILacqua
[117 words] “I like morning,” he said. We milled around with the deboarding passengers.“You do?” I asked,“Don’t you?” Stephen asked.“I work nights,” I said.“You’re on …
Exit Stage Left by Bob Gielow
content warnings references to death, assisted suicide [938 words] Bob Gielow writes fiction using non-traditional formats that he wishes were real. A college administrator by …
Shapeshifting by Leda Muscatello
[223 words] I gave you this, she says,hands too full of tension to gesture.She might have attempted to pirouette,but her …
Desiccation Daze by Marla Dial Moore
[247 words] Marla Dial Moore is a recovering journalist who previously worked for The Associated Press and various news publications …
Field on Butternut by Max Newman
[298 words] We could have climbed into the moon. Insteadwe biked in the metalshadows beneath Ohioanhills everything hung still in …
Podcast
The Metaworker Podcast | 023 Pushcart Prize Nominees, Part 1
Listen to the newest podcast episode! Elena, Mel, and Cerid discuss three of their nominees for the 2024 Pushcart Prize, plus readings and interviews with …
The Metaworker Podcast | 022 Creating Anthologies, Part 3
Elena, Mel, and Cerid discuss Mel’s launch of River and Stone and Cerid’s updates for Artificial Sweetener, as well as the thought and care that …
The Metaworker Podcast | 021 Creating Anthologies, Part 2
Elena, Mel, and Cerid discuss publishing software, fostering communities, marketing plans, and their hopes for their publications. #TheMetaworker #ForgeFriday …
The Metaworker Podcast | 020 Creating Anthologies, Part 1
In this podcast episode, Elena talks with Mel and Cerid about their upcoming anthology projects outside of The Metaworker. They discuss how the projects got …
Micro
Micro Poetry by David A. Goodrum
Micro Poetry by David A. Goodrum #TheMetaworker #MetaworkerMonday …
Micro Poetry by Mykyta Ryzhykh
Micro Poetry by Mykyta Ryzhykh #TheMetaworker #MetaworkerMonday #literarymagazine #writingcommunity …
Amoral Familism by Sophia Carroll
“When I was ten my mother fell in love with someone who was not my father.” – excerpt from Amoral …
Darkness and Wit, Delusion and Hope: Writing and Art from Parchman Unit 29, a book review by Amita Basu
[2,107 words] This week, we’re presenting you with a book review, written by one of our recent slush readers and Pushcart nominee, Amita Basu. Published …
Dadless by Elise Glassman
[352 words] Dad was on his way.Dad was on his way, said, Trust me, Elise. Said stop your bellyaching, said For crying out loud I’m …
Numbers by Kathryn D. Temple
[1,372 words] [ I. ] At 4 months, a baby in the womb is 6 and a half to 7 inches long. 7 inches is …
Mother and Child by Julie Mota Kondi
Pen and ink drawing inspired by social changes in built-in environmental landscapes. Julie Mota Kondi is a freelance artist who …
Artwork by Gregg Williard, from “Scared Boy with Theory and Mask”
These drawings are part of an unpublished illustrated novella, “Scared Boy with Theory and Mask”, drawn and written by Gregg …
Walking the Parks by Seth Wright
I stood on the hill gazing down at Pinkerton Park in Franklin, Tennessee, my camera aiming at each piece of …
Interviews
Darkness and Wit, Delusion and Hope: Writing and Art from Parchman Unit 29, a book review by Amita Basu
A book review of Parchman Unit 29, poems, drawings, and creative non-fiction pieces that constitute a powerful call for systemic …
Looking Back to Forge Forward: A Catchup Series by Lena Bramsen
“An interview compilation with some of The Metaworker’s first contributors, reflecting upon the past and updating us on their careers.” …
Profile: Jeremy Bock
Jeremy Bock is a West Virginia native and technologist currently expatting Bangkok with his wife and daughter. His novel, Caroline, …
Speculative Fiction & Poetry
Daylight under the Geofence by Robin Wyatt Dunn
“I let them into the library to steal the books. They say they’re going to digitize everything. In time, we …
Unbound by Maudie Bryant
“The typeface begins to rise from the aged paper. …They stretch and coalesce into an undulating vortex, spiraling around my …
Captive Monsters Sleeping by Michelle R. Brady
“The tantal was there before we were. … It was probably always there, waiting in the sand.” – excerpt from …
Anathematikon, Part III by Lukas Jackson
[180 words] a new day dawns wolves are howling far across the moon a spun night dark the mighty rapids rise wind beats against the …
Desiccation Daze by Marla Dial Moore
[247 words] Marla Dial Moore is a recovering journalist who previously worked for The Associated Press and various news publications in Arizona and Texas. She …
Sharh on Sunan an-Nasa’i 736 by Reyzl Grace
—for E. R. Shaffer Reyzl Grace is a poet, translator, and fictionist with work nominated for the Pushcart Prize, listed as a finalist for the …
Triptych by Tim Love
[656 words] LEFT PANEL Life looked ahead long before it could remember. The better we could anticipate the future, the …
The Needle Man by Clint Sabom
content warnings reference to drug use [1291 words] In my worry chamber birds fly east and west but never north …
Walking the Parks by Seth Wright
I stood on the hill gazing down at Pinkerton Park in Franklin, Tennessee, my camera aiming at each piece of …