writer
When Shine told people she bartended at the Buckhorn, their eyes widened. “What’s a nice girl like you,” they said, and then their voices trailed off. “I heard somebody got shot,” they said. There was a real bullet hole in the mirror, but it was ancient history—part of the bar’s character, like the heads on the walls and the smell of stale beer. To Shine, it felt safe, like sitting on a gargantuan comfy couch with all your cousins—sunk into the softness, everyone good-naturedly elbowing everyone else. ~ “A Dangerous Shine,” Word Riot
Let me give you another taste.
1. Bluebellies ~ There is a place in northern Wyoming where bluebellies live. Bluebellies are small—small enough to fit in your hand. They are pale tan or gray, mottled to merge with sagebrush and dune. They can be a trick of the eyes, nothing but a whip of shadow as they fade into the sand, and you are left with air seeping through your fingers. If you are able to catch one, its scales are smooth and cool and dry. Wire-like claws cling to your palm, and as if by spell the bluebelly freezes stonelike and lifeless. But beauty will not be denied—turn it over, Phthalo blue. ~ “Where the Bluebellies Are,” Elsewhere Journal, pg. 64 (.pdf)
If you like what you see, join me.
Poke around. Read a little. See what you think.
© Copyright 2009 Tamara Linse
Photo by
RiverNorth Photography