The Writer's Workout

We interviewed the Magicfest First Place Overall winner, Brian Lockwood! WW: What encouraged you to participate in Magicfest? BL: I submitted pieces for the Writer's Games in two different years. I enjoyed the challenge, but weekends are a difficult time for me to find time to write. All-day or out-of-town plans can develop fast, and I didn't want to abandon premium family time for the sake of the Games. When Magicfest was announced as a competition that took place during the

We interviewed the Magicfest Second Place Overall winner, Bea Sage! WW: What encouraged you to participate in Magicfest? BS: I’m a Writer’s Games diehard, so the Fests feel like a natural addendum - having said that, the last time I participated in one (Leapfest), I didn’t manage to submit anything for one Event and ended up with a very hastily completed 500-word story for another, so I also wanted to redeem myself on the Fest side of things! WW: What were you worried or nerv

We interviewed the Magicfest Third Place Overall winner, Alyssa Beatty! WW: What encouraged you to participate in Magicfest? AB: I’ve been in a bit of a writing slump and wanted to remind myself that writing is something I do for the joy of it. In short fiction I find fantasy the most fun genre to write in; I always end up with characters or a voice that I really love. I’m deep in the weeds of writing a fantasy novel and it’s becoming a slog, so I wanted to re-ignite that spa

Twenty-Five Yards to Life by Deidra Whitt Lovegren First Place That’s my name and my number, but it’s not me. With a flick of my thumb, I pop open a black umbrella and square up behind a rusty chain-link fence. Fresh cut grass takes me back to the start of my own NFL career—before the chronic pain, relentless lawsuits, and crazy carousel of ex-wives ruined my life. Did it always rain like hell during training camp? The players don’t seem to notice the wet jerseys stick

Teacher's Pet by Thomas Second Place Everybody hated Colin O’Dowd. He was a snake, a stool pigeon, a rat. We didn’t have much to amuse ourselves at Bede Middle, but one thing we did like was making soggy moggys– wetting toilet paper and throwing it at the ceiling. Stevie Allen had it down to a fine art. He said some of his pieces had been on the ceiling since the first term. I liked to imagine that in 3000 years, some archaeologists excavating our school would loo

Roadkill by Steven O'Hara Third Place In a town, not far enough inland to be considered the sticks, but not close enough to any city or sister settlement to gain any overflowing economy, is a white steepled church, where all the townsfolk, no matter their religious affiliation, or if they’ve any religion at all, seem to gather; a redbricked school that houses all students no matter their age, as there is no other school in this town—nor close to it—but the children don’t se

We love Fiction Potluck because the submissions are so much fun! Here are January's Fiction Potluck Finalists for the Endings With a Twist challenge. Look for the Finalist badge across social media to connect with these authors. January Finalists Thomas Thomas currently lives in Hanoi, where costs are low and lived experiences are rich. The move has allowed him to devote more time to becoming a full-time writer, with occasional days off for Bia Hoi and rocket-fuel coffee.