Short Fiction

Someone has to do something to keep the Gurstockians from destroying Mars, but Snake Theriot's heart is torn with grief and sadness ...

It was to be a night of love -- or not. It was to be an advance of a career -- or its demise. Let's face it -- Warren was between a bear trap and a cliff over a river of crocodiles ...

Joy-riding vacations before graduation are not a good idea, even if you have a pal with a ride who says he knows all about the locals ...

They came to Mars from Gurstock as the latter planet disintegrated in waves of nuclear blasts. The Gurstockians didn't seem to mind ... they had a goal ...

It came from space in a fiery cluster of molten steel, shattering the solitude that covered the blue water below as it plunged deep into the cold darkness. There it would lie dormant, to be stirred by life that flourished both in the water and above.

Inexplicable, inexorable ... only those who witnessed the Singularity truly understood the meaning of those words.

Color matters in a population ... at least until the population realizes that color doesn't matter, and that we're all people under whatever skin color we wear ...

Possibly the most annoying of alien abductions is not the one which is simply inconvenient, but the one that is also completely mistaken ...

Dint your Momma ever tell you that gettin' pie-faced drunk could get you took advantage of?

A cautionary fable, about death and greed and death again.

When business is booming, picking and choosing your sales tactics is a viable path. But when the company is tanking, and jobs are on the line, you go with what works -- even skills that are a bit rusty ...

Was it memory? An overheard story? Or echoes of something that once might have been?

The monster lurked in its cave, waiting for Tristan to turn his back ...

It was a simple job, but it did need the help of a professional, in spite of the cost ...

There is a turn of the road where everything seems to be ... well not exactly what you expected. In fact, some times the path you take makes you what someone else might not have expected ...

Matthew Dexter is an American anomaly living in Cabo San Lucas, Mexico. He writes novels, memoirs, poetry, journalism articles, short stories of literary fiction, short stories of narrative nonfiction, and everything else in between. When Matthew is not writing he enjoys life by the ocean; beautiful beaches, breathtaking views, reading, and being inspired. But never candlelit dinners on the beach. He's afraid of Pirates.

No longer young, no longer innocent. What she sought in the world was more of an illusion than what she saw before her ...

O, cruel Fate, to bring such consummate joy through the pages of a precious tome, full of the rich and love-strewn scent of perfectly aged papers, only to snatch happiness away by that same device ...

You never know where evil may sprout ... or what the answer to a prayer will be.

It's not just the chickens that do it ...

I don't care what the police said. It was that stupid bird's fault.

In the search for youthful looks and greater beauty, people's vanity could become the very thing that destroys them ...

There is no forcing a spirit to cooperate; the choice must come from within. The spirit must want some kind of Salvation enough to ask for it -- and then accept what that might mean.

One is always provided with what one needs to get by ... that is, if one is willing to trust... and know that "getting by" might not be easy ...

The visit was lovely, the company so welcome -- until the snow and ice made visitors into residents. And even suddenly fellow residents are fine -- that is, until the beer runs out.

Compared to the Game, real life is a disappointment. Well, except for certain rare occasions ...

There is a time of year when it's better to hold your tongue unless you want to set out on the road early, hungover, and on the outs with those you love.

He found a world of purpose, of strength, a world that could engage his whole mind. And his heart...

A dragon centuries old might impart the Mysteries of the Ages, and traveling with him, Aser might have the adventure of a lifetime. Sure. And Aunt Tilla might have shown up naked for other reasons than bad decisions on her part.

Sometimes we forget to ask, "What's your name?" -- even when we want to know someone better ... and is that because the question in our hearts is "What's your real name?"...