James Pyles's Blog, page 33

Frank and the Plot of the Hypnotizing Slime, Chapter 4

“Let me go,” Lilly demanded as Frank tried to carry her deeper into the forest. They have been so scared, they didn’t realize that the chick had once again disappeared. “I’m only trying to help.” Frank put her down and stepped back. Lilly was about to run, but for some reason, didn’t feel afraid of […]

Disfigured

Every day for the past eight months I stare at my empty mask with a sense of elation. I am no longer its prisoner, no longer its slave. I am free. Of course, freedom always comes at a price, usually a very high one. After the accident, anyone looking at my face, even if they […]

My Personal Ecclesiastes

There is no me. There’s just doing the laundry, paying the rent, riding the bus, going to work, going to school. You know. Nothing that’s important. So here I am feeding coins into the washers and dryers at the laundromat, trying to read a book and realizing that I don’t enjoy it. In fact, I […]

Review of Quantum Leap Ep 13 “Family Style”

This week’s episode (number 13) of Quantum Leap is called Family Style. Here’s the IMDb summary: When Ben leaps into an Indian family to try and prevent their beloved family restaurant from burning down, he finds an emotional connection with their matriarch through memories of his own. Magic and Jenn share a surprising revelation with […]

Night Delivery

Motionless, she stood gazing down the tunnel. The path extended as far as the eye could see, encased by walls of grimy bricks. That wasn’t very far since Colleen’s flashlight battery seemed to be dying. “Not now when I’m so close.” She didn’t dare speak out loud. It was bad enough that they could find […]

Frank and the Plot of the Hypnotizing Slime, Chapter 3

I suppose you are wondering where the baby chick came from and what it won. To answer that question, we have to visit an alternate dimension, an alternate Frank, and the secret character of Danaerys. You see, the evil Frank who is planning to take over the world with his hypnotizing slime, is modeled after […]

Take Me Out to the Ball Game

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi. A ball game’s a ball game even at “The K” in Kansas City. Jeff scored a hot dog and watered-down beer and relaxed back into his seat. The Royals were playing against the Texas Rangers but that didn’t matter much to […]

Frank and the Plot of the Hypnotizing Slime, Chapter 2

In the evil mountain hideout, Frank the spider said, “The hypnotic slime projector is now finished but the slime itself needs another day to cool in the vat. Then it will be ready.” “What will we test it on?” Roger was another evil spider and an expert on reconnaissance, which means he could search out […]

My Short Story “The Simulated Woman” Was Accepted Into the Anthology “Existential Hologram”

I was just informed by Starry Eyed Press that my cyberpunk SciFi short story “The Simulated Woman” has been accepted into their forthcoming anthology “Existential Hologram.” I don’t have any information about when this will be published, no cover art (the image above is taken from the 2017 film Blade Runner 2049), really nothing at […]

Specter

If you like my work, buy me a virtual cup of coffee at Ko-Fi. The building was old enough to have a fire escape. It was perfect. Now that Brian’s divorce was final, he was free to move back to the heart of old downtown and be nurtured by urban variations. He was so close […]