Christmas in the Apocalypse

A perfect story for the new year, or any year.

DysFictional

“I found some!” Scott banged on the metal door with a wrench, placed there for that exact purpose.

Metal hinges creaked as the door opened.

“Cool! Bring it in.” Libby held the curtain aside and helped Scott drag his bundles in from the tunnel.

“It isn’t exactly what I was looking for. I was hoping for a tree, but had to settle for trimming a hedge.”

“This will do just fine.” Libby held the cedar branches to her face and inhaled. “Mmmm… heavenly.”

Scott shouldered one of the bundles and Libby followed him, dragging the other down the narrow hallway.

Scott gasped when they entered the common room.

“You like it?”

“I do! You did all this?”

Libby dropped her bundle and sat down. She slung her prosthetic leg onto the tabletop with a loud CLUNK.

“What else am I going to do? I got plenty of time on…

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Share Your Pet Stories!

In 2022 we would love to feature your pet stories on West Coast Review.

Share your blog links, or send up your stories and we’ll post them here. Right now we’re gathering your favorite pet stories – your words. We’ll share them in 2022.

Send your pet stories to: westcoastreviewca@gmail.com

Thanks,

~ The Editors at West Coast Review

Photo by Jozef Fehu00e9r on Pexels.com

Were you involved with, or hurt by NTFM (National Toll Free Marketing) in the 1980’s. Tell us your story.

Back in the 1980’s there was a Multi Level Marketing Company based out of Cameron Park (Shingle Springs) California, called National Toll Free Marketing. They were a cult like organization run by a pair of flashy con-artists named Benjamin Franklin Gay III and Carlotta Hyde.

They lied. They cheated. They hurt a lot of people including their own staff.

Were you part of that? Did they con you, cheat you, or hurt you? Do you have any weird stories of your time with them? Did you work for them in their home office by the airport? We want to know. Tell us your stories.

Have you ever been scammed by a Multi Level Marketing Company (MLM)? Have they ever tried to drag you, a friend, or a relative into their clutches? Have they promised riches? Have they taken your money and given you nothing in return? Do you feel conned? Did you feel like you’d joined a cult?

Was it a good experience?

We’re collecting stories to publish later in 2022.

Please share your stories with us, and from anyone who might benefit or need to be warned. Or just get revenge. It is up to you.

You may remain anonymous, use your name, or make up a name.

Tell us your experiences in your own words.

Send your story to westcoastreviewca@gmail.com

~ West Coast Review Staff

Multi Level Marketing (MLM) Horror Stories – We want to hear from you.

Have you ever been scammed by a Multi Level Marketing Company (MLM)? Have they ever tried to drag you, a friend, or a relative into their clutches? Have they promised riches? Have they taken your money and given you nothing in return? Do you feel conned? Did you feel like you’d joined a cult?

Was it a good experience?

We’re collecting stories to publish later in 2022.

Please share your stories with us, and from anyone who might benefit or need to be warned. Or just get revenge. It is up to you.

You may remain anonymous, use your name, or make up a name.

Tell us your experiences in your own words.

Send your story to westcoastreviewca@gmail.com

~ West Coast Review

Musings on Rain and Creativity at the End of the Year

Vampire Maman

In a land of forever drought it has been raining and raining and raining. All of the major highways through the Sierras are closed today. So much for our planned trip up to Tahoe. We might still get up there later in the week, or maybe for the weekend. Traffic will be hellish, especially in the car with a driver who has no patience for traffic. Intervention will be needed.

In the meantime I am happy to be home with my children and savor them before they fly off to distant parts where they work and go to school.

I received an easel for Christmas this year. I haven’t drawn or painted outdoors for almost 40 years. The first pieces will be in charcoal and colored pencil. I don’t want to worry about water and mixing paints, or cleaning brushes. The plan also includes some live figure drawing. I’ve found…

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Merry Christmas!!

This is lovely!

cosistories

Author’s Note:Clarity and Mariposa are characters that I created for an RP on Discord. He was supposed to be an evil MirrorFolk of Isellta and be the complete opposite of everything that Isellta is. I had such wonderful plans for him. He, however, came out as an absolute fluffball who goes on an amazing self-discovery character arc. He has grown so much from his starting point.

So, I decided to introduce him over here in a small Christmas story starring him.

(Danadad and Clarissa are not my characters. They belong to their own creator — ballofflame on the NaNoWriMo forums. Mart belongs to fionaH on the NaNoWriMo forums)

****************************************************

The night was crisp and clear. The stars were on full display. And there was just a light layer of snow on the ground.

Clarity couldn’t remember being so cold before. The mirrored woods were not in a jungle zone…

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Tangled Tales: The Offer – The Story of a Wizard, A Kitten, and a Mysterious Stranger

Vampire Maman

Mileswas the official Royal Wizard to the Kingdom of the Moonbeam Mountains. What the fuck kind of name was that for a Kingdom?

“I will NEVER be as good as my dad.” he thought brooding in the dark under the night sky on the roof with a bottle of 80 proof Dragon Blood.

Sitting alone in his castle by the sea he thought of her, the princess who’d more or less left him for another man. Hell, he never had her. She’d always been in love with someone else. They’d been together for ten years. In ten years she’d told him a thousand times that she loved him but at the same time she was running a fantasy in her head about another guy.

For the past 6 years they’d lived with each other almost full-time. Their father’s were best friends. Hers was the King of the Northwestern Kingdom, his…

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Yuletide Wishes

DysFictional

~ Previously published in WPaD’s Tinsel Tales: A Holiday Treasury~ which will be a FREE Kindle download Dec 13-17 ~

~ Yuletide Wishes ~

We are in the business of granting wishes.

We come from a realm invisible to your eyes, but you are quite visible to us. From where we are, we can see it all. It would probably give you the creeps to know that someone is watching you and there isn’t a damn thing you can do about it. All the same, a fact is a fact and the fact is, all of you are being watched by all of us all of the time.

To what do you owe this intrusion?

Why, you summoned us, long, long ago. Since that time, our two races have become dependent on one another.

Your wishes hold the key. Wishes from your reality shoot into ours like rockets of…

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