Shelly Desjarlais
The Blood
The wind blows through the dark like a Subway train. I pull the collar of my coat around my cheeks to combat the chill, but it does...
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Shelly Desjarlais: Writer
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Jul 17
- 4 min
The Visitor
The carnations by the window were wilted and brown. Gertrude, a woman pushing the age of ninety, gazed at their simple vase with a...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Mar 3
- 6 min
"The Symphony" - A Story in Dialogue
“I’m not known for having great ideas. Seriously, you’re looking at the guy who inspired the warning labels on most household products....
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Jan 28
- 6 min
The Street Corner
It was hardly the Valentine’s Day people were expecting. A heavy downpour fell from the dark sky as a frigid wind whipped through the...
37 views1 comment
Shelly Desjarlais
- Oct 14, 2022
- 7 min
Attack of the Pumpkins!
“I’m going to give you a crooked smile,” Otto informed his pumpkin. The tiny laboratory assistant stretched his wonky spine, sighing....
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Apr 27, 2022
- 1 min
To May
April is reaching its end. Branches are swallowed by green leaves as white blossoms drift to the streets like snowflakes. Calm mornings...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Feb 13, 2022
- 5 min
All the Love I Need
The restaurant manager prepared for Valentine’s Day the same way a soldier prepared for a battle. He restocked his supplies, called in...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Jan 3, 2022
- 1 min
Snow Angel
Flakes cascade from the blustery Sky like water spilling over rock, Covering bare branches and empty Earth in an embrace as pure as Her...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Dec 3, 2021
- 8 min
Relationship Advice from Santa
As snow fell indolently from the starry sky, the clock tower chimed six times. It rang throughout every hollow in Christmas Village. The...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Sep 30, 2021
- 4 min
Her Woods Bleed
It was your idea. Those words ring in my head like wind chimes. The noise is shrill, resonating. I dwell on the echoes. They seem to go...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Jul 31, 2021
- 2 min
The Smallest of Things
It had been a while since Tracey had a decent chicken sandwich. The locals recommended a dive downtown, and that autumn Saturday felt...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Jun 30, 2021
- 2 min
The Light in His Darkness
Her nose was the hardest part. It had the slightest curve like the bending of branches in the breeze. When he held her close, he walked...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- May 31, 2021
- 9 min
The Bad Hair Day
The hat smelled like her Great Uncle Edgar. It was a difficult odor to describe, a sort of cross between burnt bread and wet dog, and it...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- May 1, 2021
- 12 min
The Time We Take
“Those sunglasses aren’t fooling anybody.” Eleanor pushed the aviators to the bridge of her nose, scowling. “Would you keep it down? I...
7 views0 comments
Shelly Desjarlais
- Apr 2, 2021
- 9 min
The Tale of Princess Ivana and the Chipmunk
Once upon a time, there was a shack that nobody dared to visit. It was home to a strange creature named Brutta Wartsnout, a witch who...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Mar 1, 2021
- 4 min
His Name Is March
Of all the musicians in the world, Johnny Cash understood him the best. He spent hours listening to "A Boy Named Sue" on his stereo,...
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Shelly Desjarlais
- Feb 1, 2021
- 7 min
The Failed Romantic
February meant only one thing to Reagan: The return of Valentine’s Day. This was not a good thing, in her humble opinion. She leaned...
10 views0 comments
Shelly Desjarlais
- Dec 31, 2020
- 2 min
A Letter from a Cat
Dear 2020, I'm sure you know by now that the humans don't have many nice things to say about you. Being a cat, I don't know much about...
46 views0 comments
Shelly Desjarlais
- Dec 1, 2020
- 6 min
Under the Mistletoe
“How did I let you talk me into this, Jess?” Carly tugged at the pointed ears on her elf hat. Before she could pull the entire thing off,...
8 views0 comments
Shelly Desjarlais
- Nov 4, 2020
- 8 min
Playing in the Leaves
2001 “November already,” Anna sighed. “I swore I’d be out of here by June.” Bob checked his clipboard with a chuckle. “Come on, Anna...
14 views0 comments
Free short stories! Enjoy!
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