The audio production of my psychological horror novelette Make It a Double is now available on the Horror Hill podcast. It’s about a consolatory toast that turns into a blessing … and then a curse. “May whatever luck comes to him, come to you, times two.” The story starts at around the 5:00 mark.
Content warning: misogyny
The audio production of my cyberpunk story A Free Man is now available on the Simultaneous Times podcast by Space Cowboy Books. This episode was done in collaboration with Shacklebound Books, which published A Free Man in their anthology, The Mods: Cyberpunk Stories. The story starts around the 8:00 mark.
My short non-horror story Firefly has been published in the March 2023 issue of Fresh Words: An International Literary Magazine. You can read it online for free or purchase a print copy.
Firefly is a simple story about a young girl who captures a firefly in the back yard to help cheer up her ailing sister.
Content warning: terminal illness of a childMissy caught the firefly in mid-air, cupping her hands around it to form a tiny, dark cave. She could feel the insect’s delicate footsteps tickling her skin as it wandered across her palm, searching for a way out.
“Got you!” she whispered, victorious.
My short horror story Leftovers has been published in the Murder On Her Mind anthology by Wicked Shadow Press. It’s about an elderly woman living in a rapidly-declining urban neighborhood who subsists on an unconventional recipe from the old world.
The audio production of my cyberpunk story Set For Life is now available for free from the Dark Matter Magazine Audiolab. As with everything Dark Matter Magazine does, the quality of the production is exceptional.
The story is about a man’s first day on the job picking up bodies for Syntech and the disturbing secret about where they come from. It’s also the prequel to my novella Override (which appeared in Dark Matter Magazine Issues 007/008/009).
My story Silly Jilly has been published in Apex Magazine’s Strange Libations: An Anthology of Dark Cocktails, featuring a collection of stories told via drink recipes. Silly Jilly is a bitter cocktail with a sweet finish, made in memory of a little girl lost.
The anthology was created as a reward for Kickstarter backers, so it’s not available for purchase directly. However, you can purchase a copy as an add-on to the Robotic Ambitions Kickstarter, which I highly recommend backing.
My historical horror story Breathtaking has been published in the Monstorm anthology by Madness Heart Press. Proceeds from sales of the book will go to people affected by Hurricane Ian.
Set in 1930s Oklahoma during the Dust Bowl, Breathtaking tells the story of a young girl and her brother who see a mysterious woman in white screaming outside their house during a dust storm.
“Banshee,” I whispered, mouthing the words as I read. “A spirit in the form of a wailing woman who appears to members of a family as a sign that …” I trailed off. I felt my stomach tighten. Icicles formed down the center of my spine. “That one of them is about to die.”
My dark urban fantasy story Dragonsbreath has been published in From the Ashes: An Anthology of Elemental Urban Fantasy. It’s the story of a teen forced to wear a fireproof mask to protect himself and others from a power he can’t control. This story is an odd one for me: a little bit fantasy, a little bit horror, and a little bit (gasp!) romance. A portion of sales of the anthology will be donated to the Marco Hope Burn Foundation.
Content warning: gore“Ma’am? Are you the mother?”
She nodded, never taking her eyes off her daughter’s lifeless body.
“Do you recognize this?”
The hand held a large plastic evidence bag in front of her face. Inside was a black fabric mask. It resembled a ski mask made from a thick fireproof material with ovals of dark tempered glass protecting each eye.
My cyberpunk story Set For Life has been published in the Zero Dark Thirty anthology, which collects the 30 darkest stories from the first two years of Dark Matter Magazine (2021-2022). The story is about a man’s first day on the job picking up bodies for Syntech and the disturbing secret about where they come from. It’s also the prequel to my novella Override (which appeared in Dark Matter Magazine Issues 007/008/009).
Lifting bodies wasn’t like lifting boxes. Boxes were symmetrical. Structured. You could lift properly: squat down, straighten your spine, lift with your legs. Bodies were limp. Awkward. Their limbs flopped in odd directions. He still hadn’t figured out the best way to lift one without damaging it. Or himself. Or both.
My horror story Things Are Looking Up has been published by Apocalypse Confidential in their ...LOVE issue. After a man and his wife are in a fatal car accident, the man decides he will do anything to see his wife one more time. Even if he has to dig.
I’ve been in a dark place since the accident.
Warren Benedetto 