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Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road
Alternative-Reads.com is a book promotion site that is exactly what it sounds like. We gathered up our boldest authors and told them to write whatever the hell they liked. The short story anthology, Writers on the wrong side of the Road, is what we got. Here are a few examples of the kind of story you can expect...
"The Barefoot Hero" by Timothy Fleming – 5 stars
A man looks back to the past after the tragic death of an old friend.
"The Barefoot Hero" brought tears to my eyes. The story is bittersweet, tragic, and brilliantly written. The characterization is deep and thoughtful, leading to a conclusion that is as painful as it is gratifying. A lovely story.
"Man Slaughter" by Lucille P. Robinson – 5 stars
An alleged murderer recalls each of the deaths she has been accused of while giving her official statement of confession.
The characters and plotline of this story are developed and executed masterfully. The characters are believable and the story creepy. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one.
"Pronghorns" by Casey Wolf – 5 stars
A double suicide goes to "Plan B" when initial plans go awry.
"Pronghorns" is a darkly brilliant commentary on life and death. It is well-written, gripping, and has a shockingly profound ending. This is one of those stories that resets the bar.
- Lisa Lane
To enjoy all 18 stories in our Anthology, we suggest you read the book.
"The Barefoot Hero" by Timothy Fleming – 5 stars
A man looks back to the past after the tragic death of an old friend.
"The Barefoot Hero" brought tears to my eyes. The story is bittersweet, tragic, and brilliantly written. The characterization is deep and thoughtful, leading to a conclusion that is as painful as it is gratifying. A lovely story.
"Man Slaughter" by Lucille P. Robinson – 5 stars
An alleged murderer recalls each of the deaths she has been accused of while giving her official statement of confession.
The characters and plotline of this story are developed and executed masterfully. The characters are believable and the story creepy. I thoroughly enjoyed reading this one.
"Pronghorns" by Casey Wolf – 5 stars
A double suicide goes to "Plan B" when initial plans go awry.
"Pronghorns" is a darkly brilliant commentary on life and death. It is well-written, gripping, and has a shockingly profound ending. This is one of those stories that resets the bar.
- Lisa Lane
To enjoy all 18 stories in our Anthology, we suggest you read the book.
- GenresAnthologies
356 pages, Kindle Edition
First published December 1, 2011
13 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
April 10, 2012
Review 1: Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road... 4.5 Stars
"This anthology contains some of the creepiest and unusual stories I’ve read in a long time. While a few of the selections seemed out of place either by caliber or by genre, the best works in this anthology truly set the bar for greatness in speculative fiction. As a whole, I rate Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road at four stars and recommend it as a great addition to any speculative fiction library."
For a full breakdown of each story, check out the review by Lisa Lane at: http://www.cerebralwriter.com/1/post/...
Review 2: Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road... 4.5 Spiders
"4.5 out of 5 Spiders from T Lane of WebbWeaver. She called it a 'Great Book' said co-owner of the site, CK WEBB."
http://webbweaver-zelda555.blogspot.c...
Review 3: Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road... Very Good (5 Stars?)
"The editing by Sassy Brit and C.C. Bye is excellent, and the entire presentation is beautifully professional. If you like the short-story genre and want something unique and innovative, you might consider this read. My personal favorite was Malpas, a novella, by Marion Webb-De Sisto, an erotica beauty and beast."
http://kayetrout.blogspot.com/2012/02...
Review 4: ...And then it hit me.
That was precisely the point of Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road; to take the reader off guard, similar to what the writers themselves must have felt as they explored new avenues and stretched their craft. Some pieces may have been formulaic, while others were seamless, but all represented the essence of skillful storytelling and every participating author should be justly proud of their willingness to get behind those unfamiliar wheels and step on the gas. I had been run down, backed over, run down and backed over again and again, mangled and rearranged and left gently on the curb, whole and wholly entertained.
Steve Beai is a professional author and musician whose short-story, novel and non-fiction work has appeared in numerous publications and has been recognized by both HWA and MWA. He is currently in the studio with the Rory Lewis Band, laying down the drums for their upcoming third CD, Belize.
http://www.claytonbye.com/modules.php...
Review 5: ..."Overall this was a really enjoyable read which I’d rate an easy four stars, with eight of the seventeen stories presented scoring four stars or up. Where there were problems, it seemed always to be with endings, endings too abrupt in otherwise well-written tales."
http://1889.ca/2012/04/review-writers...
"This anthology contains some of the creepiest and unusual stories I’ve read in a long time. While a few of the selections seemed out of place either by caliber or by genre, the best works in this anthology truly set the bar for greatness in speculative fiction. As a whole, I rate Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road at four stars and recommend it as a great addition to any speculative fiction library."
For a full breakdown of each story, check out the review by Lisa Lane at: http://www.cerebralwriter.com/1/post/...
Review 2: Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road... 4.5 Spiders
"4.5 out of 5 Spiders from T Lane of WebbWeaver. She called it a 'Great Book' said co-owner of the site, CK WEBB."
http://webbweaver-zelda555.blogspot.c...
Review 3: Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road... Very Good (5 Stars?)
"The editing by Sassy Brit and C.C. Bye is excellent, and the entire presentation is beautifully professional. If you like the short-story genre and want something unique and innovative, you might consider this read. My personal favorite was Malpas, a novella, by Marion Webb-De Sisto, an erotica beauty and beast."
http://kayetrout.blogspot.com/2012/02...
Review 4: ...And then it hit me.
That was precisely the point of Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road; to take the reader off guard, similar to what the writers themselves must have felt as they explored new avenues and stretched their craft. Some pieces may have been formulaic, while others were seamless, but all represented the essence of skillful storytelling and every participating author should be justly proud of their willingness to get behind those unfamiliar wheels and step on the gas. I had been run down, backed over, run down and backed over again and again, mangled and rearranged and left gently on the curb, whole and wholly entertained.
Steve Beai is a professional author and musician whose short-story, novel and non-fiction work has appeared in numerous publications and has been recognized by both HWA and MWA. He is currently in the studio with the Rory Lewis Band, laying down the drums for their upcoming third CD, Belize.
http://www.claytonbye.com/modules.php...
Review 5: ..."Overall this was a really enjoyable read which I’d rate an easy four stars, with eight of the seventeen stories presented scoring four stars or up. Where there were problems, it seemed always to be with endings, endings too abrupt in otherwise well-written tales."
http://1889.ca/2012/04/review-writers...
December 16, 2011
4 stars overall awarded by The Deepening. Check out the individual story reviews at http://www.cerebralwriter.com/1/post/...
QUOTE "This anthology contains some of the creepiest and unusual stories I’ve read in a long time...the best works in this anthology truly set the bar for greatness in speculative fiction.”
QUOTE "This anthology contains some of the creepiest and unusual stories I’ve read in a long time...the best works in this anthology truly set the bar for greatness in speculative fiction.”
May 25, 2012
“Alternative-Read.com (AR) is a website developed as a vehicle for promoting all comers from the writing world. This collection brings together the Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road, the most dangerous rule-wreckers from Alternative-Read.com who sprang at the chance to create an anthology designed to give the reader “a different kind of reading experience.
And just to make sure that happened, AR took away the rules and let them write whatever the hell they liked. Edited by Sassy Brit and Clayton C Bye.”
Reviewed from ARC requested from editors.
Overall, Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road was a really enjoyable read which I’d rate an easy four stars, with eight of the seventeen stories presented scoring four stars or up. Where there were problems, it seemed always to be with endings, endings too abrupt in otherwise well-written tales. Though I will admit to expecting something more outlandish.
The standouts, for me, were:
Simon Seeks by Natham Yocum – An emotive journey with a psychic who has known too much suffering to remain neutral in his work (4)
The Barefoot Hero by Timothy Fleming – This was flawless, a touching reminiscence of one young life ruined by war, and a simple act that said so very much (5)
The Cenotaph by Casey Wolf – Another war story of sorts. A young man who is uncertain about his future camps by an isolated cenotaph. In an interesting clash of past and present, he meets the lone survivor of a town who lost their sons to war, and who remains, endlessly tending their monument (4)
Take Two by Kit Germain – An inventive twist on post-apocalyptic survival of the species. Well executed and fast paced, this story looks at the twin horrors of religious intolerance and a genetically modified world (4)
Triona’s Beans by Casey Wolf and Paivi Kuosmanen – I understand that there were no boundaries put on this selection, but in my opinion, this is out of place here. As a story for the 5-10yrs age group, it is an engrossing look at tolerance and empathy for people who are different, but lost and utterly displaced. An excellent children’s story, not substantial enough to translate to an adult audience (4)
The Smile in Her Eyes by John B Rosenman – This was lovely. An old man sees his dead wife in the eyes of a teenage girl, then struggles with the certainty of his vision and the socially unacceptable relationship he must pursue (5)
Slumfairy by Tonya R Moore – This story requires a leap of faith; you go into a crisis with the characters and are carried along with them. There is little time to acquaint yourself with the world they are fighting through, but if you trust the author, enough detail is supplied to keep everything together. I enjoyed this thoroughly, but felt it could be part of a larger work (4)
Pronghorns by Casey Wolf – Probably my favourite story in this collection, not least because it met my expectation of something dark and utterly unique. It is a superb study of the thoughts and emotions of three people involved in a murder-suicide plot (5)
Of the stories that remain, one I’d like to comment further on is:
Malpas by Marion Webb-De Sisto. I rated this three (3) and I really wanted it to be more. I found the premise and characters intriguing and once it got started, the stage was set for a very unusual erotic love story, but it was the longest entry in the collection and it could easily have been cut in half. A shame; it would have been a favourite.
There are no stories in this lot that do not deserve to be read; they are all of a worthy standard. I believe some needed tighter editing, which they didn’t get – possibly for ideals of free expression.
Four stars.
January 31, 2012
This adult-based alternative anthology contains seventeen short stories by seventeen different writers. Each story was very different and a few were very adult with some sexual content. But, for the most part, the book offered some good short stories ranging from thrillers to science fiction each with awesome ‘shock’ value.
I really enjoyed each story and can’t decide which was better. I got started reading and really couldn't stop—wanting to read more or continue on to the next hair-raising story. I like a book I can pick up and not put down and was really surprised how much this read kept me coming back for more. Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road certainly did it for me. From the umber-creepy to the tragically bittersweet, this anthology has it all.
A few of the stories represented in this anthology are; "The Barefoot Hero" by Timothy Fleming, "The Cenotaph" by Casey Wolf, "Take Two" by Kit St. Germain, "The Journey" by Megan Johns, "The Smile in Her Eyes" by John B Rosenman, and "Man Slaughter" by Lucille P. Robinson. These are just a few of the great shorts in this read.
I’m giving Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road a 4½ spider rating and recommending this anthology to any adult reader looking for something different. You can’t go wrong!
T Lane
I really enjoyed each story and can’t decide which was better. I got started reading and really couldn't stop—wanting to read more or continue on to the next hair-raising story. I like a book I can pick up and not put down and was really surprised how much this read kept me coming back for more. Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road certainly did it for me. From the umber-creepy to the tragically bittersweet, this anthology has it all.
A few of the stories represented in this anthology are; "The Barefoot Hero" by Timothy Fleming, "The Cenotaph" by Casey Wolf, "Take Two" by Kit St. Germain, "The Journey" by Megan Johns, "The Smile in Her Eyes" by John B Rosenman, and "Man Slaughter" by Lucille P. Robinson. These are just a few of the great shorts in this read.
I’m giving Writers on the Wrong Side of the Road a 4½ spider rating and recommending this anthology to any adult reader looking for something different. You can’t go wrong!
T Lane
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews