Nibble on these morsels published recently in The Argyle Literary Magazine’s “gastronomy” issue
Earlier this month, a couple of my pieces were published in The Argyle Literary Magazine‘s special “gastronomy” issue. As the title of this themed issue makes clear, the stories, poems, and creative nonfiction pieces of this issue all have something to do with cooking or eating food.
I hope you’ll take a few minutes to read my contributions, which are companion pieces of a sort:
I hope you’ll also take the time to feast on some of the other delicious writings in this special issue and read more from The Argyle‘s previous issues.
‘Take chances in where you submit your writing and don’t count yourself out.’
To celebrate Hispanic Heritage Month (September 15 through October 15), I’m featuring some rising writers of Hispanic heritage in these Friday Five interviews. This week’s spotlight is on Melissa Flores Anderson, a Latiné writer and native Californian whose debut full-length short story collection, All and Then None of You, came out earlier this month from Cowboy Jamboree Press. This collection of 21 stories and a novella is praised for its portrayal of the “universal yearns, hopes, and griefs of everyday working people.” I’m about two-thirds of the way through the collection, and at every turn of the page I’m encountering surprising and intriguing prose, much as one might find unexpected sights on a drive along California’s back roads. Sights that make you want to pull over and have a look around.
Melissa Flores Anderson
Melissa’s flash and long-form fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry have appeared in over 50 literary magazines, anthologies, and reading series, including swamp pink, Chapter House, Roi Fainéant, and HAD. A reader and editor for Roi Fainéant Press, she also co-authored the 2025 novelette Roadkill(ELJ Editions) and the chapbook A Body in Motion (JAKE). Read on to learn more about Melissa’s new short story collection, how road trips and country music play a role in the book’s formation, her literary influences, how her Mexican American heritage informs her writing, and a fun, buggy Easter egg contained in the book.
Why verisimilitude matters in all forms of fiction (with examples)
Note: If you don’t want to wade through this entire post, feel free to go directly to the examples near the end of this post. – AC
I was reviewing some early chapters of a work in progress recently when I discovered a problem with the text that–while perhaps insignificant to the overarching plot–could ruin the story’s credibility and my credibility as a writer if I didn’t fix it.
The novel is set in the early 1980s, and music plays a significant role in it. In one early chapter, I reference a song that, when I was writing the chapter, I was certain was ubiquitous on FM radio during the time frame of this portion of the novel. But as often happens when I rely on my increasingly foggy memory, I did not remember correctly.
‘I am trying to get over a bad habit of submitting every piece of fiction I write.’
Gary Finnegan‘s short story “Limbo Nights,” which won first place in the Frazzled Lit 2025 short story competition, has been described as “a word-perfect gallop through the highs and lows of a post-Leaving Cert trip, and the swift transition from irresponsible child to semi-responsible adult-in-training.” The story is also praised for its “Great imagery and dialogue,” and I agree wholeheartedly.
An accomplished journalist as well as a writer of fiction, Gary is based in Kildare, Ireland. His writing has appeared in The Hooghly Review, The London Magazine, Litro, Flash Fiction Magazine,Roi Fainéant, and elsewhere. Read on to learn more about the inspiration for “Limbo Nights,” Gary’s upcoming projects, his advice to other writers, and more.
‘… culture shapes identity and defines possibility’ and ‘teaches us who we are, what to believe, and how to dream.’
National Hispanic Heritage Month is upon us once again in the USA, and as has become my custom, I plan to devote quite a bit of my reading time to literature by people of Hispanic heritage this month.
I think it’s important to appreciate, learn from, and celebrate the contributions of cultures beyond our mainstream American culture. I agree with the words of actress, director, and producer America Ferrera, who writes in her introduction to America Like Me: Reflections on Life Between Cultures, “culture shapes identity and defines possibility” and “teaches us who we are, what to believe, and how to dream. We should all be able to look at the world around us and see a reflection of our true lived experiences. Until then, the American story will never be complete.”
