Creativity Brewing

You may have noticed I have not posted in here in a little while. While I haven't been active here, I have been actively writing! I am pleased to announce I will be publishing a collection of short stories on Amazon! You can pre-order today, a d when the book goes live on March 1, you will get it sent automatically to your Kindle account! Pre-order yours today!  Creativity Brewing available at Amazon -Kevin Barrick 

Prompt: “A gate left open, a bookshop, gold bars.” What a boring night. I was walking through the park when I got the text alert. Nothing big; just a sensor alarm at the bookshop. Despite the lasagna waiting for me in the fridge at home, I decided to check it out. I stuffed my phone back into my pocket and retraced my footsteps in the snow, pulling my scarf a bit tighter as a gust sliced through the icy evening. I listened to the sound of my feet crunching the snow. A welcome disturbance to the chilling silence that cloaked the park. The moon hid behind the clouds which gathered together for another bout of flurries. The flickering of the street lamp alone lit my path. Not that I needed it. The bookshop had been my home for quite some time ever since I inherited it from my uncle upon his passing. He had built this place from the ground up. He prided himself in that shamble of a store. Nevertheless, I kept it afloat for his sake. Business only just started picking up ...

Day 21 Prompt: “Where have you been?” The creaking of the porch swing lulled Lucy into a trance as she gazed out at the storm roiling in from the horizon. She reached a frail hand to the glass of iced tea beside her. A ring of condensation stained the chestnut tabletop, but her tired eyes barely took notice as flashes of lightning enraptured her. She saturated her parched mouth with a cool gulp of her beverage. She used to hate the stuff; “muddy water,” she used to call it. But her late husband would drink jugs of it as young newly weds. Even on the day he passed, she could recall brewing an especially strong pitcher of tea. Today would have been his birthday.  And so she drank. Not out of enjoyment, but out of remembrance. The ice clanked the sides of the glass as she set it back down, forming another ring. A warm breeze embraced her before moving on, kicking up a cyclone of dust down the driveway. Her weary eyes played tricks. Her exhausted soul invited the...

Day 20 Prompt: A creation myth using a thread and feathers. ATTN: My latest book is now available! Check it out! Creativity Brewing: 30 Short Stories Hand-Roasted to Perfection.  In the days when the skies were void and the lands were yet to be formed, there existed a great phoenix. Her plumes of bright orange feathers lit up the darkness that had engulfed our planet, reflecting off of the great expanse of ocean waves. Mother Phoenix emerged from the ashes of her dying planet and ventured throughout the cosmos in search of a refuge and home. Weary from her thousand-year journey, she descended upon Earth who was cloaked in water. Her fiery complexion hissed as she neared the surface, preventing her from resting upon the face of the waters. A feather landed in the deep. Searing heat met the refreshing cool of the ocean and an island emerged from their union. But this island was far to small for our Great Mother to rest upon, so she continued to hover over the rip...

Consider supporting my work by purchasing my new collection of flash fiction! " Creativity Brewing " The sounds of the jungle surrounded Mouse as she scurried through the underbrush. She had been scavenging for food the day before until she got stranded in a rainstorm that roiled through, barraging the land with bombs of rain. Nearing a storehouse of nuts vaulted within the trunk of a fallen tree, Mouse wriggled her way in and began packing ground nuts and tree nuts into her cheek. Thump. Mouse dropped the remainder of the nuts from her paws onto the ground and rushed to the knot to peer out. Thump. Thump. Emerging from behind the sun-kissed horizon clomped the magnificent Elephant, adorned in regal vines which swept the jungle floors with each gigantic stride. “Elephant!” Mouse shrieked, narrowly escaping Elephant’ heavy foot crashing into the log. Using the vines as a ladder, Mouse clambered up Elephant and situated herself behind the giant ears of her...

Day 15 Prompt: “With the tip of his paintbrush, he soaked up one of my tears.” Consider supporting my work by purchasing your own copy of my collection of flash fiction " Creativity Brewing ."  A thousand years ago a ghastly wizard snaked into my town. Worming his way into the throne, he became unlawful king over the kingdom once renowned for justice and peace.  Darkness was wrenched into our lives and survival was a daily fight. Our monies were snatched from our hands for his luxurious life, and people were collared in the dead of night to be slaves in his castle. Names were dissolved and we became merely known as peasants, workers for pleasure of the wizard. We lost our identity to his dastardly spells, fading into nothingness with each generation. 900 years ago I stood up to him. I faced him head on with a veracity unmatched in all the surrounding kingdoms. Everyone cowered in their thrones, praying they would not be the next town to be wiped nameless,...

Day 14 Prompt : " I wanted to fight. He wanted to finish his tea." She breathed in the aromatic scents wafting around her. The coffee brewing within the cafe. The crisp morning air. The flowers blossoming in boxes that hung from the railing. The beginnings of exhaust mingling into the otherwise clean breeze. She sipped on her espresso and peered off into the distance. Glinting with the rising sun loomed the Eiffle Tower on the horizon. Paris had been her calling for years, and she finally was able to escape away and explore the gem of the city, unburdened with university. Her study abroad semester in Madrid, Spain made her feel isolated, shackled to her books, and unable to venture out into the unknown. She booked this trip as her graduation gift to herself. Her only regret was that this was her last day of a 3-week excursion. She beckoned for another cup of coffee.  Her plane didn’t leave until evening, so she had no intention of bustling about. She wou...

Have you ever been held in an interstellar zoo? I only ask because you are staring at me with those wide eyes, pitying my poor soul. Sure, it’s cramped in here and the weather is hot. But what do you expect? We are traveling between the Five Stars to host live shows. We couldn’t possibly be staying in some upscale, state-of-the-art resort, now, could we?  It’s a nice life, you might like it. You’re still commiserating me. Stop it. I’m fine, really. What, with all the free food and free lodging in the greatest galaxies in the universe? What more could a man hope for? Ah, yes. I guess I am not so much of a man as I am a Riggotor: part human part Martian. And yes, I see you staring. These are my real eyes. Beautiful aren’t they? You think I couldn’t spy with my seven little eyes that you are ogling these sapphires? Why, they are from my human side, of course. Martians have a boring burnt red color for eyes, but my blessed ancestors from my father’s side have quite the varie...