I WANT TO TAKE THIS MOMENT…
…to thank everyone whose been coming to this here Substack every Thursday to read “Small Town Summer.” This is a series of short stories I wrote during Lockdown 2020 when I found myself, as we all did, with a lot of time and creativity on hand.
Though I just accomplished a major life goal of completing my master’s degree in English Literature, I haven’t had the luxury of so much creative time this summer as I did four years ago. Still, I’ve managed to put out a podcast every Saturday night, as well as a weekly newsletter, VIDEO STREET VIDEO STORE, on Tuesdays. All this being said, writing, for me, takes more time — a lot more time — than any other creative pursuit, and for this reason, I’m taking a break this week from publishing a new story about the trials and tribulations of small town folk in Viscauga, Alabama. I have one more finished story, and it’s a great one — probably my favorite sketch of the whole lot. Look for it right here next week. Beyond that, I’m working on another story to post the following week. And while I hate to be that guy who gives my audience something to read and then tells them to do something, I just gotta be that guy. If you haven’t yet, please, ya know…
…and better yet, COMMENT, and tell me you want to hear more hijinks of the kooky characters I create. Your words really encourage me to keep going in a summer that is fraught with sick pets, long work days, and bank overdraft fees.
In the meantime, I’ve gone back and included audio of me reading each story on the podcast series I did in Summer 2020. Find them in the story links below, or just stay on this page and enjoy them!
Chapter 1: “The Witherspoon Meteorite”
Chapter 3: “Sully’s Video Weird” (Part 1 and Part 2)
I’ve edited both parts of the story together so you can enjoy in one, long leisurely listen!
Chapter 4: “In the Dark Woods, the House Underground”
Going forward, I’d like to write several more stories, and complete a full summer cycle of Viscauga episodes that I can perhaps publish in an actual book, complete with illustrations, interstitial sketches, and maybe even the complete box scores from the Pee-Wee baseball season at Purcell Park. Again, your vocal support really encourages me, so if you think more writing is worth doing, please COMMENT and let me know!