“The Camelopard,” “The Beast in the Jungle,” and “Worms in the End” by Ed Shacklee
A clawed, carnivorous canard,
the mocking-voiced camelopard
is partly leopard, partly camel,
wholly myth and maybe mammal.
“The Inventive Décor” by Cheryl McPhilimy
Their little Audrey played dolls all alone.
Upstairs she went with a dried-out soup bone.
“Ms. Urnpulp” by Sam Kuban
Not quite financially stable
Never was she ever able
To purchase a barn for the not quite bought horses
Her pleading through marriages led to divorces
And old age approached with a bang
“I Watered Everything” by Aaron DeMuth
I dreamt that Vikings sacked and pillaged,
razed to coals a conquered village
“Lit Major Grad School Blues” and “Lives of the Poets” by Karen Greenbaum-Maya
I dreamt that Vikings sacked and pillaged,
razed to coals a conquered village
“One Night at the Villa Dementia” by Tina Jens and Martin Mundt
There once was an aardvark demure
He crept through dusky crepuscular
For his task was to visit
Sir Necrotic Despot
And deliver a much-needed cure
“New Arrival” by James Dorr
She was new to the vampire game.
You could tell she was unsure of
trajectories, splash patterns.
“The Kraken” by Ed Shacklee
Though krakens are a slimy lot, they’ll freely lend a hand
to sailor boys grown bored with building castles in the sand
who’ve never peeked at maps with monsters drawn just past the land –
“The Afternoon Party” Peter Anderson
Afternoon bacchanal.
Champagne dissipates.
Eleanor faints.