From a mysteriously life-changing and erotic coffee shop in Austin, Texas to college baseball diamonds in upstate New York, these tales transport the reader into lush fictional landscapes where compelling characters are thrown into predicaments that allow for philosophical debate as well as pure escapism.

*

“Write a story a month,” Larah said. We were brunching on a picnic table outside Wheatsville, on South Lamar.

My mouth full of a Coolhaus Double Chocolate Chip Cookie + Dirty Mint Chip Ice Cream sandwich, I said, “Hmmm?”

“One story a month, January through October,” Larah said. “Then publish it by December.”

“You don’t know how hard that would be,” I said, swallowing. “Besides, there’s football to watch, and beer to drink, and parties and shows and stuff. This is Austin! No one’s gonna sit there and write a story a month while living in Austin.”

“Oh,” she said. “I thought you were a writer.”

And so the gauntlet was thrown.

This 10-story (and 2-essay) collection of literary fiction is the result of that challenge. A story a month, all of them having been excruciatingly scrutinized by the infamous Austin Writing Workshop, and so...y’know. There’s that. Deadlines do seem to work miracles for productivity, but they do not guarantee quality—only you can decide on that. So, I hope you enjoy reading them as much as I have enjoyed writing them.