For the first month of Ricardo and Felicity’s affair, they greeted one another at every stolen rendezvous with a kiss–a lengthy, ravenous kiss, Ricardo lapping and sucking at Felicity’s mouth as if she were a giant cage-mounted water bottle and he were the world’s thirstiest gerbil. – Molly Ringle, winner of the 2010 Bulwer-Lytton Fiction Contest.

To those human beings in whom I have a stake I wish suffering, being forsaken, sickness, maltreatment, humiliation—I wish that that profound self-contempt, the torture of mistrust of oneself, and the misery of him who is overcome, not remain unknown to them: I have no pity for them because I wish them the only thing which can prove today whether one has worth or not—that one holds out. – Jereme Dean at Weak Signal

I’m struck by how some of us are literally siphoning the flesh and blood from the rest of us, segregating ourselves into beings so calorically and structurally different that paleontologists of the distant future might well classify our fossilized skeletons as separate species. – Julia Whitty on population at Mother Jones.

When I die I regret the dieting
and literary theory. I am just

oh my god one rasberry left. Strange
how we had different experiences. – Mellissa Broder at PANK.

We walked down the block to grab a coffee. On our way back to the car, we passed Dave walking toward us on the sidewalk across the street. I didn’t make eye contact. I slipped my arm in Aaron’s, kept my gaze straight ahead. – Elizabeth Ellen on Dave Eggers at Bookslut

I wanted something else from the Ignatiuses of the world. Something much more than hugs. – Giancarlo DiTrapano on A Confederacy of Dunces at The Paris Review Blog.

The architectural construct of one man’s life – his friends, family, and reputation – would be consumed so fast he’d gag on the smoke before getting the chance to put out the flames. Theresa Holden at Knee Jerk

Work to respect one another, and to support one another, regardless of whether they like one another’s writing. – from A.D. Jameson’s inspiring treatise on community, health and support at Big Other.

God is love believe that but dude your mama is seriously fat. – from the poem I am going to have sex with these people appearing in Adam Robison and other poems by Adam  Robinson.

i mean, you’re going into battle, you don’t want to be conservative. that might get you killed before you can dish out some skull-crushing blows. you want to be that guy who does double-damage. you want to be that guy that everyone runs away from, that they blow trumpets about. like sauron. – David Peak on Amon Amarth at Ghost Factory