Curated by Costiuc

Click here to see Arya enjoying her Goober treat. Click here to read an interview about my story "The Yellow Speck. " Story: A Scandal in Bohemia Author: Arthur Conan Doyle Genre: Private Detective Summary: Some people are hard to forget. Often, it’s romantic. In today’s story, Sherlock Holmes is asked to recover a sensitive photograph, but the case becomes more about the woman who captures his at...

Click here to see Arya in her new park. Click here to see Daria and me at the Arizona Author Book Festival. Story: A Retrieved Reformation Author: O. Henry Genre: Crime Suspense Summary: Can people really change? If you think about those you’ve known for years, you might say no. But think about yourself. Would you want people judging you by the way you were a year ago? In today’s story, a safecrac...

Click here to see Arya resting on our new carpet. Click here to see Daria and me at the Polish festival. Story: The Lost Innocence of Ernesto Guillén Author: Tom Larsen Genre: Police Procedural Summary: Living in the United States (and other Western countries), we have a clear picture of what justice looks like. But today’s story takes place in rural Ecuador, where justice is a lot less official....

Click here to see how Arya packed her toys. Click here to read Nikita's story "A Yellow Speck" (about a ten-minute read.) Story: Creativity Author: John M. Floyd Genre: Psychological Suspense Summary: You know the kind of people who act like they’re concerned when they're really after juicy details? That’s the person we meet in today’s story: a woman who asks too many questions and suffers the con...

Click here to see how Arya prioritizes a work-life balance. Story: Ice Sailor Author: Laird Long Genre: Historical Mystery Summary: Some people don’t keep secrets, they trade them. In today’s story, a crewman is found dead, and Henry Hudson has to figure out who’s actually on his side as his ship sits trapped in ice. Where You’ll Find Nikita 📝 “Drop In and Write” Writing Group Giving feedback, sh...

Click here to see Arya's new coat. Story: The Getaway Author: O. F. Lewis Genre: Psychological Suspense Summary: Sometimes when you try to escape a difficult situation, you end up someplace worse. In today’s story, two prisoners spend months digging a tunnel out of the yard, only to break through into a new kind of bad idea. Where You’ll Find Nikita 📝 “Drop In and Write” Writing Group Giving feed...

Click here to see Arya's new blanket. Story: $500,000 Reward Author: Melville Davisson Post Genre: Hardboiled Summary: How often do we get bamboozled by first impressions? More than we’d like. In today’s story, a law enforcement agent meets a homeless person and assumes he’s dealing with a harmless nobody. Then the homeless man opens his mouth and, well, let’s just say the agent learns something....

Pupdate Story: My Christmas Burglary Author: Arthur Thomas Quiller-Couch Genre: Psychological Suspense Summary: Does anyone actually want to “get what they deserve”? We all hope for more grace than we’ve earned, and we protest when the consequences feel too harsh. In today’s story, a burglar breaks into a collector’s home on Christmas night and gets something he couldn’t have imagined—or felt he d...

Pupdate Story: What Do You Mean—Americans? Author: Wilbur Daniel Steele Genre: Literary Suspense Summary: Ever listen to old men grumbling about how the country’s going to hell, kids have no respect, and nothing’s like it used to be? Usually, it’s just confusion: they don’t get the clothes, slang, or music, so they assume the world is ending. But sometimes it’s deeper: a fear of anything unfamilia...

Story: A Trap for the Unwary Author: Agatha Christie Genre: Crime Thriller Summary: Ever had someone drag you back to past? That’s Olga Stormer’s problem in one of Agatha Christie’s earliest stories. On stage, Olga is a star. Off stage, a blackmailer tries to make a buck off her past life. But Olga doesn’t blink: she protects herself with the performance of a lifetime. Where You’ll Find Nikita 📝...