The Write Launch

The Write Launch

The Write Launch

The Write Launch

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Stephen Coates

Stephen Coates comes from New Zealand, but is currently living in Japan. His stories have appeared in The Write Launch, Sky Island Journal, Landfall, Takahe and elsewhere.

Missing Pieces

My uncle was there. He was angry.
“Look at yourself,” he said, punctuating his words with his finger. “Pathetic. Grown man, fooling around with kids’ stuff. House looks like a bomb site. You’ll never get a woman in a dump like this, boy.”
I sat squarely in the straight-backed chair, feet planted, shoulders pressed against the wooden slats. Chin up, eyes front, not moving a muscle.
Short Story
Issue 67, November 2022
Issues Archive

In the Pines

“Some said she was surrounded by a glow like pale fire. Some said she was wearing a tattered wedding gown, hair wild and bedraggled. Some—teenage boys, mostly—said that she was naked. But none of that was true. She was just ordinary.” “You saw her?”
Short Story
Issue 58, February 2022
Issues Archive

Stephen Coates

Stephen Coates comes from New Zealand, but is currently living in Japan. His stories have appeared in The Write Launch, Sky Island Journal, Landfall, Takahe and elsewhere.

Missing Pieces

My uncle was there. He was angry.
“Look at yourself,” he said, punctuating his words with his finger. “Pathetic. Grown man, fooling around with kids’ stuff. House looks like a bomb site. You’ll never get a woman in a dump like this, boy.”
I sat squarely in the straight-backed chair, feet planted, shoulders pressed against the wooden slats. Chin up, eyes front, not moving a muscle.
Short Story
Issue 67, November 2022
Issues Archive

In the Pines

“Some said she was surrounded by a glow like pale fire. Some said she was wearing a tattered wedding gown, hair wild and bedraggled. Some—teenage boys, mostly—said that she was naked. But none of that was true. She was just ordinary.” “You saw her?”
Short Story
Issue 58, February 2022
Issues Archive
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"Imagination and Creativity transport us to fictional worlds, broaden our understanding of differences among people, expand our knowledge of the environment around us, and give us insight into our innermost self."
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"Imagination and Creativity transport us to fictional worlds, broaden our understanding of differences among people, expand our knowledge of the environment around us, and give us insight into our innermost self."
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