Please help me remember the title and author of a short story I read maybe 15 years ago. A handicapped woman, living with her sister and her sister's family, sees a man in church she feels quite sure is the devil. In order to get away from him, she struggles to regain the physical independence she had given up. (She had gone into a wheelchair because walking was possible, but too painful.) She does manage to become self-sufficient enough to move out on her own--and then wonders if it was worth it, after all. I am almost sure the author was Italian. Can anyone help?
posted by uans on Nov 16, 2009 - 0 answers

Short story cover letters: How do I indicate I have actually read the journal I am submitting to , or do I do so, at all? I am a Canadian who wants to publish short fiction in the far larger market in the U.S. Every literary journal’s submission guidelines urge you to read at least one copy of their magazine before submitting. [more inside]
posted by uans on Sep 8, 2009 - 16 answers

Help me remember the name of this short story I read in a humor anthology in the late 70's. I remember the title as "A Visit to the Cream-Puff Factory," but all my attempts to find it again have been unsuccessful. [more inside]
posted by oozy rat in a sanitary zoo on May 21, 2009 - 2 answers

This question about eggs reminded me of a short story I read years and years ago. It features a kitten and breakfast. [more inside]
posted by maudlin on May 13, 2009 - 4 answers

I'm looking for the title of a French short story, in which a father kills his son. [more inside]
posted by Isingthebodyelectric on Jan 29, 2009 - 5 answers

ID That Story: novel (novella? short story?) in which a man is standing in line. Pretty much the entire story is his experience while waiting in line. It's a future/dystopia story. The man is waiting in line to make a complaint. He falls in love with the girl in front of him, though she's not allowed to turn and look at him. It's a parable about overpopulation. It was probably written in the 60s or 70s. That's all I remember.
posted by grumblebee on Nov 20, 2008 - 8 answers

Short Story Filter. I remember a short story that I read in a sci-fi story anthology back in the mid 90's that I haven't been able to find since. There are a group of three boys, one of them substantially younger, who play out in a big field. One of the older boys tells the younger boy, as a joke, that if you look through the hole in the middle of a stone, you can see into another world of some kind. Mysterious circumstances then occur. [more inside]
posted by lockle on Oct 23, 2008 - 2 answers

Short Story Askme: I read a short dystopian story many years ago set in a run-down, post apocalyptic future. A queue of people line up on a street to spit at a painting. The painting represents all the problems of the past. It is implied that the painting is The Mona Lisa. What is the story?
posted by bollockovnikov on Sep 25, 2008 - 2 answers

What are some good short stories in which time passes extremely quickly? [more inside]
posted by whir on Sep 1, 2008 - 12 answers

Help me remember the name of this short story about a draft dodger in Vietnam. [more inside]
posted by BusyBusyBusy on May 15, 2008 - 8 answers

Help me identify these four short horror stories, based on descriptions of their plots and endings. SPOILERS AHEAD! [more inside]
posted by Faint of Butt on Jan 29, 2008 - 3 answers

Help me identify this short story! It is a story told from the perspective of an infant as he is free-falling through the garbage chute of a multi-level housing complex after being discarded by his teenage mother. The story is divided into nine parts, with each part signifying the baby's arrival at each floor until he finally reaches the trash compactor at the ground level. [more inside]
posted by sansgras on Jan 16, 2008 - 4 answers

What is the name of this short story that I am thinking of? [more inside]
posted by jModug on Jan 6, 2008 - 6 answers

Short Story Filter: I'm trying to track down a wonderful short story I read maybe 15 years ago. It focuses on a couple struggling with a dysfunctional marital and/or sexual relationship. The story is set somewhere in a snowy/icy climate, and the central conceit of the story is that the husband needs to free their car which is stuck in the snow. As the story unfolds, the author describes the back-and-forth rocking of the car as he slams it from "drive" into "reverse" and back again, and it becomes clear that the movement of the car is a powerful sexual metaphor. Finally the car rolls free and the dramatic release seems to provide hope for the relationship. Does this sound familiar to anybody? I thought the title of the story was "Unstuck," but Googling has led me nowhere.
posted by AngerBoy on Dec 11, 2007 - 5 answers

I've written some fiction. Now I want to see if it's any good. [more inside]
posted by reenum on Oct 14, 2007 - 7 answers

[ObscureSciFiFilter] Help me identify these science fiction stories please? [more inside]
posted by herichon on Jul 8, 2007 - 15 answers

ShortStoryFilter: Looking for a short story where Americans go on vacation and get killed. [more inside]
posted by mwang1028 on May 6, 2007 - 3 answers

Trying to remember a sci-fi short story - I used to read Nebula Award collections when I was a kid and this one was in one years collection, but I am pretty sure it did not win. I've been trying to figure out what it was for years now. I'll tell you what I remember from it inside here... [more inside]
posted by darkpony on May 2, 2007 - 12 answers

Can you name short stories, preferably from the classics, about a birthday? [more inside]
posted by dov on Apr 13, 2006 - 5 answers