The International Writer's Magazine: Our Tenth Year - Summer 2009 - Welcome

Destinations: Travel stories & guides

Opinion: Politics & Issues

Lifestyles: Ways of living

La Quebrada: Acapulco's Most Iconic Attraction - Habeeb Salloum Ask a half dozen people in Acapulco, what the most important attraction was in their city. Everyone without hesitation answered "the Cliff Divers at La Quebrada. You must see them". Being There: Sunland Racetrack and Casino - Lizette Espinosa Creased wranglers paired with pointy cowboy boots, a big round belt buckle, and a matching cowboy hat, little, old ladies with binoculars trying to read the TV.s with racing numbers... Scenic Santa Fe An Enchanted City Any Time of Year - Jane Cassie The wipers clear the fresh cache of snow from our windshield. "What’s with this? I thought we’d be escaping this white stuff." Maw, Paw and No Weans Judith Moore Of all the travelling I have done , January's Caribbean cruise must rank as one of the more bizarre experiences, bringing out the worst in me Hitch-hiking without a map Robert Cottingham To make things worse, I don’t have any euros, and what’s left of my Czech money I need to last till Friday. So any form of public transport is out of the question. London to Ladakh Rebecca Stonehill The barman is staring at me. The intensity of his gaze is unnerving and I look away. ‘I know you,’ he says. Samos on 25 Ouzos a day John M. Edwards "Guard your life!" the olive-skinned Greek hotel owner implored me with evident passion. He was not talking about my "crazy" plan to take a boat over to Kusadasi, Turkey Best Laid Plans in Laos Christina Hoag When I travel, I make a point of doing what the locals do as much as possible... But sometimes you’re better off just being a tourist. Reflections of a Backpacker Dan Cann in Australia I was on holiday. I did not have to be anywhere, go to a job, get stuck in traffic, go shopping, or keep an appointment.

The Corporate Bookshop Chris Mills The bookshop as a museum: when is a bookshop no longer a bookshop? Or bookselling the chain store way: the advent of the lifestyle destination Michael Jackson 1958-2009 James Campion From the start, Michael Jackson was the bread-winning, bacon-hauling strength and breath of the Jackson Five How to Steal an Election Dean Borok Sometimes elections are stolen. If the people of a country determine that their votes are not being fairly represented, they have the inalienable right to overturn the result by any means Reading - New York Matt Allison I had Naked Lunch in my backpack. Waiting for a subway in Queens I opened this novel and read the first few pages...  Behind Closed Curtains: Stories of a Never-Never-Land Kimberly E. Ruth This story begins with Mother, on a subway train, and it ends in a ten-year-old’s bedroom. Actually it is a game, controlled by you. Drugs, Values & the World of Sport - James Morford Contemporary athletes are depicted as pampered money-mad celebrities elevated to God-like status The Influence of Orwell on Writers Workshops Chris Roberts An investigation into the particular practices of a single writers workshop/discussion site Aung San Suu Kyi turns 64 David Calleja Daw Aung San Suu Kyi turned 64 years old. Instead of being amongst loved ones and the millions of people in Burma who revere her for standing up for human and civil rights, she is in isolation

Summer in Toronto Tabytha Towe Yesterday was an atrocious scorcher and I had the best day off work here ever so far. I got to hang out with lovely friends all day Exploitation Anomaly Jones The economic recession has hit me right in the groin, and if my failed attempts at employment continue, I stand to get hit in the groin over and over again. Hubbard's Cupboard John M Edwards I entered the forbidden zone and was immediately greeted by a stunning woman with long black hair and wide friendly eyes Parting The Red Sea – in 1980 David Russell What we were about to embark on was a process never done before with such a limited "commercial" budget and time constraint. Check-in@CheckpointCharlie John M. Edwards Separated from his tour group in East Berlin, a young college student from New York gets seriously lost and says, "Ich bin ein Berliner!" (I am a doughnut!) Coonoor & Ooty relics of the Raj Marianne de Nazareth After a hiatus of five years, we decided to hit the road and ‘do’ Ooty (Ootacamund) & Coonoor for 3 days. Chris Flaherty documentary exposes Ethiopia’s political vulnerability David Calleja The ruling Ethiopian Revolutionary Patriot’s Democratic Front won elections amid allegations of electoral fraud Madness & the Valuation of And Chris Roberts It defies definition, deftly evades categorization and will put lastingly before the reader And’s derivative value Denmark -Aarhus getaway Natalya Popova Looking to get far away from busy cities to get exposed to extreme culture & art it was Denmark that ticked all the boxes. Expanded Horizons MIA

FICTION plus

FICTION Original Shorts

REVIEWS Film & Books

My Father’s Tallis Jenny Wright Smells can stir up old memories. Long forgotten and sometimes wistful memories that we wish would remain buried. It was like that one Yom Kippur. Come With Me Tonight Randall Pretzer I told her to come with me tonight. I told her I know the roads were always bright but if she gave me a chance I could show her the light. She wasn’t buying. Gingerbread Men Steve Slatter First, ask Mummy to turn on the oven to 170. You might have to wait for her to do this because she’s always busy. Thanksgiving: Kinds of Love Martin Green It rained the day before Thanksgiving. This worried us because our youngest son, Gene, who was 21, was driving from Berkeley to spend the holiday weekend with us in Sacramento The Luncheon Rebecca Stonehill It was a muggy day on this, the 40th wedding anniversary of Edwin and Frances Durrant. If they were being honest with one another, they would both have preferred to have been elsewhere. Waiting Marcia Dumler "I love dust," she said to herself as she sat back in the reclining chair. "Dust, you can count on it always being there." Galapagos one Gordon Ray Bourgon Q hid behind a fat willow, its bark scarred with ancient declarations of love and obedience. She watched Them arrive out of a smoky western sky. She ran a hand over her swollen belly.

The Purple Maiden Chapter 1: A Crude Awakening Hotel Babilonia, Vigo. James Skinner Pedro was drying off in the shower when his wife came bursting into the bathroom. ‘There’s a woman outside screaming...' An English Setter in New York Robert Scott Leyse takes Zuke for a walk Zuke's an English Setter – the wildest, most spirited, bouncing-off-the-walls-with-energy breed of dog on earth; and, at eleven months, is in the prime of exuberant disregardful-of-authority puppydom Single-action Bookmaker Richard Bell Returning to consciousness, Dave became aware of a dull, throbbing pain at the base of his skull. Confessions of a New York City Street Peddler Dr. Howard Karlitz It's February, 1980, and David Gordon is standing in front of a class of delinquent kids in a South Brooklyn juvenile detention center trying to teach reading. While patiently guiding them through a short story called "Young Pablo Picasso

The Mad World of "Weird Pulp Fiction" - John M Edwards Is H.P. Lovecraft scarier than E.A. Poe? Hell yeah, says paparazzo-of-the-paranormal John M. Edwards, who beats up the dead horse deeming it a tie—and drives out to myth-shrouded Providence, RI, to prove why... American Hunger by Richard Wright - Jessica Schneider Imagine reading a great classic novel like Betty Smith’s A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, and then reading "a follow up story" about Francie Nolan in later years. How can a writer expect to have a successful follow up of what already is a great work? Miss Understanding: My Year in Agony By Lara Fox Callum Graham review Anya spending too much time solving other people’s problems and not enough time sorting out her own life Terminator Salvation (2009) Daniel Cann I am a fan of the original and learning that this one was to be directed by ‘Charlie’s Angels: Full Throttle’s’ McG as well as a star turn from Helena Bonham Carter (What? Merchant Ivory meets ‘The Terminator’) I had my misgivings. Eastwood is Eastwood Gabriela Davies Some films are just a collection of clichés. These films can disappoint, they can comfort, they can bore, or they can turn everything on its head and surprise us Night Worlds by Lisa J Smith Elle Mackintosh The quest to become popular, the struggles of growing up, the hatred of the actions of those you love, and the difficulty in getting used to your new found magical powers.

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