Jim Snyder

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Jun, 2020

Stories (9)

9 Stories

258 karma pts

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“The Return to Innocence” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #71

Most children—and in fact, most adults—were fearful of traveling too far into the woods, for no one quite knew what lie deep within. Jacob, however, had never been afraid of the long trek through the winding, barely visible paths almost completely concealed by underbrush and overgrowth. To the untrained eye, perhaps the narrow trails were nothing more than slight spots where sunlight never shone, but Jacob knew better. He had visited these woods several times in his youth. As he had grown older, though, he had lost interest in the trip, and ...

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“The Breaking of the Bread” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #70

The overpowering smell of raw sewage began to fill the nostrils of the young Marcus Trent as he sloshed his way through the maze of passageways beneath the ancient city. He looked over to his best friend, Avedor, and started to shake his head. There was his friend, olive skin glowing with a light bronze tone as the dancing flames of the torch flicked shadows all about the granite tunnel. Clearly they had made a wrong turn somewhere, which had become somewhat of a mantra for the day itself. Avedor’s eyes were beginning to run as the stench co...

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“The Elephant at the Table” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #69

Marcus opened his eyes groggily, reaching up to rub them almost instantly, using the backs of his hands to wipe away the last vestiges of sleep as he let out a long, loud yawn. The room was far too bright for his liking, and he began to wonder if he had overslept. Shooting his eyes over to where his alarm clock should have been, and instead finding a wall, Marcus shot upright and swiftly turned to investigate his surroundings. There, along the opposite wall, laying just below the other window was another bed and the whole reason his room see...

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“Again, Once More” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #68

Robert could suddenly remember the fascination with everything he had seen as a young child, the wonder the entire world had held for him that somehow had been lost as the luster of daily life grew mundane and repetitive. Somehow the newness of everything, taking in every tiny detail, marveling at the beauty in everything had been lost to the years behind. He stared out across the tops of the verdant white pines, their giant trunks of medium brown reaching ever skyward, their branches splayed out wide with the most vibrant green needl...

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“A Meal at the Market” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #67

Although the light blue substance frothing and bubbling in the large vat was labeled “soup” in the common galactic tongue, there clearly had not been a common galactic consensus on what, precisely, qualified as soup. Xera took a deep whiff of the steam rising from the pot and almost instantly regretted her decision. The fumes were hot and acrid, burning the hairs in her nose. Taking a step back, she waved her hand and looked over to Commander Jackson. “You can’t be serious. This is supposed to be shore leave, not a science experiment!” Com...

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“Six Separate Sins” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #66

“I’ve gathered the six of us here tonight because one of us has not been telling the truth. Tonight, it all comes out, or one of us dies.” I heard the protestations of everyone sitting on the rocks around me, but I was more interested in the moon. Still hanging low in the sky, three-quarters full, yet able to cast an eerie glow over the desert I found myself in. The many varied shapes of cacti, arms stretching skyward, pointy needles ready to pierce the unsuspecting all looked like strangely comical observers to the awkward predicament we ...

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“Both Ways” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #65

There was a screech echoing through the air with a ferocity that surely no mortal had heard, much more like the sound of a thousand demons crying out in pain all at once than anything else it might otherwise have been. Andrew stood still, frightened. He had never experienced such an ear-splitting sound in his short nine years of life and he almost certain never would again. His older brother, Braydon, had assured him for repeated years that this night was the one night humans could count on demons and vampires and werewolves a...

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“By the Light of the Moon...” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #64

“Look, Jacob, I’m telling you, this is all your fault! If you hadn’t brought that girl home, we wouldn’t be hiding in these basement caskets!” Tina whisper-yelled at him, her voice carrying her annoyance across the room with nearly the same force as the howling winds they’d run through to get into the crypt. “Mom and Dad told you that dating was against the rules!” “How’s it my fault she saw me without my shirt on in gym class and decided she wanted the hot goth kid all to herself?” Jacob called back, a tone of derision hanging heavily on ...

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“Fallen Memories” by Jim Snyder

Submitted to Contest #63

By the time I stepped outside, the leaves were on fire. I braced myself in the open door frame on the side of my garage, looking out into the backyard, barely remembering I was about to ask my wife to come inspect the nearly finished spice rack she had been asking for over the past few weeks. It was only the scent of slightly burned oaken sawdust rising from the flecks covering my arms and t-shirt that reminded me, or perhaps it was the smell of the burning oak leaves she was walking away from, heading back to the patio table.&nbsp...

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Author bio

Author, graphic designer, and podcast host, Jim Snyder is a student of the human condition and a communication major. His first novel, End of Games, will be available late Fall 2021 through Amazon and Barnes & Noble. The Call of a Serpent God coming Winter 2021/2022. Facebook, Instagram, & Twitter: @jlsauthor Join the writing tip fun with him on TikTok: @jlsauthor Personal Website: jameslsnyder.online