John Steckley

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Sep, 2021

Stories (53)

53 Stories

1088 karma pts

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“A Picture Changes Lives” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #258

Desmond never learned about the makings of a good relationship between husband and wife when he was growing up.  His parents often argued day and night, with their loudest of voices. What he remembered best about that were those occasions when he was lying in bed trying to sleep, and there was a rumbling of voices from his parents’ room. Then his mother would utter the argument crashing words, “Maybe I should have married George rather than you. He would not have treated me as badly as you do.” Then there w...

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“A Tragic Hero?” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #257

It was time in town for the election of the mayor and the regional representatives. The mayor had significant power over the elected underlings in this town. One main reason for that was that the family that owned by far the largest factory in town, the Montagues, who employed over 150 people, also pretty much owned the mayor as well. They had a method of doing this which had long been foolproof. They would sponsor a meeting in the largest room in their factory, in which those wanting to be elected to the position, would ...

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“It All Depends On What Team You Are On ” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #256

It was the last game of the season, and it meant the league championship for the winning team. The two teams were very competitive, especially with each other, and there were more penalties in their games against each other than any other matchup in the league.  It was the last minute of the third period. George, one of the stars of the Grant Street Gophers was on a breakaway heading towards the opposition net. They were behind by one goal.  He slowed down somewhat in order to plan most carefully how he was going to score...

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“Maybe We Will” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #253

Clara spoke for the two of them when she exclaimed “I wish that we could stay here forever. We are newly retired now, and we could do it if we wanted to.” Frank replied by saying “We have wanted to go to Iceland for years, and now we are here, and it is more beautiful than I had even imagined it would be. And it seems that everyone we meet speaks English. We hadn’t anticipated that. Then there is the yogurt – Icelandic skyr. The skyr is the limit. And then, of course, there are the elves and their houses.&n...

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“I Think I'm Being Followed” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #252

It all started a few days ago. I do not want to tell anyone, as they will think that I am being paranoid, or just plain crazy. I do not think that I am the first, possibly the second for other reasons. I just want this issue to be resolved. On Monday, I had my first ‘vision’ as I now call it while I was walking back home from work as I always do every afternoon. It’s only about three miles between workplace and home and I can do with the exercise. But it is mainly because I like walking, as it is the best stimul...

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“His Last Written Work” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #251

His Last Written Work The man known as a child by the name Eric, but who changed it as an adult, was writing as fast as he could to create a greater change. He had great trouble breathing these days and was worried that this would be the one book of his that would never got finished, that tuberculosis would not make such an achievement possible. He sat up on his hospital bed writing most of his waking hours. Maybe in a day or two the book would be completed. He still had hope, despite the deterioration of his physical con...

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“Who Is This Writer?” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #250

Who is this Writer? The writing professor had asked for John to stay after class as he had a “special assignment” for him. John wondered what it could be. His marks were pretty good so far, and he didn’t want to do something that might lower his grade. “John, I’m sure that you are wondering what my ‘special assignment’ is for you. First off, I want to tell you that I think that you write well. I know that you want to be a reporter, so I thought I would give you this assignment to help you take a step forward towards your ...

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“Lost and Found” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #249

Discovering that I am Lost           I am so lost. I shouldn’t be surprised by that though. Not knowing what I am doing or why I am doing it is an increasing part of my life these days. This kind of ‘what am I doing and why am I doing it’ began a few years back when I turned 70 years of age. I would open the refrigerator door, and have no idea what it was I was looking for. I would stare and stare and eventually would give up and shut the refrigerator door. ...

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“Late But Still Great” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #249

Hank is Worried About Being Late for an Important Date Why is it that I can never find something I am looking for when I really need it? In this case it is my formal shoes.  I’m not old and forgetful as my father is fast becoming.  I seem to be way ahead of my aging with this aspect of life. The only shoes I can find are my old running shoes that I wear every day. That is not something that I should wear when going for a job interview in a hospital.  I need to find my formal shoes that I only wear going to a play or ...

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“This is Going to be an Adventure.” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #247

This is Going to Be an AdventureDiary Entry #1 – The Project I haven’t written a diary since I was 12 years old and experiencing new things at a friend’s cottage. This one will have a double purpose – to remind me of that experience, and, with a little good fortune, to tell others, students and colleagues, of what I have discovered with this project. I don’t know what I will find, or whether I will find anything. It is going to be an adventure at the very least. My studies as an archaeologist have been limited to analyzing other pe...

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“The Game Became Serious” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #246

The Game Became Serious They were two teenage Canadian boys who had moved into the deep south of Oklahoma in order for their father to get a new job that paid way more than the work he did previously. It was difficult for the boys to fit in, as their way of speaking was different from that of the locals, and they were big fans of hockey, and no other sport. There was no one they could talk to about their favourite sport.           Concerning the latter, they had taken apart two...

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“A Family Tradition in the Sky” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #245

Ralph’s grandfather Jack had long been his hero. More than anything else, he liked to hear of his grandfather’s research when he was at university. Before he retired, Jack had been a high school science teacher, and his area of greatest interest had been astronomy. It still was. His literally stellar research essay that had earned him his Bachelor of Science and the enduring respect of his professors at university, had been on the subject of astronomy, with an emphasis on comets. Grandfather Jack had a special relationshi...

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“A Dangerous Picture to Take” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #244

My long-time friend James was looking very down-trodden these days. I did not feel that I could ask him about it, as he very much did not like to talk about his emotions. He had been like that since the two of us were teenagers in high school. When I came over to visit with him and his wife Ethel, I thought that I could see the cause of his unhappiness. Ethel was treating him badly, making cutting remarks about his job and the way that he dressed, among other things. This was definitely not something that he would talk to...

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“They Taught Me to Speak” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #243

The family of humans that I live with taught me to speak and to understand their words when they spoke carefully and slowly to me. What they did not know was that my learning did not end with what they deliberately taught me: “Polly want a cracker? Who is a pretty bird?” and other such parrot clichés. I listened carefully when they were in the living room, half of which had become an aviary, and learned much more than they ever suspected that I knew. To keep their suspicions down, I tried never to say in their presence wo...

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“Meetings in the Night” by John Steckley

Submitted to Contest #242

Meetings in the Night Everyone was there on that particular night, ready to talk to the others. That was somewhat unusual, as generally at least a few of them did not make an appearance on a night. The dark-haired woman was there, of course. She always was. She said a lot in these sessions that was reflected in her uncertain smile. Tonight was a night for making plans. Everyone wanted to take part in this critical stage of their existence. They generally felt that they were being exploited by the corporation for...

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Author bio

I am a retired college professor who began writing short stories not long after my retirement.