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Zack Herman

Author on Reedsy Prompts since Dec, 2020

Stories (26)

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37 Followers

41 Following

26 Stories

443 karma pts

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The Legend of the Tire House

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #291

I got the newspaper from back home in the mail today. I subscribe to the Caudill County Gazette so I’ll have some connection to the place where I grew up. The picture on the second page caught my eye-a tall,skinny man with white, shaggy hair and a drooping moustache. He wore a pair of bib overalls and a plaid shirt. The clothing hung on him like he was a scarecrow. The man stood in front of a chicken wire fence. He didn’t smile for the camera, but stared stoically ahead. I wondered why he was in the paper. The headline explained it all… LO...

11 likes

A Soul In Danger

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #289

I was pulling out of Martin Hollow Road onto State Route 12 when I first saw the man. It was raining. H e was standing there by the STOP sign. He made no effort to get out of the rain. He just stood there and kind of stared at my old, rusty Dodge truck as I stopped. He was a wiry sort of guy. It looked like he was dressed in some sort of a work uniform that looked maybe a size too big for him. The fact that his shirt was untucked added to his sad sack appearance. He was wearing a straw hat, so at least, his head wasn’t getting wet. He was a...

9 likes

Auld Lang Syne Y2K

Zack Herman

I suppose that I’ve always been kind of boring. It was December 31, 1999. My idea of partying like it was 1999 consisted of going to Wal-Mart for a frozen pizza, coming back to my two bedroom, on bath castle, baking the pizza, and watching some scary movies I had recently bought on VHS. Sounds like something a middle aged or elderly man would do, doesn’t it? I was 22 years old. It was cold that evening. The thermometer on the front porch said 37 degrees. I put on a sweatshirt and my old high school letterman’s jacket (I wrestled two years), ...

3 likes

Why Daddy Didn't Like Christmas

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #282

It’s Christmas Eve. I’m sitting here in my living room. I’m looking at the tree with the presents piled under it. I’m in my easy chair, facing the fireplace, nursing a glass of eggnog, the non-alcoholic kind. Thank God, I gave up drinking three years ago. The fire is roaring and I feel the warmth from it. I’m listening to the radio. On Christmas Eve and Christmas Day, our local radio station replaces the usual country and bluegrass with Christmas music. This is the same room where I’ve celebrated many of my holidays. I live in the house tha...

6 likes

The Goblin Lives In Their House

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #280

“Did you boys hear that?” Papaw asked. It was only the four of us that Friday night: My grandparents, my brother, and me. I was ten years old and my brother Davey was seven. We sat on a rug in front of the fireplace. My parents had went out of town for the weekend and left us with our paternal grandparents at their rambling old farmhouse out on Possum Ridge. It was mid October and a great night to sit by the fireplace. Papaw had built a fire and the record player was playing in the living room. The record was the Happy Goodman Family. ...

11 likes

Uncle Dill

Zack Herman

This story contains religious themes. If this offends you, you have been warned. Hey, I can trust you with something, can’t I? It’s personal and if some people find out, it could cause a bunch of trouble. I said I would keep it to myself and I promised my Uncle Dill, but even he had to tell somebody and God help us, it was me. I can see why he had to tell. This is hard to keep secret. OK, this was about six months ago, but it seems like it just happened today. As you’ll find out, I can remember vivid details about the thing. His name w...

2 likes

The Last Cat

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #275

“Lookit, Delmar,” I hear Aunt Rhodie say, “it’s a cat!” I look up from the chair that I’m sitting in, just inside of the tent that I share with Aunt Rhodie and Uncle Henry. It’s probably been three years since It Happened. I’m 16 years old. If we still marked time the way that we once did, it would be late October or early November. It is a black cat. Too big to be a kitten, but very small. Reminds me of the cat my grandmother used to have. That cat’s name was Miss Bliss. “Mew!” the cat cries, as if to greet us. “I wonder if it’s a b...

5 likes

Deputy Dickle

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #274

I was seven when we moved to Sandersville. That was back in 1977. My family, Dad, Mom, my little brother Josh, and me, moved to a double wide in what they called Printer’s Alley. It was next to the newspaper, The Saundersville Gazette on Main Street. The alley was a gravel drive, nowadays, I’d call it a cul de sac, that ran back a little ways and ended in a turnaround in front of a stand of pine trees. Our double wide sat on one side of the alley. A two story brick home was on the other side of the alley. An elderly couple named the Battens ...

9 likes

The Wit and Wisdom of State Senator Smoky Arbuckle

Zack Herman

You are walking down Main Street in Richardsville, Kentucky on a crisp day in early October. On the street ahead of you, stands a strange little man. He is stoop shouldered and he looks frail and ancient in his plaid pants, suspenders and T shirt that has WRITE IN WILSON printed on it. He also wears a straw hat with the same slogan printed on the hat band. He smiles and approaches you. As he gets closer, you notice that he is carrying a sheaf of papers. As he gets within arm’s reach, he offers you one of the sheets of paper. You hesitate, bu...

6 likes

Chrissy Lynn and the Chicken Pops

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #250

When Ron and Rhoda Hatfield moved into Commonwealth Subdivision with their little daughter, Chrissy Lynn, they were by far the youngest people there. Most of their neighbors were elderly. Krissy Lynn was the only child in the neighborhood. They were glad when the Riggins family moved next door. There were Luke and Hannah Riggins and their three sons: Matthew, Mark, and John. Ron and Rhoda agreed that it was good for Chrissy Lynn to have other kids around.The three Riggins boys were all older than little Chrissy Lynn, but Chrissy loved ...

11 likes

Kolchak And The Boy

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #243

“Hey, Kolchak!” The Boy calls. He makes that clicking sound they always make. I come running. I’ve talked with others of my kind. They say that we are all the same. When one of them makes the clicking sound or whistles, our tails wag and we come running. Five years ago, they released me from my cage at the shelter. The Boy made the clicking noise and yelled, “Come here, puppy!” I didn’t mean to wag my tail, it wagged on its own. I Didn’t intend to follow his command, but I found myself scurrying across the floor and jumping into The Bo...

9 likes

The Backstabber and the Night Knocker

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #241

I made the Lexington paper. Page 3. I guess that I should feel proud about that. “BACKSTABBER” HAS HOLLY HILL POLICE BAFFLED Holly Hill- The sleepy Ohio River town of Holly Hill, Kentucky has never experienced anything like this. “Look, usually, the only crime is somebody stealing a car or underage drinking. Never anything like this,” admits Holly Hill Police Chief Bob Scanlon. “This” is a full blown serial killer, somebody locals have dubbed “Backstabber”. The only connection these murders seem to have is that all three victims died from...

19 likes

The Overdue Delivery

Zack Herman

It was a hot August evening. It was about two weeks before school would start back. I was sitting in the grass in my front yard, waiting for Jill. Jill and I had been going together since the start of freshman year. Where I lived, kids didn’t say they were boyfriend and girlfriend-they said they were “going together”. Jill and I lived on a dirt road several miles outside of town. It was called Possum Creek Road. Every night during summer, around 6 p.m., Jill would take a walk down to the creek. She would stop by my place and I would walk wit...

3 likes

Escaping Gortnerville

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #239

This story contains a description of racist actions. This was the big day. I had showered, put on the only suit I owned, the only white dress shirt that I owned, my best tie, and my black dress shoes. The job interview was at 1:00 and I was in my Ford Focus at 10:30. I had given myself two and a half hours for the trip from Gortnerville to Easter. It was an hour long trip tops from what I remembered. I hadn’t been there since my college days and that was ten years ago. I wasn’t taking any chances. I set my GPS for 210 Chancellor’s Lane, Ea...

10 likes

The Eavesdroppers

Zack Herman

Submitted to Contest #238

I’ve never told this story to anybody before now. Once I get going, you’ll understand why. It’s the proudest I’ve ever been of Mama and she isn’t even aware that I know what happened. I hope everybody reading this remembers party lines. This was way back in 1979. I was 15 years old and my family lived in Spivey Subdivision, over on Flat Fork in Caudill County. They still had a party line there. They were a thing of the past in most places, but you’ve always been able to set your watch back 10 years when you come to Eastern Kentucky. That p...

9 likes