The Roommate - Lucinda Gunnin

Author: Lucinda Gunnin Date: 2010 Setting: Southern Illinois, the city of Carbondale, in the present Availability: in the anthology Consequences

Story: Tina Black has come to hate everything about the man who is staying in her home. Bob was a friend, an Army veteran, who needed a temporary place to stay. Now, more than a year later, he won’t leave. Tina’s husband, Doug, is too polite to ask him to find a place of his own, and she can’t bring herself to do anything about the situation, either. Bob is so selfish and annoying that Tina has begun to contemplate killing Bob.

Their city, Carbondale in southern Illinois, has been fortuitously spared from tornado strikes throughout history. But on this sultry summer day their deaf cat begins to act strangely and seems to be trying to make Tina follow him into the basement. Just in the nick of time, Tina realizes that a funnel cloud is bearing down on the neighborhood. She and the cat huddle under the basement stairs as the house above them is ripped to shreds.

But, Bob was asleep in an upstairs bedroom. What has happened to him?

Commentary: The Roommate takes a look at the literary phenomenon known as a pathetic fallacy, where the weather is a mirror for the mood of the story or protagonist. But, it is more than that, as Tina struggles with the guilt of her many hours spent wishing that Bob were dead. After the storm, although she is injured and in shock, she is constantly plagued by the guilt she feels over not warning Bob to get into the basement. Is his fate somehow her fault?

Author info: Lucinda Gunnin (see lucindagunnin.com) has been published in several magazines under her maiden name of Lucinda Morgan, and writes for the Heartland Women Newspaper. She has had stories published in books from Twin Trinity Media, and won the Fall 2008 Writers Weekly 24-hour short story contest. Consequences is available as a paperback, or in ebook format.

Unusual Words:
misogynistic- the characteristic of hating women

Rating:
Language skills 5
Depth of meaning 6

Elements of Time

Here is the trailer for the newly released anthology of short stories and poetry from Twin Trinity Media, Elements of Time.

Authors include:
Lindsay Maddox
Rissa Watkins
M. Lori Motley
Andi Caldwell
Steven Thor Gunnin
Jo Brielyn
Lucinda Gunnin
Nancy Smith Gibson
Linda St. Cyr
Cathy Graham

Poets:
Laurie Darroch-Meekis
Felicity Tillack
Jennifer Wright
Lucinda Gunnin
Andi Caldwell

Jasper - Lucinda Gunnin

Author: Lucinda Gunnin Author web: lucindagunnin.com Date: 2010 Setting: an un-named city (possibly Detroit) in the present day Availability: In the anthology Elements of the Soul

Story: A young woman, Carrie, lives alone except for Jasper, a retired police dog. The dog was given to her by her Uncle Chuck, retired from the sheriff's department. Chuck has encouraged Carrie to always be alert to things which happen around her. He has also advised her to never date a cop.

Early one morning she sees a man unloading bags of trash into the dumpster at her apartment complex. Jasper seems unusually agitated at this activity, and the man himself seems suspicious, wearing gloves and a cap on a stifling hot day. Unfortunately, when Jasper barks, the man also sees Carrie. She decides to go take a look after the man leaves, and discovers body parts. Of course, she is dating a young policeman, and she calls him first, instead of calling 911 which leads to her being treated with suspicion.

Commentary:This story is completely believable. Gunnin's portrayal of the dog rings true. I've known several well-trained German Shepherds, and Jasper's actions throughout the story are consistent with everything I know. For anyone who lives in a city, this story is a nightmare come true.

This is not only satisfying, but is refreshing in that the story does not force the idea of the completely independent female who needs no help, or a man who has to be in charge. The dog's participation makes sense; it's not a Rin-Tin-Tin fantasy.

Author info: Lucinda Gunnin (see lucindagunnin.com) has been published in several magazines under her maiden name of Lucinda Morgan, and writes for the Heartland Women Newspaper, but Jasper is her first published fiction. She also won the Fall 2008 Writers Weekly 24-hour short story contest.

Rating:
Language skills 8
Depth of meaning 6