Bewildering Stories welcomes...

Charles B. Pettis

Charles “Chuck” Pettis writes mostly for family, friends and his own enjoyment. He has published a collection of poems and short stories and music as well as a collection of short stories about a fictional Native American tribe.

“Little Plastic Bag” tells us about Jake, quite an ordinary person, really. Jake’s life hasn’t been easy, but it hasn’t been all bad, either; he has earned a promotion in his employment at a car dealership, and he did marry his high-school sweetheart, Lynette.

The story begins with Jake watching a weather report on TV with what might seem to be unaccountable fascination. Indeed, on-line readers may allow their normal impatience to become impetuous and want to skip that part. Not so fast there: what we’re seeing is Jake’s state of mind after the death of his beloved Lynette. His depression has caused him to sink into the contemplation of trivial, meaningless details.

And the rest of the story will fascinate readers with an account of very recognizable details that clutter Jake’s aimless life — until he finds a little plastic bag of mementoes that bring him back to “living.”

Charles B. Pettis’ bio sketch can be found here.

Welcome to Bewildering Stories, Chuck. We’re looking forward to the excerpt from The Hummingbird and the Hawk, coming up soon.