355 spr2016 distortions cover

DISTOR TIONS Literary Magazine / Issue 1 Amanda Benes Emily Benes Christina Callaghan Angela Ching Drew Cummings Hannah Deboer Shelby Kahr Clayton Karloff Breann McCoy Nicholas Olson Tanner Reckling Andrea Wagner

“Fingers of smoke lace her skin and obscure her face once again.

Tendrils curl around her collarbone, the ghost of a noose.”

“Not even this, however, would be enough to dislodge that smile that may very well have been carved into his face at this point.”

“He felt a fire course through his body and ice surround it. He felt lighting sparking throughout his brain as a clear blue light begin to glow around him. The light expanded from his body, perfectly translucent and precisely shaped in a crystalline cocoon.”

“Distorted vignettes of her would twist into focus, through the weeds and brackish waters, projecting across his skull, tugging at his bones, filling his empty ribcage.”

“The ghost that haunted the Green Lake Supermarket had merely made a high pitched humming noise and overturned every box of cereal in the Supermarket.”

“The robot shifts on the nightstand. The taffeta curtain rustles.”

“She shook the thought away, telling herself stuffed animals can’t look inquisitive, or like anything else beyond cute, blank faces.”

“I went to school that day. He went to stand beside our fish tank for the rest of his human existence.”

CONTRIBUTORS. Amanda Benes Amanda is a high school senior at Elkhorn High School. She plans to attend the University of Nebraska-Omaha and major in 2D Studio Art. After graduating, Amanda hopes to pursue a career as an illustrator.

Christina Callaghan Christina Callaghan is, among other things, a writer and illustrator working in the U.K. She is currently working on two picture books, a short story and a novella. Some of her writing can be viewed via her blog, Necessary Evil (www.christinacallaghanblog. wordpress.com). Stop by and say hi.

Drew Cummings Drew is a fiction writer who lives and grew up in North Carolina.

He primarily writes literary genre fiction.

Hannah Deboer Hannah DeBoer is a sophomore civil engineering student originally from Overland Park, Kansas. She enjoys drawing, rose lemonade, and, more recently, digital painting.

Breann McCoy Breann graduated from Doane College with degrees in English and theatre. She’s almost exclusively a writer of horror whether it’s screenplay or short story.

Nicholas Olson Nicholas Olson earned his BA at Columbia College Chicago. He lives in North Carolina, where he’s writing a novel and wrangling a cat. He has work published or forthcoming in SmokeLong Quarterly, Hobart, Literary Orphans, decomP, Corium, Thrice Fiction, Eunoia Review, Apocrypha and Abstractions, Oblong, Foliate Oak, Every Day Fiction, The Open End, and Flash Fiction Magazine. Read more at nicksfics.com.

Tanner Reckling Tanner Reckling is an undergraduate art student who is studying at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. He is currently studying the relationship between computers and fine art Andrea Wagner Andrea is a sophomore Theater Design and Technical Production major

Shelby Kahr Shelby is currently pursuing her BFA at the University of Wisconsin-Madison. In addition to creating art, she enjoys music, nice dogs, and vague statements

THE FOLKS. Emily Benes; Managing Editor Emily is a freshman at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln, where she is currently double majoring in History and Medieval Renaissance Studies. She lives in Elkhorn, Nebraska, with her parents and five younger siblings. Emily hopes to work as a historian, either as a researcher or in a museum.

Theron Pietzyk; Copy Editor Theron was born on November 27th 1992. He is an English major that is attending the University of Nebraska while living in Dorchester Nebraska. Theron plans on entering the field of book publishing as a career, and has had a passion for reading since he was young.

Shelby Leschinsky; Acquisitions Editor Shelby is a junior at the University of Nebraska Lincoln studying English with a minor in Psychology from Lincoln, Nebraska.

After graduating, she wants to work for an NGO, non-profit, or a government agency. In her free time she enjoys writing, reading, and playing with her dog.

Angela Ching; Design Director Angela grew up in Hawaii, but left the warm weather and island life to be an English major at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln. When she’s not scrambling to finish a column for The Daily Nebraskan, she’s usually thinking about McDonald’s or basset hounds.

Clayton Karloff; Marketing Director Clayton was born on September 2nd, 1994 in Omaha, Nebraska.

After living most of his life on a farm outside the small town of Yutan, he now lives on campus in the University of Nebraska Lincoln, studying for an English major and a Communications minor. In his free time, he enjoys taking walks with his dogs and reading all manner of fiction stories.