I love the ocean, but I suck at swimming which was perhaps a bit of the inspiration for this microfiction piece that clocks in at a tiny 94 words.

Okay, and if I’m being totally honest, the rest of the inspiration for this piece came from watching surfers trying to catch a wave along a beach in Cancun. The waters around Cancun were particularly rough that day due to a storm brewing. And there I was, sitting at a cantina, watching surfers paddle out to sea, dipping tanned arms in the water, bellies flat against their boards.

This piece originally began as a poem, so there were mentions of beer bottle caps, and hungry waves. But those were eventually removed as this piece came into its final (maybe?) form.

Originally, shortlisted in Fractured Lit’s 100 Word Story Mini Contest, I’m thrilled it found a permanent home in Briefly Zine Issue 5.

Read “When Water Returns to the Salt Edged Shore”