Rusty W. Spell:
Complete Story List

1. Creature of the Authors (1990) -- I wrote stories before this one, but I either lost them or didn't keep them. This is when I began writing "on purpose," when I was fifteen. The most notable things I wrote before this date was in 1985 (when I was ten) when I wrote and illustrated two books based on my Snoopy rip-off, "Snoofy." The books were Snoofy and Snoofy Returns.

2. The Runaway Sheep (1990) -- A fairy tale sorta.

3. Swinigin McGoots (1990) -- Based on a 'nikcuS song.

4. The Clothes Hamper (1990) -- Co-authored with Noby Nobriga, the first in the "Hamper Stories" series, in which we alternated writing the stories.

5. The Complete Life Story of Barnacle Billy (1991) -- A character who I attempted many times, never with much success.

6. The Green Lamp (1991) -- The second of the "Hamper Stories."

7. The Lazy Boy’s Underwear (1991) -- The first of the "Brice Stories," stories about Brice Wonders.

8. The Break-Up (1991) -- Typical stuff for a sixteen-year-old.

9. The Story of Frenlise (1991) -- Tommy Burton's favorite crappy story.

10. The Eraser (1991) -- The third of the "Hamper Stories."

11. The Key (1991) -- The fourth and last of the "Hamper Stories."

12. First Sight of the Sun (1991) -- Would later serve as the inspiration to the 'nikcuS classic, "Five Hours Ahead."

13. My Mind Would Bleed (1991)

14. The Premature Dismissal of Cookies (1992) -- Tommy Burton wrote a screenplay (as yet un-produced) based on this story.

15. Guin and The Unicorn (1992) -- Fantasy.

16. The Human’s Dilemma (1992)

17. The Punished Genius (1992) -- The first pretty big Brice story.  One of my earliest "involved" stories.

18. The Outline of Brice and Patricia (1992)

19. Midnight Spell (1992) -- A superhero character I created. Should be a comic book. Still not too bad.

20. Billy the Chameleon (1992) -- Mostly children's poetry about the title character.

21. The Ring Cleaners (1992) -- Surreal symbolism stuff.

22. Sir Montier’s Space Morning (1992) -- Co-authored with Noby Nobriga.

23. The Fowler’s Eye (1992) -- Co-authored with Noby Nobriga. We wrote it while listening to the Twin Peaks soundtrack over and over.

24. Taoists Work Too Hard (1992) -- I was into Taoism at the time.  I thought they worked too hard at being passive, etc.  Passivity as a discipline seemed odd.

25. Sunrays Through the Bedroom (1992) -- The first of the "Devon Stories," one of my lesser reoccurring characters.

26. The Morning Concerto (1992)

27. Finally, They’re Through (1992)

28. On Atheism (1992) -- Not what you think.

29. The Rooster and the Hen (1992) -- Not a fairy tale.

30. The Judging Room’s Door (1992)

31. The Adventures of Barnacle Billy (1992) -- Again with Barnacle Billy.

32. Meringue (1992)

33. Whiisten’s Tale (1992)

34. Love and Lust (1992) -- Oh, this was going to be epic, but then wasn't.

35. I’d Like To Know Her Middle Name (1992) -- The first of the "Jeremy Stories."

36. The Feast of Liverwurst (1992) -- Co-authored by Noby Nobriga, and our first publication, at The Monthly... Bulletin.

37. The Comedic, Romantic, and Overall Adventurous Tale of Lovelorn Pike (1992)

38. Overcoming for Love (1992)

39. Seamy Shitalot (1992) -- People seem to like this title.

40. The Beautiful Ones (1993) -- Inspired by Prince.

41. Romantic and Crap (1993) -- Co-authored by Noby Nobriga.

42. I’d Rather Be In Philadelphia (1993)

43. Les Cheveux (1993) -- This was not written in French.

44. Chuck and Buck (1993) -- Before that movie was made.  They stole the title from me.

45. Wilma (1993) -- Originally written for The Valerie Neal Journals.

46. The Counselor’s Drive (1993)

47. Mandy and Travis (1993)

48. Messages of the Human Race (1993) -- This grand idea to experiment with different "voices" that I eventually got tired of.

49. Arthur Wonders (1993)

50. The Physics Test (1993)

51. Lara (1993)

52. The Day Before the Coast (1993)

53. Frog-o-Phobia (1993) -- Miniature frog kick.

54. The Curse of the Realm of Dead Frogs (1993)

55. Barnacle Billy: An Untitled Manuscript (1993) -- The last try at Barnacle, sort of.

56. Pickles (1993) -- A ghost story my mother had made up that I wrote down, though I screwed it up pretty bad.

57. The Constipated Pilgrim (1993)

58. Creative Writing (1993)

59. How Our Days Are Spent (1993) -- Rather pretty stuff.

60. Dear Mr. Isitt, Can You Tell Me Why? (1993) -- The first story I wrote that I kind of still like today, the first one that's not garbage. It took 60 tries.

61. A Forty-Five Minute College Tale (1993) -- When I used to write stories in 45 minutes while watching TV.

62. On Supremity (1993)

63. The Death of Jeremy Bennett (1993)

64. It Was a Sunday (1993)

65. For the Love of Frieda (1994) -- Enter phase two of my stories, when they become less concerned with goofy cartoony characters and more something close to "literature," whatever that might mean. I guess it basically means I was in college.

66. An Evening at Night (1994)

67. A Letter from Dunia (1994) -- Inspired by Dostoyevsky, sorta.

68. I’m Dancin’ for You, Charlie (1994)

69. Two Girls Meet (1994)

70. You’ll Laugh Later (1994) -- The longest story I'd written to that point. It's sort of okay, but not great today, but proved I could do longer stuff (not that they were incredibly short before this, just average length usually).  The usual nineteen-year-old thing of using curse words instead of real feeling.

71. The Very Early History of Brice G. Wonders (1994)

72. The Writer (1994)

73. A Real Woman’s Life (1994)

74. Shorter, He Said (1994) -- "Experimental" writing, the usual messing around with spacing and stuff.  I knew it wasn't anything new at the time, but I wanted to do it.

75. My Name Is Bob (1994) -- Story in which every word is one syllable.

76. To Be With the Angels (1994)

77. One Feared Bread, Three Feared Meat (1994) -- An incomplete novel, I wrote two chapters before giving up. I had it so outlined in my head that I couldn't develop it as I wrote it... or maybe it was just a bad idea to begin with.

78. Encounter at Manicon (1994) -- One of my few sci-fi stories.

79. A Brief History of Brice and Melanie (1994)

80. I Was Not Dreaming (1994) -- Co-authored by Noby Nobriga.

81. Rumpelstiltskin (1994) -- A rather long retelling of the fairy tale which made me popular among my friends as a writerly-type person.  Still pretty good.  I wouldn't mind seeing it published somewhere.

82. From Opal to Allemanville (1994) -- One of my handful of epistolary.

83. Still On His Deathbed (1994) -- Popular back in the day. One of those old man dying stories (which I got scolded for by a publisher).

84. Little Nicky’s Breakthrough (1994)

85. Junior Year (1994)

86. Perhaps I Should Read My Outfit (1994) -- The earliest story that I consider worthy of any kind of real publication, and the earliest one to appear in my Master's Thesis. I don't feel we've entered "phase three" yet, but that this one has simply jumped the gun.

87. Just Like Riding a Bicycle (1994)

88. The Motorcycle Rider (1994) -- A story taken straight from a 'nikcuS song.

89. Twenty (1994)

90. When Lancelot Met Elaine (1994) -- A weird story about virginity.  It's hard to tell how much of it I took seriously then, but it seems like a satire now.

91. The Poets (1994) -- Basically a collection of the poems I chose to keep that I had written to that point, stuck inside a story framework. Am I a poet? Sure, why not. But I don't feel much like keeping up with them, though I almost wish I had. I write poetry again now, but not often.

92. The Sailing of the Deles Triumphrum (1994) -- Some of these titles, by the way, are of incomplete stories. This is one of them. I'm not bothering to mention all of the ones that are.

93. Adam Versus the World (1994)

94. Variations on a Theme (1995)

95. Horsehoof (1995) -- A story that was meant to encompass lots of the characters created in 'nikcuS songs, our videos, and things like that. A cameo by Barnacle Billy. Incomplete, but the most successful of these types of stories. It's still in my mind to finish it.

96. Sector G: Twelve-Seventy (1995)

97. IRC (1995) -- Remember the Internet Relay Chat?

98. Come On, Eileen (1995) -- Inspired by the song.

99. Her (1995)

100. Story 100 (1995) -- A Brice story, me marking the 100th story I'd written. I was into numbers and chronology more back then even more than I am now.

101. Nathan Drew His Sword (1995)

102. Through the Latticework (1995) -- A pretty decent ghost story.

103. A Night for Catching Lightning Bugs, Lightning Bugs In Summer (1995) -- I liked the comma in the title.

104. Peter Pan Had a Thimble, and He Never Grew Up (1995)

105. Rapunzel (1995) -- An incomplete sequel of sorts of to "Rumpelstiltskin," a retelling of this fairy tale. It was going well, but I quit. I guess I didn't want to be known as the guy who rewrote fairy tales.

106. Can You Dance, Misty? (1995)

107. The Angel Story (1995) -- At the time of its writing, this was my favorite story. It's not now.

108. Don’t Worry, I’ve Been Sleeping (1995)

109. Crazy Cats and Hole-Punched Paper (1995) -- Inspired by the shortest time from meeting a girl to kissing her I've ever had, which is just under three hours. Hooray for my looseness!

110. Cowine 23, 1995 (1995) -- A Brice story.

111. Magnolia Maple (1995) -- The first story I ever workshopped in college, as an undergraduate. Pretty crappy. I had turned in a small paragraph before which everyone fell for, and when I turned in this one, the teacher was like, "Where's the Rusty who writes good?"  I think I was trying to do Pinter-like subtext with the backdrop of the unspoken hatred between Canadians and Americans, but it didn't work.

112. Cold (1995) -- I jotted this down as some random writing on an emailing list and someone liked it so I kept it.

113. Stickerbush (1995) -- The second story I workshopped. A little better than the first, with plenty of faults, but it sort of set a small pattern for some of my interests for the next few years (indie rock music, post-slacker kids, etc.).  It was included in my Master's Thesis and was my committee's least favorite one.

114. The Trophy: A Fable (1996) -- A weird story Tommy Burton and I came up with together that I eventually wrote out.

115. What I Should Be Doing (1996) -- The first story I workshopped with Steve Barthelme.

116. Arthur Is Waking (1996) -- The second story I workshopped with Steve Barthelme, and also an early crowd favorite. Included in Master's Thesis.

117. Temporary (1996)

118. Weird Memory (1996) -- I was obsessed with the word weird at this time.  I think everyone goes through that phase.

119. When Sunday Arrives: A Novel (1996) -- My first, and so far only, finished novel. It's imperfect, tons and tons of dialogue, but I still like it. I could probably salvage it, but it would probably be too much trouble. But, yes, a big ol' full-length novel.

120. Up To Speed (1997)

121. Hitchhikers (1997) -- Enter phase three of my writing, when I start writing "literary fiction" almost exclusively. This is also when I begin thinking that I can write somewhat decently instead of just messing around. Things become more refined. I'm in grad school now. Included in Master's Thesis.

122. Sexy Norman (1997) -- Included in Master's Thesis.

123. Four Dead Grandparents, One Dead Dog (1997) -- I'm doing parodies of student writing at this point, but taking them seriously.

124. Missing It (1997)

125. Flower Necklaces (1997)

126. Graduation (1997)

127. You Can Tell (1997)

128. The Story of Crisp and Lilac (1997) -- Fantasy mixed with modern world stuff that I like pretty good.

129. Scents (1997)

130. Stray (1997) -- The first thing I wrote for Mary Robison's workshop, a pretty bad short-short about a cat named Nutsack.

131. Guns (1997) -- Also eventually workshopped (though not originally intended) for Mary Robison's class, a much better short-short.

132. Cruise Control (1997) -- The first full-length story I wrote for Mary Robison's workshop.

133. You Can’t Dance Like That To Indie Rock (1997) -- Included in Master's Thesis.

134. Principle of Warmth (1997) -- Included in Master's Thesis. I was a little obsessed with music as non-music (or more-than-music) in these days, and half of this story is like an essay on that.

135. Plague (1997)

136. Nightmares (1997)

137. What Happens When You Die (1997) -- Everyone should write one of these fun "when you die" stories.

138. The Aircraft (1997) -- A story based somewhat on Radiohead's OK Computer.  Ten years later, I had it published in Juked and it was nominated for a Pushcart Prize and a Million Writers Award.

139. The Man Who Couldn’t Tell Jokes (1998) -- The story that made me famous for my Elvis impression, reading this aloud.

140. Here (1998) -- The first story I workshopped in Rick Barthelme's class, and a pretty good one, enough for him to rip off a scene in his novel Elroy Nights. Enter phase three part two with this story. Included in my Master's Thesis. Published in The News and Observer.

141. Beginning, Middle, End (1998)

142. Messages (1998) -- Included in my Master's Thesis.

143. Fish (1998) -- The first story I ever read aloud at a reading. Included in my Master's Thesis.

144. The Black Pall (1998)

145. Nothing But Gas (1998) -- The title story for my Master's Thesis, and first story to win a contest. Made me feel like I might be something for a while. Still hasn't been published.

146. Christy (1998)

147. Kids (1998)

148. The Move (1999) -- Included in Master's Thesis. Published in Cooweescoowee.

149. Okay, Anything (1999) -- Included in PhD dissertation.

150. A Little Vacation (1999)

151. Intersection (1999) -- Read at a reading.

152. Crouched In the Midway (1999) -- Included in PhD dissertation.

153. Jay’s Dead (1999) -- Good enough for Carrie Hoffman to eventually rip off for one of her stories.

154. Pent-Up (2000) -- Published in Plots With Guns.

155. Partyers (2000) -- Included in PhD dissertation. Read at a handful of readings.

156. They All Looked Like Me (2000)

157. Clinging (2000)

158. Dust (2000) -- Included in PhD dissertation. Read at readings. A crowd favorite.

159. Figure 8s (2000)

160. Househusband (2000) -- Included in PhD dissertation.

161. The Age I Was at Christmas and the Girl That I Was With (2000) -- Included in PhD dissertation. Read at readings, a crowd favorite. Published in The Mississippi Review.

162. The Graveyard and the Roller Rink (2001) -- Included in PhD dissertation. Published in Product.

163. How I Handled Harold (2001) -- Read at a reading. Published in Eyeshot.

164. Cavities (2001) -- Included in PhD dissertation. Published in Pindeldyboz.

165. I Have Alice (2001)

166. Just Perfect (2001) -- Something I wrote based on a story by Noby Nobriga.

167. Bible Talk (2001) -- Included in PhD dissertation. Published in Nightsun.

168. Westenlier (2001) -- A "tiny" version of stories invented by Noby Nobriga, meant to inspire him to write his big epic.

169. Stephen Wants To Cry (2001) -- Included in PhD dissertation.

170. Kesha (2001)

171. Every Three Years (2001) -- Read at a reading. This is the story I used to expand into the in-progress novel Fish. Included in PhD dissertation. Published in The Georgetown Review.

172. The Friends (2002) -- Published in Muse Apprentice Guild.

173. Right Now, How I Feel (2002)

174. A Little Vacation (Teenage Female Version) (2002) -- Seventeen magazine wanted a female POV for a story I'd submitted, so I changed it for them, but they still didn't accept it.

175. Is Changing (2002) -- The last story I wrote for any workshop. The first of my "confessionals."

176. You Are Beautiful (2002) -- A response to Carrie Hoffman's "I Am Ugly."

177. This Dull Month (2002)

178. Creatures (2002)

179. Pops (2002) -- The first "real" story I wrote after being done with workshops. A crowd favorite, published in The Mid-American Review.  The last "real" thing I wrote for a long time.

180. Ten Minutes from Mexico (2003) -- Published in Opium Magazine.

181. At the Risk of Being Morbid (2003)

182. There Is Only One Dreamgirl and Peanut (2003)

183. Class Reunion (2003)

184. Moods/Soulless (2004)

185. Nilsa (2004)

186. Revelation (2004)

187. The Too Pretty Stepchild (2005) -- I consider this the first story that got me back on some kind of track after graduating with my PhD.  Five years of constant workshop and other personal stuff had made me disinterested in writing stories for a while, and it took a few years before I could shake all that off.  Read at a reading; probably my most successful delivery.

188. Henry's Balcony (2005)

189. That Day in Zaragosa (2005) -- From the point of view of the woman in the Ernest Hemingway story "Hills Like White Elephants."

190. The Parable of the Wooden Talents: A Lost Parable of Jesus Christ (2007)

191. The Little Green Christmas Light (2007) -- A children's story written with Carrie Spell and illustrated by me.

192. Fish (2008) -- My third novel attempt, something I'm still working on based on the story "Every Three Years."

193. Kesha 2 (2008) -- An unfinished second-stab at my story "Kesha."

194. The Sybian (2008)

195. Howie (2008)

196. Barney (2009)

197. Leibniz (2009)

198. The Trickster (2009) -- A retelling of the Winnebago Trickster Cycle which I'm also illustrating.

199. Where Are You? Where Did You Go? (2009) -- A piece I wrote specifically for Kim Chinquee's flash fiction edition of The Mississippi Review.  It was accepted.