Royal Alvis
New Book of
Fabulist Stories
by Royal Alvis
Strange Shorts
The characters in these ten stories protect themselves with lies, which become delusions, which take the reader into the surreal and supernatural. A karaoke singer maintains an intimate relationship with an imaginary Frank Sinatra. A guru finds a portal into an alternate reality, and a delusional heiress falls in love with the dog she adopts, never realizing that the dog is actually a teenage boy. These fabulist tales are marvels of the imagination and stand as metaphors for the excruciating failures that are commonly encountered but rarely confessed.
Selections from Strange Shorts
Entranced
Robert is skilled at manipulating juries until he develops a mental condition that causes his career to crumble. His symptoms are so unusual that Robert’s wife wonders if he’s faking them. Soon he is humiliated, alone, and desperate. He enlists the help of a several doctors, but the only cure comes from a spiritual cult leader, who restores Robert’s health, but leads him to a devotion which is even more ruinous. This story explores the relation of allegiance to truth, if such truth can be manufactured, and the consequence of self-deception.
Sensorium
Imagine that you have lost your family, your friends, and all of your money. Loan sharks will soon be knocking at your door. To avoid them, you pack a tent and a sleeping bag and decide to hide on the Appalachian Trail, but after an hour of hiking, you are exhausted. You hear things in the wind. Dark twisted shapes dart through the depths of the woods. As you walk on, these phantoms evolve until finally you are confronted by a fear far worse than the thugs you are fleeing.
The Magic Townhouse
Paul is a misguided runaway, half lost in his fantasies about being a superhero. He meets Sally while begging on a sidewalk. She invites him home, and Paul wonders if he is being seduced, until he realizes that Sally is insane, that her particular mindset might make them the perfect couple.
My Story
Several of Royal Alvis’s stories have appeared in literary Magazines and on-line journals. Although he has said this before, his novel is nearly finished and will be available soon; it’s a mix of yoga, travel and the supernatural. A bunch of short stories are also on the way, most of which share a surreal and fabulist vibe. When he’s not writing Royal likes to practice meditation and Tai chi. He has not been in trouble or done anything excessively stupid for a long time. Instead, he volunteers at a New York senior center where he delivers meals and teaches creative writing. He is very much in love with his girlfriend, and both of them are very much in love with their dog, Ember. He would mention his degree from the MFA Writing Program at Bennington College, but he doesn’t think anyone will care.