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Michael C. Keith is the author or coauthor of more than two dozen groundbreaking books on electronic media. Beyond that, he is the author of an acclaimed memoir (The Next Better Place, Algonquin Books), a young adult novel (Life is Falling Sideways), and 20 story collections. His latest is Quiet Geography from Cervena Barva Press. He has two new collections forthcoming from Scantic Books and Pelekinesis. He has been nominated for a Pushcart Prize several times, a Pen O.Henry Award, and was a finalist for the National Indie Excellence Award for short fiction anthology and a finalist for the International Book Award in the “Fiction Visionary” category.

Lowered Education

Michael C. Keith

Professor Pierce wasn’t sure he was fully qualified to teach college students. He felt his knowledge of his subject was thin, if not superficial, and that he essentially taught the Cliff Notes version of his discipline to get through the semester. Consequently, he viewed himself as a bit of a fraud, although his student course evaluations were always among the highest in his department. Bringing cookies and pizza to class had been one of his better ideas.

Office Hanky-Panky

Baker and Giselle came in from the field behind the insurance agency looking satisfied and disheveled, he with his fly down and she with her blouse hanging outside her skirt. When I pointed this out to them, they giggled and went to their respective cubicles.

From a Lecture by the Professor of Thanatology

“It was common in the old days to lay out the deceased in the home, often on the kitchen or dining room table. At meal time the family of the recently departed would set plates and silverware around the corpse and place condiments on it if space was tight. This was especially the case if the dead person’s body was large. Of course, this would sometimes result in relishes and sauces falling to the floor.”

— Michael C. Keith