Love and Stories Suzanne W. Vincent
“Where is love?” sings young Oliver in Lionel Bart’s musical rendition of Charles Dickens’ Oliver Twist.
In the story, Oliver is a young workhouse orphan who escapes to London. There he falls in with a troop of thieves and other assorted villains. He is, in many ways, alone and lonely and wishing for the one thing all humans need more than any other–love.
Love. That’s one of those abstract nouns. A concept rather than a concrete thing you can hold. And love can certainly be fleeting. Or can it?
I suppose that depends on how you define it. To me, real love isn’t fleeting. Real love lasts. Real love makes us better, gives us strength, grows, shares. It’s warm rather than hot, supportive rather than stifling, forgiving rather than vindictive, self-sacrificing rather than selfish. It’s less about the bounds of relationships than it is about the bonds.
This month’s stories explore some of the many faces of love.
We hope you love them as much as we do.
Support Flash Fiction Online
Flash Fiction Online is a free online magazine that pays professional rates. So how do we make that happen? It’s due to the generosity of readers like you.
Here are some ways you can help:
Become a Patron.
Sign up to become a monthly donor and gain access to exclusive Patron rewards like manuscript critiques, insider submission statistics, the Editors’ Wishlist, free downloads of our current issue, and Ask Me Anything chats with the FFO staff. Read more…
Subscribe to FFO.
Never miss an issue! E-reader formats delivered to your inbox. Available from WeightlessBooks.com
Buy our issues & anthologies.
Each of our issues and anthologies are available in convenient e-reader formats (epub/pdf). Available from the Flash Fiction Online Store and WeightlessBooks.
Donate.
Consider a one-time gift that fits your budget.
Spread the word.
Love one of our stories or articles? Share it with a friend!