The 2026 Small Bites Short Story Winners illuminate the moments when truth breaks through — sometimes gently, sometimes like a lightning strike. In Exposed and Other Small Bites Stories, ordinary lives tilt toward the extraordinary as secrets surface, shadows shift, and clarity arrives in unexpected forms. Across genres and worlds, these characters confront the instant when everything hidden comes into view — a discovery in a darkened office, a soul forged in the aftermath of apocalypse, a traveler confronting the cost of compassion, a veteran haunted by battles that refuse to stay buried. These brief narratives move from the intimate to the cosmic, from the deeply human to the quietly uncanny, offering glimpses of lives transformed by clarity. Thoughtful, haunting, and resonant, this collection invites readers to pause, reflect, and consider what is revealed when we finally choose to look. AUTHORS Timothy Baldwin – Ron Schultz – Scott Meehan – Donna Doty – JW Bell – D. Krauss – Susan April COMPILED BY Lisa Orban Exposed by Timothy Baldwin Domestic Suspense / Institutional Thriller A late‑night discovery in an empty school office reveals a trail of fraud no one wants uncovered. As warnings escalate and allies vanish, one teacher learns how dangerous “transparency” can be. The Delusion of Anticipation by Ron Schulz Reflective Nonfiction A lifetime of chasing the next success gives way to an unexpected revelation: the ship he’d been waiting for arrived decades ago. This intimate narrative explores how anticipation can blind us to the extraordinary life already in our hands. Salvage of a Soul by Scott Meehan Post‑Apocalyptic Science Fiction In the aftermath of the Rapture, a synthetic guardian searches for meaning in a world claimed by a machine‑born Choir. A stranger’s unexpected act of mercy forces the synthetic to confront the possibility that a soul can be built — or found. The Mission by Donna Doty Allegorical Fantasy On a world where meteor storms fall like omens and compassion reshapes even the shadows, a lone traveler races to save a dying star — but the truth waiting in the dark may demand more than he ever meant to give. The Break In by Ron Schultz Creative Nonfiction / Personal Narrative When a stranger in a fugue state shatters the quiet of a family home, the real damage isn’t the broken glass but the fears it awakens. In the aftermath, one man is forced to confront the long‑buried terrors he’s spent a lifetime avoiding. By the Light of the Fire by JW Bell Mystical Thriller A warrior’s brutal last stand in ancient Ireland bleeds into the nightmares of a modern veteran who feels every wound as if it were real. When past and present collide, he discovers some battles never end — and some enemies never die. Quanah Parker on the Distant Ridge by D. Krauss Reflective Travel Narrative On a meandering October road trip, a man visits the sites of famous last stands — only to recognize pieces of his own life in every downfall. Among the ghosts of Fetterman, Black Kettle, and Quanah Parker, he finds a kinship he never expected Pears, Honey by Susan April Literary Historical Fiction In an empty farmhouse slated for demolition, a forgotten gallery of home‑canned treasures reveals the ghost of a woman’s life. The discovery stirs old memories, reminding the narrator that what we leave behind is never as simple as it seems.