• Beige background with text on old paper, blood splatters, and crime scene markers scattered throughout. Image at center is promo shot for Will Trent TV show. TEXT: Will Trent: The Detective Who Sees What Others Miss - Karrie Ann Wortner - TV Review

    Will Trent: A Crime Drama Review

    ABC’s Will Trent redefines the crime drama genre with suspense, humor, and emotional resonance. Ramón Rodríguez and Erika Christensen deliver captivating performances, while Betty the chihuahua steals the spotlight.

  • Image of an old apothecary table with medicine and herbs, books, mortars and pestles, with a historic sepia patina - TEXT: My Father's Black Magic - Lynn Hess - Poetry

    My Father’s Black Magic

    My father carried a black bag
    bulging with the magic of his trade —
    powders, ointments, penicillin pills —
    to coax an ailing patient back to life.
    But at home, where doctors cleanse their minds…

  • A square image with a simple, cartoonish, and enthusiastic aesthetic, designed for a webcomic or graphic story. The single-panel comic features Emylle, a young person in a wheelchair, with a wide smile and a blue-and-white striped top. A speech bubble above her head excitedly announces that the topic of the day is "cakes". The background is a solid, soft lavender color. A black owl logo with a feather is positioned in the upper-right corner of the panel. talking about cakes Text: EMYLLE ON WHEELS, Milene Correia and Emylle Torres, TODAY, WE'RE GONNA TALK ABOUT CAKES!

    Emylle on Wheels, Web Comic – Talking About Cakes

    “No, you should talk about your disability, ableism, that stuff.”
    Angry at him, Emylle replies, “Do not restrict me, you @#$%!%.”

  • Black and red book cover reading "The Night Library of Sternendach" by Jessica Levai - TEXT of image: Book Review, Sue Cook

    The Night Library at Sternendach — A Vampire Opera Novel Review

    The Night Library of Sternendach reads as a mixture of Buffy the Vampire Slayer meets Andrew Lloyd Webber’s Phantom of the Opera — revolving around the library at Castle Sternendach, the Graf’s home. The dance of words played in my mind’s eye with each new verse. All I needed was Andrew Lloyd Webber to write the music. I’ve already cast the show for him, if he’ll but ask.

  • Pink, floral teacup resting on a saucer with a gold-colored spoon on the saucer. TEXT: Tea Review - When You Need a Wakeup: Taylors of Harrogate Scottish Breakfast Tea review - Rita Mock-Pike

    When You Need a Wakeup: Taylors of Harrogate Scottish Breakfast Tea Review

    Taylors of Harrogate Scottish Breakfast tea is a solid, plain roast black tea with loads of caffeine to get the engines firing. No need for fruity tones or other flavor hints. This tea is meant to wake you up and give you a solid base for your day — and the tea does exactly that.

Quarterly & Special Issues

  • Poetry Special 2022 cover
  • Introspection issue cover
  • Sleeper of R'Lyeh cover
  • cover image of the MockingOwl Roost, Volume 1, Issue 4: Community
  • giant elephant in forest with a man standing in front of the elephant
🦉 Submissions next open from June 1 to August 31 2024
October 29, 2025
Spooky image of glowing box with silhouette of person trying to escape. TEXT - The Box at the Top of the Closet, Steve Bowman, Part 1, Speculative Fiction
Published by Steve Bowman at October 29, 2025
Categories

The Box at the Top of the Closet, Part 1

Trigger Warning: This piece contains violence, mental health trauma, and animal harm. At Halloweentime he thought he could hear it. Like bees buzzing under thick glass. Like a humming mumble. He could almost feel it.
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October 28, 2025
Promo image from Abbot Elementary with cast facing the camera, making various expressions. TEXT: Abbot Elementary: A Review of a Workplace Comedy & Mockuentary - TV Review - Karrie Ann Wortner
Published by Karrie Wortner at October 28, 2025
Categories

Abbott Elementary: A Review of a Workplace Comedy & Mockumentary

The comedy hits good and hard, not just because it’s clever, but because it’s rooted in something real. I love when a show makes me laugh and then immediately makes me feel something deeper. That’s the rhythm this one nails.
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1 Read more
October 26, 2025
A square image with a dark, muted, and spooky art style, perfect for a Halloween theme. The image is dominated by deep brown and muted gold tones with the texture of a charcoal drawing on old paper. The central figure is a small child dressed in full metal armor with a brightly glowing orange flame painted on the chest plate. The helmet has two large, round ears, adding a whimsical touch to the knight almost as if it were mixed with mickey mouse. In the hazy background, ghostly silhouettes of a fairy/angel, a witch, and a ghost are faintly visible, giving the image a mysterious, childhood-dreamlike quality. The MockingOwl Roost logo is in the bottom right corner. video game warrior Text: Liam's Costume, Halloween Nonfiction, Martha Ellen
Published by Martha Ellen at October 26, 2025
Categories

Liam’s Costume

His “guy” was some video game warrior I had never seen before nor knew anything about. Not Robin Hood. Not a tiger that permitted the loud, aggressive, in-your-face roaring he loved so much…He wanted his “guy”. And of course “Grammy” would figure it out”
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October 24, 2025
Warped zoom in of Poetry book cover for A Bountiful Silence & Other Poems by John Muro - TEXT: Poetry Book Review, Sue Cook
Published by Sue Cook at October 24, 2025
Categories

Book Review: A Bountiful Silence

A Bountiful Silence enables the reader to become deeply involved with Muro’s poetry to the point where, regardless of the trials of their day, the vibrant intensity of his words helps them to focus on the beauty around them. God knows we need that right now!
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October 23, 2025
A square image with a gritty, atmospheric, and suspenseful vibe, characteristic of an urban thriller or horror. The scene is viewed through a dark, arched window or doorway, which frames the interior of an empty, dimly lit subway train car. The train's interior is dominated by yellow handrails and metallic surfaces, with one or two distant figures visible seated in the carriage. The contrast between the dark foreground and the hazy, yellowish interior light gives the image a sense of isolation and mystery. The MockingOwl Roost logo is in the lower right corner. Train Text: The Last Stop, Halloween Fiction, Justin Alcala
Published by Justin Alcala at October 23, 2025
Categories

The Last Stop

The gangway connection door opened and a sable-haired woman seemed to float into the car. She wore a black Venetian gown with tangerine trim and a crown of naked branches festooned with marigolds. An onyx pendant dangled from her choker, reflecting the train’s fluorescent light.
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