I Tried Calling

These are short stories told as if transcribed from answering machines and voicemails. Some are micro fiction, and some run a bit longer at several pages each.

Personally, with what I got going on right now, 4. 3:15 A.M., Tuesday, August 20, 2019 was one of my favorites. Featuring a message left by an ex about letting go.

I found the format in which this was done to be incredibly unique, unlike anything I’ve read before. With so much of it together, the transcribing kind of read like a play written out, especially the few bits where more than one person would speak. It wasn’t really the kind of thing I would have gone out of my way for usually, and I’ve probably only read like five plays in my entire life too, but I found that I really enjoyed this.

The author mixes comedy, drama, dysfunction, emotion, loss, and some beats from the time in which each were written. He does so in a way that still reads like things you would hear in actual messages, they were all believable. The funny ones especially, are ones I would love to actually hear on my phone for real.

Check this out for something different and quick! Personally a 5/5*