Books, stories, and thoughts from the unforgiving landscapes of the American Southwest.
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A pawn shop burglary turns deadly when a stolen item ends up in the wrong hands.
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Published collection
Leaving Arizona
Rhythm & Bones Press · 2020 · Short fiction
A collection of short stories featuring characters who are stuck: in reality, in their lives, in bad decisions and the darker sides of life backlit by the unforgiving heat of the desert. The desert can be as cruel as a neglectful parent, an abusive lover, leaving these characters in a drought of love and nourishment. It is the perfect setting for the women, men, children and even the dead who traverse these stories by Justin Hunter, characters gripped in their own struggle, some finding a way to shed their identities like skins, others able to leap through time, but many of them remaining stagnant and unaltered.
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Credits
Short fiction and nonfiction featured in
- Typehouse Literary Magazine
- Down in the Dirt
- LitReactor
- Rhythm & Bones Press
- Arcadia MFA
Stories
The work
Debut collection
Leaving Arizona
Rhythm & Bones Press · 2020 · 168 pp · Short fiction
A collection of short stories featuring characters who are stuck: in reality, in their lives, in bad decisions and the darker sides of life backlit by the unforgiving heat of the desert. The desert can be as cruel as a neglectful parent, an abusive lover, leaving these characters in a drought of love and nourishment.
It is the perfect setting for the women, men, children and even the dead who traverse these stories by Justin Hunter, characters gripped in their own struggle, some finding a way to shed their identities like skins, others able to leap through time, but many of them remaining stagnant and unaltered.
Index
Selected stories & essays
Individual work in print and online. Each entry links out to the publisher.
About
J. Edward Hunter
As a writer raised in Tucson, Arizona, I've spent my life trying to capture the overwhelming beauty and power of the Sonoran Desert in my writing. I am now based in Dallas, Texas with my wife and two sons, but the desert remains in my heart.
My fiction has found homes in literary magazines and journals across the country, including Typehouse and Down in the Dirt, where each story carries a piece of the desert's stark beauty and unforgiving nature. When I'm not crafting fiction, I share insights about the writing craft through publications like LitReactor, helping other writers find their voice in the vast literary landscape.
I received my MFA in Creative Writing from Arcadia University in 2017, and I published my debut collection of short stories, Leaving Arizona, with Rhythm & Bones Press. These stories, like the desert itself, explore the resilient spirit of those who persist in seemingly inhospitable places.
Through this site, I share new fiction, craft insights, and glimpses into the writing life, all filtered through the lens of someone who knows that the most profound stories often emerge from the most unforgiving landscapes.
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Free short story
A pawn shop burglary turns deadly when a stolen item ends up in the wrong hands.
The Fence — an exclusive dark Southwestern crime story by J. Edward Hunter. Join the dispatch for dark fiction, craft notes, and regional suspense, and get it instantly, free.
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