Not all heroes wear capes.

Sometimes, it take heroics just to survive. Americana noir? Tramp noir? Outcasts, rejects, the forgotten, and just the plain unlucky. Anti- and dark heroes have stories to tell, too. Six stories exploring a range of human predicaments, emotions, and life choices. Dive into 6 gritty tales about unconventional heroes.

What happened to all the cowboys?

Chuck looked over at the old cowboy. Their eyes met for a moment. It was hard not to see his own future self within those gray, smoky cataract eyes.

from Cowboy Eggs

Femme fatale Americana

What Hailey did remember clearly about the gun was how much it looked like a toy, appearing small and harmless, even inside her delicate hand. The chrome finish made it appear plastic, as did the white imitation ivory embedded in the grip.

from Hailey's Comet

Can we pass on an unlucky life?

It seemed to Nathan that she was waiting for Jim to stop her, to grab her arms, pin her down, slap her sane, but he didn't. He just picked up Nathan in his sweaty arms, took him outside, and let her tear his motel room and everything in it to shreds.

The old man and the boy stood side by side on the other side of the screen door looking in and silently watched her rampage.

from He Looked Like John Wayne

Love can expressed in unique ways.

Josh turned to look at Jenny. Her green eyes had become a sea calling him in like a doomed sailor. She took a big drink of beer, finished the can, and threw it into the middle of the street. Tears came, dropped onto the porch, and left dark stains on the gray wood, naked and bare of paint.

from Jenny Had Green Eyes

Not winner of the Mother of the Year award.

Momma was a good ol' happy drinker. Danny wasn't. Even as a little kid, he was a mean drunk, threw his toys around the house, after having a beer with Momma.

from A Beer with Mama

Can a rambunctious trailer court urchin and a hard man become friends?

Continuing with his young boy's innocent curiosity, Joel looked into the back of the man with the scar's truck. Old battered suitcases, cardboard boxes, and a mishmash of sundries from a broken life filled the bed.

"We're ya goin'?"

"I don't know yet, just gotta move on."

"Yeah, I know whatcha mean."

"Thinkin' about hittin' the road, too, are ya?"

from The Man with the Scar

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

TypewriterTramp is a fiction writer originally from Europe who has spent the majority of his life traveling and, as the pseudonym would suggest, enjoys drafting on manual typewriters.