Death Wishing — Laura Ellen Scott

"This is a terrific story, beautifully written, and completely enthralling." -- Dorothy Allison

In post-Katrina New Orleans, dying wishes can cure cancer, eliminate cats, bring back Elvis (1968 vintage), and turn the clouds orange. Divorced and disgraced up north, Victor hopes to live a carefree, drunken existence in the French Quarter, making capes and corsets and lusting for the girl who lives across the street -- until the hysteria surrounding "death wishing" changes his world in ways he never imagined.

Laura Ellen Scott teaches fiction writing at George Mason University. Her work has been selected for The Wigleaf Top Fifty of 2009 and Barrelhouse magazine's "Futures" issue. She has twice been nominated for Dzanc's Best of the Web 2010 anthology.