Solitaire Stories by Andy Hoover
by Andy Hoover
After about a year of tinkering, I have invented a new method of quickly writing pieces of short fiction. I plan to spend 2026 testing and refining this method by using it to craft a brand-new short story… every single day of the year! This experimental storytelling method requires only a standard pack of playing cards (plus a notebook, or whatever) and a commitment to follow the suggested narrative road wherever it leads. I've always loved writing, but have struggled with finishing anything, largely because I'm an inveterate tinkerer with perfectionist tendencies, a penchant for over-complicated plot-lines and world-building, and a fear of failure (and probably success, too). I have decided to short-circuit these liabilities and confront these fears and leave my fate to the whims of cartomancy, which I understand is the practice of divining one's fate via playing cards. I did not research this practice much, nor will I do much research of any kind on behalf any of the stories
Episodes
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Wanted Alive (Story #151)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 8/13/26. This one's set in a (decidedly ahistoric and pastiche-like) gold mining camp in the very early 20th Century. Into this hardscrabble community comes an Eastern city slicker, purportedly searching for his famous hermit father, the semi-legendary Old…
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Anyone But Lisa Fish (Story #146)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on August 6th, 2026. In the waning days of the Ed Bashir Show, a junior talent booker tasked with assembling the venerable host's final panel feels a self-destructive impulse to tank the whole assignment. He waffles between wanting to do a good job and wanting…
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The Adonis Situation (Story #167)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 9/10/26. In this one, an absurdly handsome and charismatic waiter causes unexpected problems for a consortium of restaurateurs, including their de facto leader, who since his second divorce has been really going through it. The latter man suffers a heart...
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Prelude to a Crime in Vegas (Story #139)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 7/27/26. In this one, a hapless fellow finds himself a loser in Vegas, despite utilizing what he thought was a elegant and foolproof system for beating the House (at roulette, of all things.) In a desperate attempt to make something of his last few hundred...
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A Junkyard Outside Yearning (Story #163)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 9/1/26. This is one of the ones I wrote in the mini-legal pad, but unlike others from that set this one expanded nicely in the typing phase (so no double feature this week). In this story, a professional photojournalist heads to Yearning, Montana in pursuit…
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The Food Group (Story #132)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 7/15/26. In this one, a waitress throws her hat in the ring for a promotion to management. She doesn't get the job but learns a lot from the man who does, a coworker she had initially feared and despised. He's clearly turned over a new leaf; will the mental...
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Short(er) Story Double Feature (Stories #136 and #134)
This episode consists of two weirdly similar Solitaire Stories I wrote in July. The first one only took about 14 minutes so I decided on the fly to double up this week (partially to make up for the travel-related late release of this episode.) The first story (Story #136, written 7/22/26) is…
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Mosaic House (Story #133)
This is the story I wrote on 7/16/26. From my synopsis notes: "Our protagonist seeks to flip a piece of real estate following a number of ambitious aesthetic improvements. The tile guy goes overboard, which leads to multiple clashes and an eventual (sort of) catharsis." This one is a bit shorter...
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The Second Time Capsule (Story #130)
This is the story that I wrote on 7/10/26. In this one, an elementary school teacher, disappointed by the contents of an unearthed time capsule at his school, decides to take another run as the project... so as to do right by the schoolchildren of his day, and of the future. However, the…
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Yeoman Curewell (Story #129)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 7/9/26. In this one, a well-meaning but neurotic and somewhat aimless grandson of a famous mayor navigates high society during the city's benefit-and-gala season. He also must manage the fraught-but-loving relationship he enjoys/suffers with his semi-retired...
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Clark Convenience, North and South (Story #125)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 7/2/26. In this one, an entrepreneur, recently separated from his wife, attempts to take advantage of an exploitable gap in the convenience-store-gas-station market outside of Verylong National Park. The whole thing seems like a slam dunk, until it doesn't.
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The Inside Job (Story #124)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 7/1/26. In this one, a demolitions man looking to go the extra mile for his new employer develops a major crush on a bank teller and becomes a skilled hobbyist florist in a bid to impress her. The bank in question is a historical location known for its...
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Second Contact (Story #113)
An introverted farmer hears an explosion out in his father's old apple orchard. He investigates and ends up rescuing a beautiful astronaut, at significant cost to his health. The astronaut does not forget his kindness, and some time later the farmer is summoned by her to Houston, where he may had…
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Daredevil Cake (Story #110)
A quiet and observant young reporter on the death-defying daredevil beat is dispatched to cover the retirement of one of the all-time greats of the trade. She's not alone in this journalistic pursuit, and must outwit a better-positioned rival in order to secure the relevant scoop for herself. And...
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Margot's Close Call (Story #109)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 6/5/26. In this one, a lady scheduled to testify against a dangerous mobster has been granted witness protection and been secreted away to an unusual mansion in the desert to hide out until her presence is needed in court. Unfortunately, the bad guys have...
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Clara's New Clown Curriculum (Story #102)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 5/27/26. In this one, an aspiring rodeo clown follows her dream, develops a bit of a crush, and then suffers a career-altering workplace injury. Not necessarily as downer a story as this synopsis would suggest, but not a purely feel-good affair either…
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Swordfight Study No. 1 (Story #106)
This is a bit of an experimental one; I wanted to see how the Solitaire Stories system works when applied to a single "climactic" fight scene. In this one, a character known as the "Young Duke" squares off against his childhood friend, who is now a notorious (but perhaps heroically justified)...
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Little Jed's Big Dumb Idea (Story #98)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 5/21/26. In this one, a young man recently hired by a lumber transport company tries to get in good with his bosses, a father-son team from whom he learns a great deal in a short time. Unfortunately, his sense of loyalty and morality is strained by a...
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Angler Bros. Swamp Tours, LLC (Story #93)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 5/14/26. In this one, an ambitious corporate lady commits to an idea-generating solo retreat in the wild and mysterious Banjothorn Swamps. So as to get a good feel for the region, she (or her company) engage with Angler Bros. Swamp Tours, LLC. Due to...
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Go Copperheads (Story #89)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 5/7/26. Per my notes, the synopsis is as follows: "A former collegiate tennis player who went on to professional glory but has since retired returns to his alma mater for the unveiling of his commemorative bronze bust. He hates the wretched thing, the way…
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The Slump (Story #85)
A first-person account of a fictional baseball team's terrible fictional August and miraculous fictional September. I ended up doing this one (semi-intentionally) as a bit more of a monologue than usual. I have a bit of a cold on top of that, so this one might sound a bit "off." I think it's an...
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Earling Mortimer Impresses (Story #86)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 5/1/26. In this one, a bookish earling (like a princeling, but for earls) feels pressured to excel on a hunting weekend at the beautiful but dangerous estate of his father's political frenemy, Baron Elgin. The young nobleman performs surprisingly well in...
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Week Eleven (Story #84)
This is the story I wrote on 4/28/26. From my notes, the synopsis is as follows: "Once upon a time (in like the 90's) two counselors fell in love at the (once) iconic and beloved sleep-away summer camp known as Camp Longfox. Now, decades later, their daughter arrives to see if she might be able…
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Exploding Princess Arrows (Story #75)
This is the Solitaire Story that I wrote on 4/15/26. This one is a light fantasy tale, or at least as light as a story centering on the unexpected death of a mostly-beloved monarch is likely to get while still retaining some emotional truth (hopefully.) Come watch Crown Princess Emmalisa as she...
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Danger's Kid Sister and the Cannibal's Son (Story #69)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 4/2/26. It's a love story featuring two hardworking entrepreneurs in the meatpacking/catering trade (for narrative convenience their professional roles are somewhat vaguely defined). Will a troubling rumor regarding one of their father's purportedly unsavory...
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The Sullen Song and the Lucky Baby (Story #62)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 3/24/26. In this one, small-time, mostly-legit hustler with his fingers in a lot of local pies contemplates buying a boat. He gets a bit obsessed with the idea, in fact! Can his no-nonsense waitress girlfriend reel him in? How about the various carnies he...
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Couple Friends (Story #57)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 3/16/26. This is the story of three sets of couples who all yearn to be close friends with other couples. It starts as an aspirational, "successful adult couples have couple friends" sort of thing, but becomes something a bit more important to all of them.…
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Fiddler's Fortune (Story #44)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote back on February 20th. In this one, a lucky guy who doesn't know he's lucky teams up with a disreputable friend to win a bunch of money at an off-track betting place. Over the course of a rainy and chaotic morning, their plan unfolds (and unravels.) Can they…
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The Plot Against Tony Mayfly (Story #51)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 3/6/26. An anti-mob vigilante who fancies himself something of a Batman gets distracted from his mission of vengeance by a fun fling enabled via his cover career as a D.J. Can his concerned and disenchanted inner circle get him back on track? (Note: I had a...
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The Real Abe (Story #50)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 3/3/26. In this story, the "real-life" subject of a hit love song by international pop superstar Catlyn "Cat" Arrow struggles with how best to help his island community -- and his own peace of mind -- following a tourism-devastating hurricane. Being "the guy...
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Falling Star Over Clean River Bay (Story #40)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 2/14/26. It concerns the first mate of the exploratory sailing ship the Prudent Duchess and what he learns about himself and his fellows on an voyage around a largely-uncharted peninsula. It's a story about unexpected career paths, and also the power of art,...
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The Third Model (Story #31)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on February 1, 2026. It's about a romance cover model who feels uncertain about a recent career development. He has lunch with his agent and spies a mysterious woman and makes a late-night phone call. Kind of a meandering, character-heavy, portrait type of…
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Pirate Rangers! (Story #28)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 1/28/26. It concerns the career anxieties and related struggles of a park ranger who really loves pirates, but does not much care for office politics. By the end of the story, she has a better handle on what she really wants, but beyond that I can't say...
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Ms. Jupiter (Story #15)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on January 15th. It's about a retiring science teacher who takes on a new short-term gig involving experimental educational domes. This one has both comedy (at least I think so) and tragedy (kind of)! Enjoy!
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Valentine's Day Special Double Feature (Stories #20 and #21)
Happy Valentine's Day! As an apology for being a couple days late on dropping this episode, this one is a double feature. "The Premiere of the Redeemed" (written 1/20/26) and "The One That Got Away" (written 1/21/26). Appropriate for the holiday, these are two love stories (that are also about...
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Exit Interview (Story #17)
This is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 1/17/26. It's called Exit Interview. A journalist assigned to cover a magical wargames conference ends up getting more directly involved than he had anticipated. It's in first person and set in a whimsical (sort of) fantasy world, if either of those elements...
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Chainsaw Guy and The Frogman (Story #9)
Alternate title: "Chainsaw Guy and The Frogman (2006)." An employee for a haunted hayride pitches an idea to his boss, and then is forced to see it through. Sorry for a few verbal flubs in this one!
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The Evenly-Spaced Life and Times of Karl Geoss, Tourney Knight (Story #10)
This story is set in a low-fantasy sort of realm, where knights can carve out a living in tournaments and so forth. Timely, now that Game of Thrones is back in the zeitgeist! I picked this one for the third episode both as a celebration of finally having ten of the notebook stories typed out (I'm...
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The Taste Test (Story #5)
Story written on 1/5/26. A dinner party guest with a secret and a crush attends an unusual sort of dinner party. Mortal peril ensues!
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Quitting Time (Story #1)
"Quitting Time" is the Solitaire Story I wrote on 1/1/26. It's about a guy who wants to quit his job but then has trouble quitting his job.
About this show
After about a year of tinkering, I have invented a new method of quickly writing pieces of short fiction. I plan to spend 2026 testing and refining this method by using it to craft a brand-new short story… every single day of the year!
This experimental storytelling method requires only a standard pack of playing cards (plus a notebook, or whatever) and a commitment to follow the suggested narrative road wherever it leads. I've always loved writing, but have struggled with finishing anything, largely because I'm an inveterate tinkerer with perfectionist tendencies, a penchant for over-complicated plot-lines and world-building, and a fear of failure (and probably success, too). I have decided to short-circuit these liabilities and confront these fears and leave my fate to the whims of cartomancy, which I understand is the practice of divining one's fate via playing cards. I did not research this practice much, nor will I do much research of any kind on behalf any of the stories
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Andy Hoover