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Sean Dietrich Articles

Nicknames

I have a friend who was recently asked by his employer to use a different name in his workplace. My friend’s nickname is “Tater Log.” But mostly, we just call him “Tater,” “Tater Bug” or “Sweet Tater Pie.”  Tater’s employer, however, felt this name was...
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AI

There is a lot of talk in the writing community about how artificial intelligence chatbots are going to replace authors someday. The fear is that AI will take real writing jobs and we writers will eventually be forced to live in refrigerator cartons beneath an...
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Angel Eyes

The man was ordering a beer from the bartender when I noticed him staring in my direction. “You’re that writer, ain’t you?” he said. That depends. “On what?” On whether you’re with the IRS. “Brother, have I got an angel story for you. It’s divine providence that I’m...
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Lake Martin

Lake Martin is flat. Mirror flat. It is a perfect evening. The sun is low. The crickets are singing in full stereo. And I’m visiting with old ghosts.  My father would have looked at this calm water and said it was as “flat as a bookkeeper’s bottom.” Only he...
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Morning

Morning

Oct 12, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH Morning. The lobby of my hotel is crowded. It’s breakfast time. This is the moment of day when guests emerge from rooms with...

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Morning

The Helpers

Oct 5, 2022

The hotel parking lot. Early afternoon. He was packing his truck. Slamming toolbox lids. Reorganizing luggage in the rear cab. Iowa plates. I’ve...

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Morning

Friend

Sep 28, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH I met an old friend for lunch today at a neighborhood deli. The portions were generous. The food was good. Our sandwich and burger...

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Morning

Oscar

Sep 21, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH Mobile, Alabama. Morning time. I was meeting someone important. I pulled into the parking lot of Toomey’s Beads & Bulk Mardi...

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Morning

People Watcher

Sep 14, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH The hotel lobby is about the size of an aircraft hangar. It’s like a city unto itself. They do things big in Atlanta. There are...

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Morning

Five Bucks

Sep 7, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH This is not my story. I am hearing it for the first time, just like you. He is the one who tells it. He is old. He is in a...

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My Generation

My Generation

Aug 31, 2022

BY SEAN DIETRICH They called us the TV generation. Because that was pretty much all we had. No smartphones. No computers. No internets. We had a...

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My Generation

I Hope

Aug 24, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH I hope you have a good day. The entire day. Start to finish. Not the Best Day Ever. No, that’s too much excitement crammed into 24...

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My Generation

Gone Country

Aug 17, 2022

By SEAN DIETRICH A beer joint. In the sticks. A cinderblock building. There were beat-up trucks parked in a dusty parking lot. No sign. Only a small...

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