theFocusOnShortStories Get Focused
POWER TIP → To view stories in the author’s intended order, click the linked word after “Posted in.”
Step 1: Find “Posted in” on any story tile or at the bottom of a story.
Step 2: Click the menu name that follows it.
This will reload the grid in the correct story order (often oldest first).
For best results, start from the link at the bottom of a story.
streetcrossing

Focus Man: The Coffee Shop

He walked to work most mornings

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1617

thestartup

Focus Man: The Startup

Looking back, Focus Man sometimes smiled at how frightened he had been.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1663

father_extended_top

Forks #1

The First Fork — When My Father Died

Posted in Forks by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1190

dishwasher

Focus Man: The Kitchen

The dishwasher was already running when he noticed it.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1346

LauraHike

The River-Chapter 2

Along the River

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1463

banjo

The Lonely Banjo

Susannah leaned quietly in the corner

Posted in Lonely Banjo by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1280

thefort

Focus Man: A Place of Their Own

He noticed it before he stepped inside.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1344

thegame

Focus Man: The Game

At the top of Eilinita, the street leveled out just enough to make it possible.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1348

thepilot

The River-Chapter 4

The Pilot

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1477

basictraining

Forks #5

The Draft — Choosing a Different War

Posted in Forks by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1197

italiandinner

Focus Man - The Promotion

My manager asked if I'd be interested in applying for an analyst position.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1578

theconversation

The River-Chapter 14

Home Again

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1565

fatherandson

Focus Man: Saturday Morning

Saturday mornings were different from weekdays.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1432

thenightthatchangedhim

Focus Man: The Night Everything Changed

The house was quiet when his mother opened the bedroom door.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1433

therug

Focus Man: The Rug

His mother called that evening.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1733

thetiming

Focus Man: The Timing

Claire began telling him about a meeting at work.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1347

tworivers

The River-Chapter 18

Where the River Divides

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1653

oldtimefestival

The Lonely Banjo: Among Her Own Kind

The journey began in a case

Posted in Lonely Banjo by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1334

southsfbay.png

Focus Man - The View

They simply looked forward to seeing one another again.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1522

thebaybelow

Focus Man - The Leap

Focus Man found himself sitting alone on the back patio.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1662

thebend

The River-Chapter 8

The Bend in the River

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1484

theinvitation

Focus Man: The Invitation

The email had been sitting in his inbox for three days.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1478

studying

Focus Man - Night School

He couldn't imagine where she found the energy.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1577

ropingcalf

The River-Chapter 6

The Horse

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1486

eileen_happy-new-year

Forks #3

The Long Goodbye — When Eileen Died

Posted in Forks by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1192

themeeting

The River-Chapter 3

The Meeting

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1464

emptychair

Focus Man: The Empty Chair

She had finally stopped expecting him to remember where he had left his glasses

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1734

thefocusonlife

Forks #6

The Return — Finding Purpose Again

Posted in Forks by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1198

theview

Forks #4

The Second Move — Choosing the Mountain Again

Posted in Forks by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1196

lonelybanjocover

The Lonely Banjo (Start Here)

Some stories are not about people

Posted in Lonely Banjo by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1321

alife

The River-Chapter20

A Life of Her Own

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1689

thewedding

Focus Man: The Wedding

What he remembered instead was a small glass of champagne.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1492

thepractice

The River-Chapter 5

The Practice

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1483

thequiet

Focus Man: The Quiet Between Us

His wife sat curled at one end of the sofa with a novel open in her lap.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1508

bikerack

Focus Man: The Plan

The ride wasn't scheduled to leave until nine, but Focus Man arrived twenty minutes early anyway.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1434

focusmantheemail

Focus Man: The Cost

The email thread had already gone on too long.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1327

thebackyard

Focus Man - The Backyard

"I'll never hear the end of that."

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1609

theclassroom

The River-Chapter 11

Finding Her Place

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1519

focusmankitchen

Focus Man: The Call

“Hey,” the voice said. “Do you have a minute?”

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1340

focusmanthemeeting

Focus Man: The Meeting

He preferred arriving before everyone else

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1323

thecouch

Focus Man - The Move

A warm Saturday afternoon in the hills above San Mateo.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1575

thethanksgiving

The River-Chapter 16

The Thanksgiving Visit

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1587

passingwithlaundry

The Lonely Banjo #2

The Rumors of Music

Posted in Lonely Banjo by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1286

joearriving

The Lonely Banjo: The Return of Joe

The day did not announce itself.

Posted in Lonely Banjo by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1329

manandbanjo

The Lonely Banjo: The Return of Joe (continued)

Joe worked slowly.

Posted in Lonely Banjo by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1330

forkscover

Forks (Start Here)

Every life has moments where the path divides.

Posted in Forks by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1320

throughthenursery

Focus Man: The First Ride

It wasn’t just a bicycle.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1345

therecital

The River-Chapter 21

The Recital

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1729

thedinnertable

Focus Man: The New House

Every bedroom already held signs of another life.

Posted in Focus Man by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1507

theletter

The River-Chapter25

The Letter

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1735

theleaving

The River-Chapter 9

The Leaving

Posted in The River by Geoff Stevens Family 337 Story 1493