The Orbital Review

The Orbital Review is a literary journal under Orbital Press that delves into a wide range of topics. Featuring insightful book reviews by D.J. Hoskins, the journal also includes chess analyses, personal essays, reflective pieces, and poems, offering readers a thoughtful blend of literary critique and creative exploration.

Essays

Book Reviews

Poetry

Chess

Short Stories

Photography

Videos

Music

Bastion - Chapter 3
Short Stories Jason Hoskins Short Stories Jason Hoskins

Bastion - Chapter 3

Peeking around a corner, Amma held her shredder at port arms. A short rifle, it was twice the length of a conventional handgun. Pulling back the bolt, she took a quick look inside the ejection port.

A long black needle rested there. Powered by magnetic propulsion, the anti-material spike was built to penetrate armor. Pushing through before fragmenting into an adversaries body.

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AC-130 Gunship: Iraq
Essays Jason Hoskins Essays Jason Hoskins

AC-130 Gunship: Iraq

Shifting right, then shifting left, the chains slapped metal. Crashing the cabin as the giant crates held firm. A hum from hell filled the cabin as the pilots threw the plane into a nosedive.

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Infinite Sea: Imagination, Isolation, and Writing
Essays Jason Hoskins Essays Jason Hoskins

Infinite Sea: Imagination, Isolation, and Writing

Holding my breath, I dive. Hitting the water, I do not swim, but sink. Down, down into the chasm of thought. Reds and pinks, violets and golds form, giving birth to a realm within. Colors shifting, worlds are born, characters are torn, pulled apart by the treachery of their environments.

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A Writers Fate
Essays Jason Hoskins Essays Jason Hoskins

A Writers Fate

As a writer, it is imperative to understand that you do not write for the current day but for the days beyond your years. Through the might of the pen, writers hold a singular ability. The power to immortalize others.

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Playing Pretend In Class
Essays Jason Hoskins Essays Jason Hoskins

Playing Pretend In Class

I can't stand school, but it's forced upon me.

The infantilism, stupid group projects, annoying little kids…

I'm too old for this shit. Too old to mold, too old to fool into believing strange things.

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Old Dog Inside
Essays Jason Hoskins Essays Jason Hoskins

Old Dog Inside

My teeth are worn, some are broken. The jaw mangled from tearing flesh and chopping meat.

The organs are old, but still working, Hearts still pumping, pushing the blood, flowing the mud beneath my skin.

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Literary Posers
Poetry Jason Hoskins Poetry Jason Hoskins

Literary Posers

Thick books and snide looks. They hold an air, a sensibility, a snobbery.

Shakespeare, Van Gogh… they'll never know; they'll never have it, never know their pain.

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She Made Me Feel…
Poetry Jason Hoskins Poetry Jason Hoskins

She Made Me Feel…

I hated how she made me feel. That hair, that touch, that lust… her unrelenting fire, persistence, passion…

How could I forget; I cannot… and that's the problem.

I refused to give, to trip… to fall in love with her.

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All Writers Hate Each Other, Chess Players Have Tolerance
Essays Jason Hoskins Essays Jason Hoskins

All Writers Hate Each Other, Chess Players Have Tolerance

It’s an open secret that writers hate each other. We nitpick, critique, judge, and sometimes quietly shit talk one another. All of this is done with class of course. Nasty little slights, strained smiles, subtle queues through body language, and perhaps in private… the occasional eye roll.

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