A Stay of Execution is a collection of 91 pieces of short fiction, ranging in length from the form known as "flash" or "sudden" to the short story. In this second collection of Janikowski's often bizarre work, the stories span a wide expanse of subject matters and moods, which has contributed to his style being likened to "'A Prairie Home Companion' on 'shrooms." Tales of good and evil are set against nightmarish stories - some bordering on the psychedelic, some unashamedly tongue-in-cheek.