Editor’s note

Hello, readers!

It’s spring again, and fish are on the wing again—

Whoops. I’ll start again. I have fish on the brain right now. You’ll understand why after reading this issue of The Bethlehem Writers Roundtable. It’s a real treat for you this time, because over the winter, we members of the BWG have put our collective minds together to write a group story. Group writing is one of the most fun and interesting challenges available to authors; a real lesson about creativity, about give and take. We think we’ve created a real whale of a story here! So, enjoy the first part of our collaborative tale, A Fish Out of Water. Part two will be available in our fall issue.

Watery humor aside, we also confront some serious subjects in this issue. First up is celebrity interviewee Carla Damron who spoke to us about her latest novel, The Orchid Tattoo. Ms. Damron is a social worker whose advocacy for the oppressed influences her work. The Orchid Tattoo is a mature mystery dealing with the cruel reality of trafficking. Then, for this issue’s Literary Learnings, the BWG’s own Carol L. Wright tackles the subject of rewriting classic literature to reflect contemporary mores.

All this, plus you get to learn some facts about octopuses, the coolest critters in the sea!

Couldn’t hold off the sea humor long, could I?

We’ll be back in the summer with an issue featuring work by authors across the country. It’s always a deep pleasure to discover new writers, so I hope you’re looking forward to reading their work as much as I am to publishing it. Until that time, sit back and enjoy A Fish Out of Water. Happy reading!

Featured story

A Fish Out of Water by BWG

I am not an octopus. Octopuses have eight arms, and I have ten—a decapus, one could say. And as everyone knows—all the sensible folk who live beneath the ocean’s waves, that is—my two extra arms give me the power of prophecy.

At the moment the whole mess began, however, the only thing I could foresee was that it was going to be a very long while before I enjoyed my dinner.

Read more . . .

Also in this issue

Interview with author Carla Damron

Part 2 of the group story by Carol L. Wright

Part 3 of the group story by Ralph Hieb

Part 4 of the group story by Dianna Sinovic

Part 5 of the group story by Diane Sismour

Part 6 of the group story by Christopher D. Ochs

Part 7 of the group story by A.E. Decker

Literary Learnings by Carol L. Wright

Betty’s Tips and Mixed-Up Words