Editor’s note
Welcome to fall, and the coming onslaught of the holiday season. Generally, I think of spring as the season of change, but as chief editor it is my duty—and my honor!—to inform you that big changes are coming to the Bethlehem Writers Roundtable.
The Roundtable was originally founded to both showcase the talents of the Bethlehem Writers Group and to reach out and discover other new writers around the world. I have been pleased with our efforts thus far. Now, it’s time to step up our game. We will be increasing our author payments from $20 for our featured story, to $50. Stories accepted for our &More section, which used to be paid $10, shall now receive $20, and the payment for poems shall go from $5 to $10.
We are also increasing the maximum word count for stories from 2,000 words to 2,500 words.
Please read our submission form carefully for details, as we will also be changing our submission process. Until now, the Roundtable has always relied on year-round open submissions to acquire new work. We will be switching to two three-month submission periods from now on. Our first limited submission period will begin on November 1, 2022, and run until January 31, 2023. The second will start June 1, 2023, and end August 31, 2023.
We are looking forward to seeing your work, but also eager to offer our own. Starting in 2023, the members of the BWG will be writing one collective story a year to publish in the fall issue of the Roundtable. We hope our readers will enjoy these collaborative efforts as much as we enjoy writing them. In addition, we will continue to offer our writing tips, celebrity interviews, and literary musings.
I’ve written enough about the future of the Bethlehem Writers Roundtable. Let’s get on to the current one. For this issue, we bring you a featured story about family and love from the BWG’s own Kidd Wadsworth. Authors Albert N. Katz and Wayne Faust offer quiet stories on paths chosen and paths rejected, while Jerome McFadden’s tale will likely make you laugh. Peggy Schimmelman and Caroline Reddy bring on the lyrical musings with their respective poems. Our celebrity interviewee is Tim Waggoner, writing professor and author of over a staggering fifty dark fantasy novels. For lovers of lighter fantasy, featured author Kidd Wadsworth offers her perspective on J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter and the Sorcerer’s Stone. There should be plenty here to curl up with and enjoy as the weather grows colder!
As ever, we thank our readers for their time and attention. Happy holidays to all, and we’ll be back in 2023 with out new format.
For 2023
Barb Goffman to judge 2023 short story award
See the 2023 Short Story Award tab for more information.
Featured story
“My Father’s House” by Kidd Wadsworth
There is a picture that hangs in my father’s house on the wall by my parent’s bed. It’s a 16 x 20, black-and-white photograph of a four-year-old little girl wearing a sleeveless polka dot dress. She has a pixie haircut, and her eyes are uplifted to heaven. According to my parents, she also has the cutest smile they’ve ever seen.
Featured Poetry
“Ozark Supper on the Night Before Payday” by Peggy Schimmelman
There was never not something to eat
but sometimes what there was were
a couple of unlucky squirrels or
a hefty raccoon rolled in flour
and chicken-fried by my mom
who must’ve been pondering
her lot in life:
Also in this issue
Interview with author Tim Waggoner
Short story by Wayne Faust
Short story by Albert N. Katz
Short story by Jerome W. McFadden
Poem by Caroline Reddy
Literary Learnings by Kidd Wadsworth
Betty’s Tips and Mixed-Up Words