Letter from the Editor
Alexander Opgenorth, EIC
Hello reader, Taylor and I are so glad you’ve decided to stop by and check out another issue of Burnt Pine Magazine! As we bring you this seventh issue of dynamic and beautiful writing over the next fourteen days it makes me excited to see how far Burnt Pine’s reach has grown. Issue Seven features writers that represent six different countries and fifteen of the United States. That’s a fraction of the many locations we see writers submitting to us from when we review submissions. It is truly humbling as well as satisfying to see our long hours and hard work bring us to a point where we can say Burnt Pine has become a worldwide platform for literature.
Knowing that Burnt Pine is so connected and accessible to many parts of the world feels even more special as we still find ourselves amid the Covid-19 health pandemic. It’s been a long year of self-quarantining, suspending social engagements and pastimes, and modifying what feels like every aspect of our lives. The world is fatigued and understandably so, but I stand by what I said in my letter from Issue Six that in good times and in bad, reading is always there to provide an escape.
I believe the writing in Issue Seven definitely can provide a momentary escape from the dreary reality we still find ourselves in, yet more importantly, I believe it provides us an opportunity to reflect. We have all grown to realize that it is our human engagement, in the flesh, not through a digital medium that provides substance and importance to our lives. Much of the writing in Issue Seven speaks to that, and I encourage you to look inward and think about your own relationships in life and how you will cherish and nurture them more closely once this pandemic is behind us.
I hope you enjoy all of the work we’ve selected for you in this issue, and I thank you for continuing to support Burnt Pine Magazine and writers around the world.
Warmly,
Alexander Opgenorth,
Fiction
Lee Matthew Goldberg
J. T. Townley
Taylor Monet Welch
Janie Kronk
Mitch Carver
Jess Lee
Ken Kakareka
Merrill Hatlen
M. E. Proctor
Nonfiction
Deborah-Zenha Adams
Maureen Mancini Amaturo
Elaina Battista-Parsons
Robert Detman
Karen Bowers
Madison Block
Andy Betz
Dan Cardoza
Poetry
Madeleine Trees
Gareth Culshaw
D. E. Kern
Paula K Lewis-Gamble
Hamza Naseer
Durrell Smith
James B. Nicola
Junpei Tarashi
Charissa Roberson
Allison Goldstein
David M. Alper
Lisa Reily
Jason Emde
Tyler Jacobs
Burnt Pine 