Fall has finally come to east-central West Virginia, where I live, and the endless 80+ degree days and 90% humidity have finally given way to drier air and cooler temperatures. From where I’m writing this, I can see a wall of trees along the river. The river has taken on the deep, jade green that it always has when the temperature drops, and the trees are just starting to think about changing color.
As I am sure is the case for many of you, Fall is my favorite season. It is a season tailor-made for readers — longer nights, colder days and a necessary, seasonal pulling in. There is always a stack of books on my desk, and that stack grows through the summer. Around the last week of September, I start reading in an attempt to get back down to the desktop. I always fail.
As always, the editors at Change Seven have worked hard to choose essays, poems and stories that will challenge and amuse and delight. And as always, the choosing isn’t easy — we always receive much more quality work than we can possibly publish. It’s disappointing and not a little painful to turn away good work, even if you’re certain it will find a home elsewhere. That said, it is with pride that we showcase the work that has found a home here at Change Seven in this, our Fall 2023 issue.
~Doug Van Gundy
Change Seven Magazine 