Featuring Marianne H. Donley
October 2, 2026 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Featured Author of the Month tagged as Featured Author of the Month, Illusive Worlds, Marianne H. Donley, new release, The Confession of George Mullins
Featuring Marianne H. Donley
Marianne H. Donley makes her home in Pennsylvania with her husband, son, and a very very active dog. She is a member of Bethlehem Writers Group, The Charmed Connection, Sisters in Crime, The Guppies and Capital Crimes. When Marianne isn’t working on A Slice of Orange, she might be writing short stories, funny romances, or quirky murder mysteries, but this could be a rumor. She also could be knitting.
Illusive Worlds, Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC’s 9th anthology in the series Sweet, Funny, and Strange® Tales is available for preorder—both the print version and the ebook. The ebook is on sale for only 99¢ and will revert to the regular price of $3.99 on pub day—October 16, 2026.
Marianne’s short story, “The Confession of George Mullins,” deals with a nasty old man who has decided murdering his wife of sixty years is a great way to get “the state” to put him in jail and cater to his every wish—starting with his breakfast order of two eggs over easy, crisp bacon, hash browns and toast with tons of butter. Unfortunately for George, Detective Eleanor Reed and the ghosts of Mrs. Virtue and Uncle Walt are on the case, so he may learn to be careful for what he wishes.
About Illusive Worlds
Enter our worlds of imagination!
In this ninth “Sweet, Funny, and Strange”® anthology from the multiple award-winning authors of the Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC, we explore everything from faraway galaxies to the vagaries of the human mind.
Our stories include ventures into the supernatural, meeting aliens and witches, experimenting in time travel, and encountering technology that is sometimes benign but at other times menacing. The blurred lines between human and machine, life and death, or illusion and reality have provided our authors more than sufficient inspiration to create myriad visions of science fiction and fantasy to pique your curiosity, spark your sense of humor, sometimes horrify you a bit, and occasionally bring delight.
In addition to tales from BWG’s inventive minds, we are excited to bring you six prize-winning stories from our 2025 and 2026 Short Story Award competitions. We know these authors will become some of your favorites—just as they have for us.
So please join us in our illusive worlds. We’re very happy to have you along for the ride.
Anthologies with more of Marianne’s Stories
Saved by the Vampire Thief New Release
September 29, 2026 by marianne h donley in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Spotlight tagged as A Dystopian Vampire Romance, Dark Wine Vampires, Jenna Barwin, new release, Saved by the Vampire Thief
Saved by the Vampire Thief
(A Dystopian Vampire Romance)
Jenna Barwin
Dark Wine Vampires Book 2
Release date: September 29, 2026
When vampire Chris Atherton—a former rock star—accidentally shoots a woman he was trying to help, he must do something he never thought possible: turn her into a vampire to save her life. But little did he know the surprise in store for him when she utters her dying words…
Christopher
I’ve spent years surviving alone.
Stealing from the ruins of the old world is easier than caring about anyone. Far less painful. After everything I’ve lost, I’ve sworn never to risk my heart again.
Then I break into an abandoned missile silo…and meet her.
Maria is fierce, beautiful, and determined to protect her daughter. When her arrow flies toward my heart, instinct takes over.
I shoot.
Maria
The man invading my home isn’t just a thief.
He’s a vampire.
I’ve buried two husbands. I won’t let my daughter become a monster’s next meal. But when his bullet tears through me, death is certain.
Instead of leaving me to die, he saves me.
Now I’m bound to a brooding vampire haunted by regret—a man who never wanted the responsibility of a widow and her child. Together, we’ll have to survive the dangers of a post-Collapse world…and the feelings for each other neither of us want.
Notes & Tropes:
The Dark Wine Vampires series features stand-alone vampire romances in an interconnected world. The stories are set a hundred years in the future in a dystopian world, and each full-length novel is a vampire romance featuring a new mortal/vampire couple with a guaranteed HEA!
Book 2 Tropes include: reluctant protector; wounded hero; protective single mother; forced proximity; found family; twisty secret surprises; character-focused romance; action and adventure
Jenna Barwin’s website: https://www.jennabarwin.com
Other Books by Jenna Barwin
Spotlight on Jenna Barwin
August 4, 2026 by marianne h donley in category Writing tagged as First Book in Series, Jenna Barwin, new release, novella, Rescued by the Outlaw Vampire
Rescued
by the
Vampire Outlaw
Jenna Barwin
Dark Wine Novella 1
August 4, 2026
Hidden Depths Publishing
ISBN: 978-1952755231
About the Book
COLIN
Seeing her again tears me apart. Four years have passed, and I still love her as fiercely as the day she walked away. But my vampire community has given me one job: rescue her.
A catastrophic typhoon is racing toward the California coast. To save her life, I have no choice but to abduct her—because she’ll never believe the truth in time.
Then I bite her to restore the memories she lost.
The fear in her eyes guts me.
I’m doing my duty…but all I want is a second chance.
Can I convince her I’m not the monster she thinks I am?
NAMI
I wake screaming. There’s a man in my room. Then I realize who it is. My ex-boyfriend who believes he’s a vampire.
Part of me still loves him. But I can’t build a life with someone who’s delusional.
So I run.
But when I try to escape, he shows a side of himself I’ve never seen before—an outlaw who refuses to let me go.
Our desire still burns, but captivity changes everything. Every mile between us and freedom deepens my confusion. I still want him. I still care.
Yet if I don’t find a way to escape, I may lose more than my freedom—because my very heart is at risk…
Read more of Jenna Barwin’s Books
Celebrating: 20 Years of Sweet, Funny, & Strange Tales
May 31, 2026 by Bethlehem Writers Group in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Contests tagged as Bethlehem Writers Group, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award, Book Birthday, Celebrating, new release, The BWG
Today is the day we are Celebrating!
In May, 2006, what would become the Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC, met for the first time in Bethlehem, PA, with four people in attendance. In the twenty years since, the group has grown from a fledgling critique group to a robust community of writers and publishers, offering not just a quarterly online literary journal (Bethlehem Writers Roundtable), an annual writing contest (Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award), but also several award-winning anthologies, among our many publications.
To celebrate our twentieth anniversary, we bring you highlights from each of our eight “Sweet, Funny, and Strange®” anthologies of short stories from our varied, award-winning authors. Starting with holiday stories from our debut anthology, A Christmas Sampler (2009), we are happy to present touching, hilarious, and thought-provoking tales. From a second anthology, Once Around the Sun (2013), are tales for all seasons, followed by, food-related stories from A Readable Feast (2015). You will find children’s stories from Once Upon a Time (2017), then tales of the paranormal from Untethered (2018), animal tales from Fur, Feathers, and Scales (2020), mysteries from An Element of Mystery (2022), and more holiday stories from Season’s Readings (2024).
So, come celebrate with us as you peruse these pages that are sure to bring you a smile, perhaps a tear or two, and a whole lot of fun, with best wishes to you from the authors of the Bethlehem Writers Group.
About Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), is a community of mutually supportive fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories. BWG also publishes quality fiction through their online literary journal, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, and their award-winning A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology series.
Books from Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
Featured Author: Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
March 1, 2026 by Bethlehem Writers Group in category Apples & Oranges by Marianne H. Donley, Contests, Featured Author of the Month tagged as #TheBWG, Bethlehem Writers Group, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable Short Story Award, new release, Seasons Readings, Short Story Award
About Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
The Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC (BWG), is a community of mutually supportive fiction and nonfiction authors based in Bethlehem, Pennsylvania. The members are as different from each other as their stories. BWG also publishes quality fiction through their online literary journal, Bethlehem Writers Roundtable, and their award-winning A Sweet, Funny, and Strange Anthology series.
Next up for BWG
BWG is working on their ninth anthology, Illusive Worlds: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales of Science Fiction and Fantasy
In connection with this anthology, they are hosting The Bethlehem Writers 2026 Short Story Award.
The 2026 Short Story Award opens on January 1, 2026. The theme will be Speculative Fiction (tales of science fiction and fantasy, broadly interpreted).
BWG is seeking never-published short stories of 2,500 words or fewer.
First Place:
$250 and consideration for publication in our upcoming anthology: Illusive Worlds: Sweet, Funny, and Strange Tales of Science Fiction and Fantasy or Bethlehem Writers Roundtable
Second Place:
$100 and publication in Bethlehem Writers Roundtable
Third Place:
$50 and publication in Bethlehem Writers Roundtable
The 2026 contest judge is speculative fiction author Susan Kaye Quinn.
About the 2026 Contest Judge
Susan Kaye Quinn has designed aircraft engines and studied global warming, getting a PhD in environmental engineering along the way, but now she invents cool stuff in books. She’s been writing across multiple genres for 15 years, with her latest works focusing on hopepunk, solarpunk, and the new stories we need to build a more just and sustainable world. Her short fiction can be found in Grist, Solarpunk Magazine, Reckoning, and all her novels and short stories can be found on her website: SusanKayeQuinn.com. She is the host of the Bright Green Futures podcast.
Read BWG’s interview of Susan here.
For more information on the 2026 Short Story Award and for information on how to enter, click here.
Books from Bethlehem Writers Group, LLC
Featured Books
A LADY’S POINT OF VIEW
Being nearsighted in Regency London isn’t a crime—but it feels like one to a lady in disgrace.
More info →
DARK WINE AT MIDNIGHT
To save humanity, a reluctant spy must convince a handsome vampire to trust her, despite the dark secrets each carries, and the mutual attraction they can’t resist.
More info → 
