Literary magazine seeks to encompass Lehigh talent

The staff of Lehigh’s literary magazine, the Amaranth, will soon be compiling its Spring 2016 issue.

The magazine has been published for the past 10 years and has served as an outlet for Lehigh students to publish their creative works. It features many different works of art including — but not limited to — poems, short stories, drawings and paintings.

The magazine has evolved greatly in its short history, especially in respect to its content. Although it initially predominantly featured poems and shorts stories, it is now an all-inclusive publication dedicated to the world of literature.

Doctoral student Robert Fillman oversees the production of the Amaranth. He is an accomplished poet himself, and has had poems published in more than six literary magazines. Fillman explained that he and his colleagues have identified a publications mission on this campus.

“Our goal is to promote the literary arts on and around campus and to highlight the talent and range of Lehigh students,” Fillman said.

Fillman was also emphatic about commitment to the arts as well as its reputation in the engineering and business fields.

“Amaranth provides a space to reflect the best original, creative work of our undergraduates,” Fillman said. “We try to fill Amaranth’s pages with innovative, thought-provoking work that is mindful of diversity and speaks to the broad range of sensibilities of our student body.”

Staff member Jessica Robinson, ’16, also gave the publication high praise for the way it acts as a tribute to Lehigh’s legacy concerning the arts. Robinson, an accounting and finance major, said she loves that this is an outlet for her.

“It is so different from all of my other classes and a great creative outlet,” Robinson said. “Sometimes Lehigh can be very focused on engineering, science and business, and I think Amaranth is important because it showcases a different side of Lehigh.”

The Amaranth is open to anyone who wants to write for the publication. This year’s submission deadline was March 13. For written entries like short stories, submissions accepted are usually expected to be about two-thousand words or less. For poems, students can submit up to three poems to be included.

Fillman said that with the deadline for submission fast approaching, the staff has already received around thirty poems, thirty works of art and about eleven short stories; and he expects that there will be more submissions trickle in.

The editorial staff of the publication is made up of undergraduate students who are responsible for compiling the works into a final product. The Amaranth is set up to try to have a short story or poem be partnered with a corresponding or related painting or drawing. This makes the process of compiling the magazine much more extensive.

Fillman expressed pleasure with how hard students have been working on compiling this years edition. Student copy editor Priya Chokshi, ’16, explained she and the rest of the staff members make it a point to work hard on the magazine

“The process takes time because we really want to make sure that we are choosing the best works of poetry, art and fiction for the Amaranth,” Chokshi said. “We talk about each piece individually and its strengths. We examine the themes of the works and how they would fit into the magazine.”

In addition to the printed publication, the Amaranth also hosts reading events in the UC about three times a semester. These events are held in the Humanities Center and are an opportunity for students to fellowship with other students and also present some of their work in a casual environment. The next event will be held March 31.

“It’s a collaborative experience in which each student editor has the opportunity to weigh in on every piece that we receive,” Fillman said. “I’m always amazed at the editorial staff’s level of dedication and the care they give in reading each submission.”

Any student who would like to be involved with the Amaranth in the future should look for English 170 during registration.