A busy day today.

Tangent Online – which has published reviews of short genre fiction for 14 years – is “closing shop permanently March 1, 2009, unless someone steps forward to host the site.” This notice was given on a SFF newsgroup.

The website itself says they are on sabbatical “while we give the site a new look”. This was posted September 2007.

So, is anyone interested in hosting Tangent Online?

Warren Lapine — former publisher of DNA Publications, which “at its heyday published fiction magazines Absolute Magnitude, Fantastic Stories, Weird Tales, Dreams of Decadence, and Mythic Delirium, news magazine Science Fiction Chronicle, the non-genre Whole Cat Magazine, and KISS: The Official Magazine ” — has returned. SFScope reports on the man’s past and future in their article Warren Lapine returns to sf with magazine, books, and checks By Ian Randal Strock.

Keep an eye out for his new publishing venture, Tir Na Nog, which will bring out a reconstituted Fantastic Stories.

Information on submissions from Apex Book Company, via Twitter:

• It is helpful when submitting a story to include a professional cover letter.
• Don’t send submissions directly to the editorial staff – please send submissions to the e-mail address listed in our guidelines.
• Please do not paste your story into the body of your email. It is an instant rejection and not helpful to anybody.
• Plausible story lines and science also go a long way.

I read this in today’s Ansible:

“GORDON VAN GELDER’s _The Magazine of Fantasy & SF_ is switching to
bimonthly publication. ‘Rising costs — especially postal costs — and
the economy put us in a position where we either had to raise our rates
severely or cut back somewhere. Given the state of the economy, I decided
a cutback on frequency made the most sense. We’ll lose a little more than
10% of our content this year, but publishing on a bimonthly schedule
should put us in a great position for the coming years.’ (2 January)”

Of course, me being me, I had to confirm it. This from the F&SF forum, posted by Mr. Gelder himself just 23 hours before this little post of mine:

“I thought I’d better start a new thread for this subject, but as mentioned in the “thin December issue” thread, F&SF is going bimonthly.

The March 2009 issue will be the last monthly issue. Starting with the April/May 2009 issue, we’ll be publishing one issue every two months. Each issue will be 256 pages (16 pages longer than our last Oct/Nov issue) except for this year’s anniversary issue, which will be a jumbo.

Subscribers don’t need to take any action. If your current sub expires with the April 2009 issue or with the May 2009 issue, your sub now expires with the April/May 2009 issue.

We’ve made the change because rising costs—especially postal costs—and the current economy put us in a position where we either had to raise our rates severely or cut back somewhere. Given the state of the economy, I decided a cutback in frequency made the most sense. We’ll lose a little more than 10% of our content this year, but we should be in a great position for the coming years.

I know it’s a big change and it will take a little while to get used to it, but I think it will work out fine. Thank you all for your support.”

If it keeps them in business, I say Best of Luck to Mr. Gelder and The
Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction!

The Bellingham Review: Literature of palpable quality is looking for submissions. Associate editor Spencer Ellsworth says:

“We get a whole lot of stories from people more interested in experimenting with form than telling about interesting characters. I think everyone is pretty sold on ‘fantastic elements’ so while we wouldn’t consider something hard enough to be in, say, Analog, the kind of stuff that shows up in F&SF or Strange Horizons would be great.”

The general submission period is Sept. 15th – Feb. 1st. The guidelines say, “The editors welcome submissions of poems, stories, and essays. There are no limitations on form or subject matter.” Maximum length 9000 words or 3-5 poems. No electronic submissions. Pay: as funds permit.

The other day, I told a friend that Arthur C. Clarke was still alive. The next day, he passed away. Just when you think something is forever, the world tells you differently.

According to a close friend, this is what will be engraved on his gravestone: “Here lies Arthur C Clarke. He never grew up and did not stop growing.” Words of wisdom — words he lived by.

Goodbye, Mr. Clarke, and thank you for all you’ve given the world and beyond.

Arthur C. Clarke foundation — check the ‘cosmic coincidence’ link for the ultimate farewell, and his biography
New York Times
Yahoo News

Wow. Two posts in less than a month! Could this be a new trend?

My absolute favourite SF news ‘zine is Dave Langford’s Ansible. I just received the January issue today, and had to share some bits of news:

It’s true. Terry Pratchett has been diagnosed with a rare form of early-onset Alzheimers. However, he goes on to say, “I would just like to draw attention to everyone reading the above that this should be interpreted as “I am not dead”. I will, of course, be dead at some future point, as will everybody else. For me, this [is] maybe further off than you think — it’s too soon to tell.”

Robert Jordan may have felt he had 20 books left to write, but now that he’s passed away, his wife has managed to find a writer to end the series in one. Brandon Sanderson will write this novel, which Jordan called A Memory of Light.

I encourage everyone to check out the Ansible at news.ansible.co.uk. The current issue can be found here: news.ansible.co.uk/a246.html. Be sure to check out Conspiracy Corner (where Princess Di’s death is finally explained), Outraged Letters (where Brian Aldiss gets his feet examined), As We See Ourselves and As Others See Us (where science fiction fans and writers are discussed), and Thog’s Masterclass (where we see that *anyone* can get published). Enjoy!

Well, there’s been some activity at the Speculations forum, in the New Markets category. I thought I would pass a couple on to you, my loyal readers (you must be loyal, if you’re still reading…)

As usual, I do not guarantee ANYTHING.

Permuted Press is putting out an anthology called Robots Beyond. “But speculative fiction is, at its heart, the art of what-if. That’s what this collection is all about: Robots Beyond the normal sci-fi boundaries, crossing into other genres with their customary logic and precision.” Guidelines can be found on the Permuted Press web site. Lane Adamson is looking for stories between 3000 and 7500 words, and will pay 1 cent per word US. No fanfiction. Submissions period opens on January 2, 2008, so wait a few days before sending your stories out. Deadline is April 4, 2008.

WolfSinger Publications will publish This Ain’t No Rodeo, an anthology based on the sport of Bull Riding. 75% of proceeds go to the Resistol Relief Fund for injured riders and their families. “We are looking for stories up to 7500 words in length that feature the sport of Bull Riding. They can be in any genre as long as the sport of Bull Riding is a key part of the story.” Payment is $10 flat. Deadline: March 31, 2008. Call for Submissions.

Maybe in 2008 I’ll be able to dedicate more time to The Word in Writing. I may even make a few changes — but I’m not making any promises. So, here’s hoping your holidays have all been happy, and that the new year brings you more sales than you ever thought possible!

A good friend of mine has nothing but good things to say about this company, the magazine they publish, and their small press.

Sheer Speculation Press

Sheer Speculation Press is a small press focusing on the speculative fiction genre. Our intent is to publish quality pieces within the genre that take the time to enlighten the reader, rather than shock them. Stories submitted to Sheer Speculation Press should be literary in nature – in other words, send us stories that you would feel comfortable sending to a non-genre review or magazine but which are still easily discernable as taking place within the boundaries of the two genres.

Staffs & Starships

Staffs & Starships is a magazine imprint of Sheer Speculation Press looking to print amateur and little-known authors who are hoping to edge their way into the world of science fiction and fantasy. It is our hope to bring to light some of the hidden talent within the North American world of writers. Submissions. Submission Guidelines.

Saw this on Locus, and had to check for myself. I couldn’t find the announcement, so I went to MM’s newsgroup, and found out you can’t see the announcement unless you have Internet Explorer. I use Firefox or Netscape. However, because people couldn’t see it, the announcement was posted in the newsgroup. Here it is:

Dear Fans,

I am sorry to say that due to major distribution problems Meisha Merlin Publishing,
Inc. will be closing their doors in May 2007. Both Kevin and I along with the
entire staff here at Meisha Merlin want to thank all our fans, customers, authors,
& artist for your support over the past eleven years. We are sorry to have to
do this, but events beyond our control have forced us to make this decision.

ATTN: For those of you who have purchased The Virginia Edition. The Robert A.
& Virginia Heinlein Prize Trust has worked out an agreement to continue publishing
The Virginia Edition. You can expect a letter from them within the very near
future & volume seven will be arriving to you in late May or early June.

Laura J. Underwood

This is very sad news, indeed. One thing we don’t need is to lose such a major publishing force in genre fiction. I’d like to wish all staff and supporters of the company the best of luck in their future.

For those with Internet Explorer, or anyone who just wants to see the site and not necessarily the announcement, here is the Meisha Merlin website.