According to Jason Sizemore on the Apex blog:
“We’re pulling Apex Magazine out of hiatus and plan on releasing a new issue on the first Monday of July (July 6th).
Why now? And why the magazine?
As I’ve said before, I’m stubborn. That’s playing a role in this decision. But I also try to be sensible when it comes to expensive business decisions. This time, I have a better plan in terms of financing the magazine…”
Read their plan, here. Welcome back Apex. Best of luck!
Voting is still open for the 2009 Hugo Awards. If you aren’t familiar with all of this year’s semiprozine nominees, please take a moment to check them out before you vote:
The BSFA Awards are presented annually by the British Science Fiction Association, based on a vote of BSFA members and – in recent years – members of the British national science fiction convention (Eastercon). Although semiprozines weren’t represented in this year’s winners, they were a few on the short list and several nominated works.
Nominees
Best Short Fiction
“Crystal Nights” by Greg Egan (Interzone 215)
“Little Lost Robot” by Paul McAuley from (Interzone 217)
Best Artwork
Cover of Interzone 218 by Warwick Fraser Coombe
Nominated for Best Short Fiction
Among the finalists for the Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award for best short science fiction is the following story from a semiprozine:
“His Master’s Voice” by Hannu Rajaniemi, Interzone 218
The Award will be presented during the Campbell Conference Awards Banquet at the University of Kansas in Lawrence this July.
Earlier today, the contents for Night Shade Book’s Best Horror of the Year 1 was listed on editor Ellen Datlow’s blog. The following stories from semiprozines were selected:
It is said by some that semiprozines are publishing some of the best new writers. Who are the authors people should be on the lookout for?
Robert Neilson, Albedo One
The Albedo One authors who have impressed me most in recent times are Philip Raines & Harvey Welles, Colin Harvey, Nina Allan, Julian West, Will McIntosh and David D. Levine (his story in Albedo One is far better than his Hugo winner). I have also been mightily impressed with Dutch author Teis Teng but unfortunately most of his work is in Dutch. You can find some of his work in English in a collection from Babel Books called Systems of Romance (he wrote half the stories). Modesty forbids mention of my editorial colleagues.
Beth Wodzinski, Shimmer
A year or so ago I would have called out Aliette de Bodard — but she’s already well on her way, and is a Campbell nominee this year. I think she’s right at the beginning of a great career.
I’ve got my eye on Angela Slatter and Shweta Narayan; they seem to me to be poised for really broad success, and are terrific. Also terrific: Becca De La Rosa, Alex Dally MacFarlane, Vylar Kaftan, Caitlin Paxson, Alex Wilson, Josh Storey, Claude LaLumiere, and Amal El Mohtar. Well, I think everyone we’ve published is terrific.
If I can call out a few artists, too: Chrissy Ellsworth, Sandro Castelli, Aunia Kahn, and Carrie Ann Baade are amazing.
Hildy Silverman, Space & Time
There are some great ones out there. Maurice Broaddus is a terrific writer who I don’t think the Big Three have published yet, but are bound to discover at some point. Aliette de Bodard is popping up in a lot of places, and has been nominated for the 2009 Campbell award. Oh, and keep an eye on multiple-workshop grad Larry Hodges, who is finally getting around to sending out more of his work.
Sean Wallace, Fantasy Magazine
Where to start? Fantasy Magazine has a lot of new, exciting talent, between what was published last year and this year, or soon to be published: Camille Alexa, Erik Amundsen, Stephanie Campisi, Becca De La Rosa, Willow Fagan, Berrien Henderson, Darja Malcolm-Clarke, Gord Sellar, Rachel Swirsky, Genevieve Valentine, and many more. However, the field is full of new authors being published all over, and the zines listed on this website are a great start for a reader to dive right into!
Scott Andrews, Beneath Ceaseless Skies
I think there are lots of very good neo-pro short story writers being published these days in semiprozines. Beneath Ceaseless Skies has published a number of up-and-coming writers who’ve been Finalists or Winners of the Writers of the Future award, including Tina Connolly, Sarah L. Edwards, and Erin Cashier. Our stories from other newcomers such as Matthew David Surridge and Grace Seybold have also received strong reviews. And we’ve published two authors who are nominees for this year’s Campbell Award for Best New Writer–Tony Pi and Aliette de Bodard.
I asked a few of our semiprozine editors and publishers if they had any advice for someone considering starting a semiprozine of their own. I was originally going to run these all at once, but it turns out their answers are best served separately. This installment is by Sean Wallace from Fantasy Magazine:
Run. Run as far and fast away as you can! However, if you’re seriously considering launching a semiprozine, I would advise doing thorough research on every aspect of magazine publishing, including the four p’s of marketing: product (print or online), price (fee- or free-based), place (distribution), and promotion. With those in hand, you should be able to approach this with a bit more understanding and preparation, but something to keep in mind strongly, that I have posted on my wall:
“I learned a long time ago that the two quickest ways of going broke are:
1. flushing your money down a toilet
2. running a small press
Running a small press is more fun, but it is faster—there’s always the chance the toilet will clog up and stop for a while.”
Please, before you go down this road, find out why you want to do this thing, and make certain that you’re comfortable with the time, energy, and expense that it’s going to take up. Yes, it can be a lot of fun, and rewarding, but only if your expectations are realistically met. Other than that, have at it!
The 2008 Sidewise Awards for Alternate History finalists for Best Short-Form Alternate History were recently announced and two of the final six were from semiprozines:
The winners will announced at Anticipation, the 67th World Science Fiction Convention, the week of August 6-10, 2009, in Montréal.
I asked a few of our semiprozine editors and publishers if they had any advice for someone considering starting a semiprozine of their own. I was originally going to run these all at once, but it turns out their answers are best served separately. This installment is by Scott Andrews from Beneath Ceaseless Skies:
Have a vision for what you can bring to the field, and make sure you understand the commitment involved in running a ‘zine.
I think the best ‘zines are like the best stories. Great short stories come from a burning need the author has to tell that specific story, some insight they have into that character or that theme or that world. Great ‘zines come from an editor or editors who are passionate about a certain kind of fiction and therefore are dedicated to promoting it.
I love “literary adventure fantasy”–fantasy with cool worlds and exciting plots like the great fantasy of past decades, but written with modern literary flair. The whole reason I started Beneath Ceaseless Skies was to create a home for that type of fantasy short fiction. It helped that there was no existing magazine dedicated to fantasy of that type, so our specialization has given BCS a unique identity. And because I’m passionate about that kind of fiction, running the magazine is a labor of love.
But even a labor of love can be a ton of work. Anyone starting a ‘zine should give serious consideration to whether they can handle the work load. Some amateur ‘zines have gone under after only a few issues because the editor(s) had no idea how much work it is. ‘Zines can get over 200 submissions a month, and behind each one of those submissions is an author who is counting on you, the editor, to send them a prompt reply. If you get in over your head, you will end up leaving a lot of writers annoyed that you didn’t live up to your commitment. So make sure you understand and accept that commitment before you start a ‘zine.
I asked a few of our semiprozine editors and publishers if they had any advice for someone considering starting a semiprozine of their own. I was originally going to run these all at once, but it turns out their answers are best served separately. I’m starting the series off with Beth Wodzinski from Shimmer Magazine:
Wow, there’s a lot to say for someone who’s considering starting their own.
First, I’d point them at John Klima’s series on starting a zine. It starts here: http://blog.electricvelocipede.com/2007/08/so-you-want-to-start-zine-pt-1.html and has a lot of sound advice, and is also encouraging.
Second, Shimmer’s been very much a joint project. Find some other people who a) are awesome, b) share your vision for the project, and c) you can work productively with. The fabulous Mary Robinette Kowal was officially Shimmer’s art director for several years, but she was so much more than that, and helped shape what we are at every step. It as terrific and much better than anything I could have come up with on my own! We’ve also benefited enormously from the generous help and advice of other publishers and editors–John Klima, John Joseph Adams, Sean Wallace, Patrick Swenson, Gavin Grant, Jason Sizemore, and a host of others. I can’t imagine doing it alone.
Third, I’d warn them that it’s a hell of a lot more work than they’re anticipating (especially if they’re planning a dead tree edition). The editorial aspects are fun, but they’re also only one part of it — they’ll also need to figure out how to handle marketing and accounting and production and a dozen other things. And it never stops — prepare for a marathon, not a sprint. I’m still figuring out how to get it all done without feeling overwhelmed, or letting it push the rest of my life out of balance.
Fourth, I love doing it. I enjoy the challenge of the constant learning curve, the hunt of finding amazing new stories, and admiring the final copies of an issue. It’s worth it, in the long run. So, learn as much as you can about all the challenges involved, and then do it anyway.
