- Small Beer Press launches a new readers-of-all-ages imprint: Big Mouth House (featuring Joan Aiken). Also check out Geoff Ryman's The King's Last Song.
- Lone Star Stories needs poetry and fiction for its December issue!
- Ralan is on a fund drive and it's an invaluable resource to writers so go donate!
- The Nebula Awards Blog features an article on A Basic Introduction to Aztec Mythology.
- Bookstores here in the Philippines just got a bomb threat. =(
- Two anthologies I'm really looking forward to at the end of the month are The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror 2008 and The Living Dead.
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Thursday Plugs
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Essay: A Quick Run-Down on Bookstores in the Philippines Part 1
Every Wednesday, I have an essay on any topic that catches my fancy!
Perhaps something my non-Filipino readers are interested in knowing is the dynamic of bookstores in the Philippines. What are the bookstores in the Philippines? What kind of books are available? What books actually get bought? Will the Internet take over the Philippine bookstores?
First, I'd like to start with the fact that there are no easily accessible public libraries in the Philippines. The most readily available library we have is the National Library of the Philippines and unfortunately, aside from being located in Manila (not the easiest place to get to), this is mostly a place for nonfiction research. If you want a library that houses the latest fiction titles--or even a decent-sized fiction collection of any sort--there are unfortunately no public options. Instead, such libraries are private collections, usually from schools and universities. Thus bookstores easily become the best venue to find fiction titles.
Second, in my mind, the various local bookstores can be broken down into four categories: the retail chains, the independent bookstores, the secondhand bookstores, and the publisher-bookstore hybrids. For this essay, I'll be focusing on retail chains (I'll discuss the rest in the future).
Retail Chains
These bookstores are the equivalent of your Barnes & Noble or Page One. They have multiple branches in Metro Manila (sadly, not all the retail chains operate on a nationwide level) and operate with an established system and brand. More often than not, the selection of books is consistent among all the branches. For example, if you find Lord of the Rings in Branch A, there's a good chance that you'll similarly find a copy in Branch B (or have Branch A's copy delivered o Branch B). There are four retail chains I want to talk about: National Bookstore, Goodwill Bookstore, Powerbooks, and Fully Booked.
National Bookstore
One of the oldest retail chains in the country (initially established during the 1930s), National Bookstore is perhaps the most successful bookstore in the business. Here's the peculiarity of National Bookstore--most of their income is derived from selling school supplies and greeting cards. Need paper, ballpen, or envelopes? You went to National Bookstore to buy them. This is also supplemented by their sales of text books. As a reader, I'm frustrated by this fact (can't we have a dedicated bookstore?). However, this business model also enables them to weather economic upheavals and subsidize the cost of their books (making them one of the cheapest places to acquire brand-new books).
Now here's a foreign concept to international readers. The Philippines is an English-speaking country and most of the books that National Bookstore does import come from the US. Price tags are attached to books (bibliophiles have mastered the art of using alcohol and other similar substances to remove price tags) but the biggest stickler is that books are typically shrink-wrapped and in-store browsing is highly discouraged. Their interior design reinforces that mood as well: there are no tables or chairs to read and all you have are shelves.
As far shelf arrangement is concerned, there's usually one shelf (not literally one-shelf and this could be several interconnected shelves depending on the branch and size of the store) for each genre (with science fiction and fantasy sharing the same shelf), with the children/young adult shelf being the exception as its sub-genre s have their own shelves. My personal complaint is that locally published books are only allotted one shelf so whether you're writing fiction, cook books, or poetry, you're all lumped in one place. So in many ways, finding specific local books are about as difficult as finding independently-published international books due to the limited shelf space.
Goodwill Bookstore
Previously, this was National Bookstore's rival and followed a similar business model although with a stronger emphasis on selling text books. In the past few years, they've shut down many branches (to the point where finding a branch is actually difficult) and their fiction section is reduced to a few paltry shelves. The only reason anyone should be dropping by this bookstore nowadays is either to purchase text books or school supplies.
Powerbooks
Powerbooks is interesting for me because the owners come from the same family as that of National Bookstore. Initially, they offered the same selection of books as National Bookstore. Where they differed though is their target markets and business plan. Powerbooks is modeled after the large retail chains in the US, with books that can be easily browsed (a few are still shrink-wrapped these days but you should be able to find a copy that's not) and couches and chairs that help reinforce that kind of atmosphere. The main branch even had an in-store cafe. It was also a big leap for "the family business" because Powerbooks's main income derives from actually selling books.
When Powerbooks first debuted in 1996, my initial complaint was that they still carried identical books as National Bookstore albeit having a better ambiance. These days, a good chunk of their inventory is still identical to National Bookstore although there are select titles which are available in Powerbooks but not in National Bookstore (and vice versa). I predict that a few decades down the line, Powerbooks could one day become National Bookstore's rival as their respected families begin to drift apart. (Right now both bookstores operate on a cooperative but separate corporations model.)
Fully Booked
It took some time before Fully Booked began to establish itself. It first began with small, focused independent bookstores like Bibliarch and Sketchbooks (the selling point of both were its design and coffee table books) before the owner tried his hand at a bigger chain (acquiring the Page One license). Eventually, Page One was gone and in its place was Fully Booked which more or less follows the Powerbooks model of doing business except it did things bigger (larger stores, wider selections, etc.). Its flagship store is five stories high and includes a Starbucks branch inside. What endears me to Fully Booked is that they stock some European SF&F books (Millenium's Science Fiction and Fantasy Masterworks line comes to mind, as well as European versions of the Harry Potter titles) --titles which would otherwise be unavailable in the Philippines.
Fully Booked also has made a name for itself selling Copic markers, Moleskine notebooks (although National Bookstore and Powerbooks are started selling them recently), and Lomo cameras, reinforcing its "bookstore for artists" image.
Perhaps something my non-Filipino readers are interested in knowing is the dynamic of bookstores in the Philippines. What are the bookstores in the Philippines? What kind of books are available? What books actually get bought? Will the Internet take over the Philippine bookstores?
First, I'd like to start with the fact that there are no easily accessible public libraries in the Philippines. The most readily available library we have is the National Library of the Philippines and unfortunately, aside from being located in Manila (not the easiest place to get to), this is mostly a place for nonfiction research. If you want a library that houses the latest fiction titles--or even a decent-sized fiction collection of any sort--there are unfortunately no public options. Instead, such libraries are private collections, usually from schools and universities. Thus bookstores easily become the best venue to find fiction titles.
Second, in my mind, the various local bookstores can be broken down into four categories: the retail chains, the independent bookstores, the secondhand bookstores, and the publisher-bookstore hybrids. For this essay, I'll be focusing on retail chains (I'll discuss the rest in the future).
Retail Chains
These bookstores are the equivalent of your Barnes & Noble or Page One. They have multiple branches in Metro Manila (sadly, not all the retail chains operate on a nationwide level) and operate with an established system and brand. More often than not, the selection of books is consistent among all the branches. For example, if you find Lord of the Rings in Branch A, there's a good chance that you'll similarly find a copy in Branch B (or have Branch A's copy delivered o Branch B). There are four retail chains I want to talk about: National Bookstore, Goodwill Bookstore, Powerbooks, and Fully Booked.
National Bookstore
One of the oldest retail chains in the country (initially established during the 1930s), National Bookstore is perhaps the most successful bookstore in the business. Here's the peculiarity of National Bookstore--most of their income is derived from selling school supplies and greeting cards. Need paper, ballpen, or envelopes? You went to National Bookstore to buy them. This is also supplemented by their sales of text books. As a reader, I'm frustrated by this fact (can't we have a dedicated bookstore?). However, this business model also enables them to weather economic upheavals and subsidize the cost of their books (making them one of the cheapest places to acquire brand-new books).
Now here's a foreign concept to international readers. The Philippines is an English-speaking country and most of the books that National Bookstore does import come from the US. Price tags are attached to books (bibliophiles have mastered the art of using alcohol and other similar substances to remove price tags) but the biggest stickler is that books are typically shrink-wrapped and in-store browsing is highly discouraged. Their interior design reinforces that mood as well: there are no tables or chairs to read and all you have are shelves.
As far shelf arrangement is concerned, there's usually one shelf (not literally one-shelf and this could be several interconnected shelves depending on the branch and size of the store) for each genre (with science fiction and fantasy sharing the same shelf), with the children/young adult shelf being the exception as its sub-genre s have their own shelves. My personal complaint is that locally published books are only allotted one shelf so whether you're writing fiction, cook books, or poetry, you're all lumped in one place. So in many ways, finding specific local books are about as difficult as finding independently-published international books due to the limited shelf space.
Goodwill Bookstore
Previously, this was National Bookstore's rival and followed a similar business model although with a stronger emphasis on selling text books. In the past few years, they've shut down many branches (to the point where finding a branch is actually difficult) and their fiction section is reduced to a few paltry shelves. The only reason anyone should be dropping by this bookstore nowadays is either to purchase text books or school supplies.
Powerbooks
Powerbooks is interesting for me because the owners come from the same family as that of National Bookstore. Initially, they offered the same selection of books as National Bookstore. Where they differed though is their target markets and business plan. Powerbooks is modeled after the large retail chains in the US, with books that can be easily browsed (a few are still shrink-wrapped these days but you should be able to find a copy that's not) and couches and chairs that help reinforce that kind of atmosphere. The main branch even had an in-store cafe. It was also a big leap for "the family business" because Powerbooks's main income derives from actually selling books.
When Powerbooks first debuted in 1996, my initial complaint was that they still carried identical books as National Bookstore albeit having a better ambiance. These days, a good chunk of their inventory is still identical to National Bookstore although there are select titles which are available in Powerbooks but not in National Bookstore (and vice versa). I predict that a few decades down the line, Powerbooks could one day become National Bookstore's rival as their respected families begin to drift apart. (Right now both bookstores operate on a cooperative but separate corporations model.)
Fully Booked
It took some time before Fully Booked began to establish itself. It first began with small, focused independent bookstores like Bibliarch and Sketchbooks (the selling point of both were its design and coffee table books) before the owner tried his hand at a bigger chain (acquiring the Page One license). Eventually, Page One was gone and in its place was Fully Booked which more or less follows the Powerbooks model of doing business except it did things bigger (larger stores, wider selections, etc.). Its flagship store is five stories high and includes a Starbucks branch inside. What endears me to Fully Booked is that they stock some European SF&F books (Millenium's Science Fiction and Fantasy Masterworks line comes to mind, as well as European versions of the Harry Potter titles) --titles which would otherwise be unavailable in the Philippines.
Fully Booked also has made a name for itself selling Copic markers, Moleskine notebooks (although National Bookstore and Powerbooks are started selling them recently), and Lomo cameras, reinforcing its "bookstore for artists" image.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Feature: Interview with Laird Barron
Every Tuesday, I'll have a feature article posted.
Laird Barron's short stories have appeared in publications like The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and Sci Fiction. Last year, Night Shade Books released his short story collection, The Imago Sequence and Other Stories, which won the Best Collection award during the 2007 Shirley Jackson Awards.
Thanks for agreeing to do the interview! You've made a big splash with your horror fiction. What's the appeal of horror for you?
Hello, Charles.
The appeal of horror? Frisson addiction. A troubled youth. The compulsion to peel back the scab. Perhaps an inclination toward paranoia. All that and a couple of brushes with the inexplicable.
When did you know you wanted to become a writer? Was it always horror for you or were there other formats/genres you want to explore in the future? Where can we find some of your poetry?
I figured it out in elementary school and pursued serious writing into my teens: mostly epic fantasy and space operas. The horror element didn't consistently appear until much later. I abandoned writing for a few years, then due to a combination of circumstances became serious again. This revival likely has to do with finally feeling as if I've lived enough to say something. I'm driven, purposed, now. I realize there are miles to go and that keeps the fire lit.
You can find my poetry archived at Eclectica, Stirring and the now defunct Melic Review, probably a few other pieces scattered across the web. A lot of it has disappeared.
How did Night Shade Books end up publishing The Imago Sequence and Other Stories?
It was painless. Unbeknownst to me several terrific authors had recommended my work to Jason and Jeremy at NS. I talked to Kelly Link at a convention and she encouraged me to query them. I did. They responded right away and requested the entire manuscript. This was mid summer. One night in late fall, Jason called me and said they'd decided to bring the collection out. Night Shade is a premiere press. I was staggered by the acceptance.
I think it was an advantage to have published with F&SF and Sci Fiction and then reprinted several times. This proved extremely fortunate in that we soon discovered I'd acquired a decent sized audience due to the exposure -- far more exposure than if I'd come up through the small press. I'm grateful the stars aligned and I hit a seam in the market; and that's really what it amounted to as far as I'm concerned. These factors probably made my horror collection a safer risk, because there's no doubt NS took a leap of faith.
You inject science fiction elements in some of your stories. Was this something you always wanted to explore or did you want to break certain assumptions when it came to the horror genre?
Beyond Stephen King, I wasn't familiar with much horror until I was in my mid to late teens. Once I discovered Ramsey Campbell and Michael Shea, I was hooked. Prior to that I devoured science fiction and fantasy. Mostly science fiction, however, and there's no denying its early influence. Heinlein, Vance, Zelazny (who straddled genres), Van Vogt, Brackett, Norton, and so many others.
The science fictional elements of my stories are generally derived from my attempts to naturalize the supernatural. I've a fascination with quantum physics, zoology and entomology, a lot of which appears in my work. I'm toying with some ideas for near and far future stories, maybe a space opera.
Regarding the breaking of assumptions -- I wouldn't presume to do that. On the other hand, I'm quick to push back against people who define horror as a marketing category that consists exclusively of women being slashed by lunatics and cannibal families poaching city folk. Shirley Jackson, Joyce Carol Oates, Ray Bradbury, Charles Grant, T.E.D. Klein... some of the finest work that has been done occurred in the field of horror. And it's ongoing.
Who are some of your favorite authors and/or what are some of your favorite books?
Old standbys include: Lord of Light, and My Name is Legion by Roger Zelazny; Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy; Polyphemus by Michael Shea; "Red Nails" by Robert E. Howard; Dark Gods by T.E.D. Klein; Ghost Story and Koko by Peter Straub; and Night Shift by Stephen King.
What in your opinion makes for a good horror story?
The same things that makes for any kind of a successful story: setting, plot, characterization. Specific to horror, I highly value mood and atmosphere, a sense of impending doom, the blurring of reality and psychosis. I prefer novelettes and novellas because they present more opportunities to savor this element of gathering dread. Short stories offer their own distinct pleasures, but in the main I believe the novella is the sublime length for horror fiction. Done well, you get a compact novel for your money.
How did you develop as a writer? Did you really, as Nick Kauffman put it in his Fearzone Review, "burst onto the scene in the early '00s as a fully formed writer"?
Nick is far too kind. I'm fortunate in that most of my development occurred in private. Prior to my debut in 2000, I'd written well over a million words, but sent out a miniscule number of submissions. Ellen Datlow and Gordon Van Gelder picked me up right out of the gate. As a consequence, I benefited from a rigorous editing process administered by among the best in the business. Datlow and Van Gelder make writers look good. A lot of authors, especially those who work their way up through the small press, don't receive that kind of mentoring.
What's the most difficult story you've ever written? What story took you the longest to write? (Are they one and the same?)
"Procession of the Black Sloth" and "Parallax" were difficult. I edged out of my comfort zone in both of them. "Parallax" required about nine months to complete. It was maddening. However, I learned from that ordeal and put the lessons to use when constructing "Procession of the Black Sloth," which is a full blown novella and a bit more ambitious than anything I'd previously attempted.
Of the five (or six) senses, which do you think is the most effective sense to develop when it comes to horror?
All of them are vital from the standpoint of transferring the real world to paper and creating the illusion of reality. However, what animates horror for me, what I try to translate and communicate to the reader is my own fear, my own sense of dread. I look at what scares me and share those things. The primal instinct, the lizard brain is always lurking in all of us, muttering in its slumber. I tiptoe around the sleeping beast and take notes.
How did you go about getting published? What was the biggest hurdle?
I sent out a handful of stories as a teen, then stopped. In 1998, after finishing a (now trunked) novel, I wrote "Shiva, Open Your Eye" and sent it around. A small magazine said no thanks; another lost the manuscript, as did Writers of the Future. Gordon Van Gelder was stop number four. He bought it two weeks later. My greatest hurdles to reach that point? Probably the same things that afflict many young authors: utter, grinding poverty, a lack of support. I was emphatically told by many people that writing was a waste of time, a foolish dream, that a person had to be fabulously lucky or have the right connections in order to be published. Fortunately, I'm stubborn -- I never accepted the theories of pedigree or secret handshakes. Most importantly, I eventually separated myself from the naysayers, put my head down and kept writing. My future wife dusted me off and pushed me along. She deserves a great deal of credit for helping me achieve my goals.
What's your scariest experience?
During the '91 Iditarod I was trapped with my dog team in a blizzard on the Bering Sea coast about fifty miles south of Nome. We were pinned down for about thirty-six hours in whiteout conditions -- the temperature dropped below negative forty Fahrenheit with gusts of up to sixty miles per hour. That was a bad situation. I've joked that I actually bought the farm out there on the ice and this is all a fading dream, or maybe I side-shifted into a reality where the best possible outcome was realized.
In your opinion, which is more terrifying: Cthulhu's Old Ones or the real world's various pantheons?
I'd have to go with the various world pantheons. Inventive as Lovecraft was, he's only one man (with a few dozen co-conspirators) pitted against the combined ingenuity and guile of innumerable storytellers whose work dates back to ancient times. No lone artist could hope to defeat the conspiracy of world mythology.
In a recent blog entry, you mentioned having a real-life doppelgangers. What would you say to your doppelganger if you met him (or if he's reading this interview).
Hey, have you happened to see any of my royalty checks?
Anything you can tell us about the novel you're currently working on?
I'm working on two novels. I don't want to say much about them except that both are contemporary; one is a noir thriller with lots of sex, violence and explosions, the other a more atmospheric piece modeled after '70s style occult novels, but with tentacles.
Any advice for aspiring writers?
More is always more. That is all.
Anything else you'd like to plug?
My short story "Strappado" will appear in Ellen Datlow's Poe anthology in early 2009; she also acquired a longish novelette called "Catch Hell" for her Lovecraft Unbound anthology slated for 2010. I recently sold a novelette to another prominent editor for an as yet unannounced anthology. More on that down the road.
Laird Barron's short stories have appeared in publications like The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and Sci Fiction. Last year, Night Shade Books released his short story collection, The Imago Sequence and Other Stories, which won the Best Collection award during the 2007 Shirley Jackson Awards.Thanks for agreeing to do the interview! You've made a big splash with your horror fiction. What's the appeal of horror for you?
Hello, Charles.
The appeal of horror? Frisson addiction. A troubled youth. The compulsion to peel back the scab. Perhaps an inclination toward paranoia. All that and a couple of brushes with the inexplicable.
When did you know you wanted to become a writer? Was it always horror for you or were there other formats/genres you want to explore in the future? Where can we find some of your poetry?
I figured it out in elementary school and pursued serious writing into my teens: mostly epic fantasy and space operas. The horror element didn't consistently appear until much later. I abandoned writing for a few years, then due to a combination of circumstances became serious again. This revival likely has to do with finally feeling as if I've lived enough to say something. I'm driven, purposed, now. I realize there are miles to go and that keeps the fire lit.
You can find my poetry archived at Eclectica, Stirring and the now defunct Melic Review, probably a few other pieces scattered across the web. A lot of it has disappeared.
How did Night Shade Books end up publishing The Imago Sequence and Other Stories?
It was painless. Unbeknownst to me several terrific authors had recommended my work to Jason and Jeremy at NS. I talked to Kelly Link at a convention and she encouraged me to query them. I did. They responded right away and requested the entire manuscript. This was mid summer. One night in late fall, Jason called me and said they'd decided to bring the collection out. Night Shade is a premiere press. I was staggered by the acceptance.
I think it was an advantage to have published with F&SF and Sci Fiction and then reprinted several times. This proved extremely fortunate in that we soon discovered I'd acquired a decent sized audience due to the exposure -- far more exposure than if I'd come up through the small press. I'm grateful the stars aligned and I hit a seam in the market; and that's really what it amounted to as far as I'm concerned. These factors probably made my horror collection a safer risk, because there's no doubt NS took a leap of faith.
You inject science fiction elements in some of your stories. Was this something you always wanted to explore or did you want to break certain assumptions when it came to the horror genre?
Beyond Stephen King, I wasn't familiar with much horror until I was in my mid to late teens. Once I discovered Ramsey Campbell and Michael Shea, I was hooked. Prior to that I devoured science fiction and fantasy. Mostly science fiction, however, and there's no denying its early influence. Heinlein, Vance, Zelazny (who straddled genres), Van Vogt, Brackett, Norton, and so many others.
The science fictional elements of my stories are generally derived from my attempts to naturalize the supernatural. I've a fascination with quantum physics, zoology and entomology, a lot of which appears in my work. I'm toying with some ideas for near and far future stories, maybe a space opera.
Regarding the breaking of assumptions -- I wouldn't presume to do that. On the other hand, I'm quick to push back against people who define horror as a marketing category that consists exclusively of women being slashed by lunatics and cannibal families poaching city folk. Shirley Jackson, Joyce Carol Oates, Ray Bradbury, Charles Grant, T.E.D. Klein... some of the finest work that has been done occurred in the field of horror. And it's ongoing.
Who are some of your favorite authors and/or what are some of your favorite books?
Old standbys include: Lord of Light, and My Name is Legion by Roger Zelazny; Blood Meridian by Cormac McCarthy; Polyphemus by Michael Shea; "Red Nails" by Robert E. Howard; Dark Gods by T.E.D. Klein; Ghost Story and Koko by Peter Straub; and Night Shift by Stephen King.
What in your opinion makes for a good horror story?
The same things that makes for any kind of a successful story: setting, plot, characterization. Specific to horror, I highly value mood and atmosphere, a sense of impending doom, the blurring of reality and psychosis. I prefer novelettes and novellas because they present more opportunities to savor this element of gathering dread. Short stories offer their own distinct pleasures, but in the main I believe the novella is the sublime length for horror fiction. Done well, you get a compact novel for your money.
How did you develop as a writer? Did you really, as Nick Kauffman put it in his Fearzone Review, "burst onto the scene in the early '00s as a fully formed writer"?
Nick is far too kind. I'm fortunate in that most of my development occurred in private. Prior to my debut in 2000, I'd written well over a million words, but sent out a miniscule number of submissions. Ellen Datlow and Gordon Van Gelder picked me up right out of the gate. As a consequence, I benefited from a rigorous editing process administered by among the best in the business. Datlow and Van Gelder make writers look good. A lot of authors, especially those who work their way up through the small press, don't receive that kind of mentoring.
What's the most difficult story you've ever written? What story took you the longest to write? (Are they one and the same?)
"Procession of the Black Sloth" and "Parallax" were difficult. I edged out of my comfort zone in both of them. "Parallax" required about nine months to complete. It was maddening. However, I learned from that ordeal and put the lessons to use when constructing "Procession of the Black Sloth," which is a full blown novella and a bit more ambitious than anything I'd previously attempted.
Of the five (or six) senses, which do you think is the most effective sense to develop when it comes to horror?
All of them are vital from the standpoint of transferring the real world to paper and creating the illusion of reality. However, what animates horror for me, what I try to translate and communicate to the reader is my own fear, my own sense of dread. I look at what scares me and share those things. The primal instinct, the lizard brain is always lurking in all of us, muttering in its slumber. I tiptoe around the sleeping beast and take notes.
How did you go about getting published? What was the biggest hurdle?
I sent out a handful of stories as a teen, then stopped. In 1998, after finishing a (now trunked) novel, I wrote "Shiva, Open Your Eye" and sent it around. A small magazine said no thanks; another lost the manuscript, as did Writers of the Future. Gordon Van Gelder was stop number four. He bought it two weeks later. My greatest hurdles to reach that point? Probably the same things that afflict many young authors: utter, grinding poverty, a lack of support. I was emphatically told by many people that writing was a waste of time, a foolish dream, that a person had to be fabulously lucky or have the right connections in order to be published. Fortunately, I'm stubborn -- I never accepted the theories of pedigree or secret handshakes. Most importantly, I eventually separated myself from the naysayers, put my head down and kept writing. My future wife dusted me off and pushed me along. She deserves a great deal of credit for helping me achieve my goals.
What's your scariest experience?
During the '91 Iditarod I was trapped with my dog team in a blizzard on the Bering Sea coast about fifty miles south of Nome. We were pinned down for about thirty-six hours in whiteout conditions -- the temperature dropped below negative forty Fahrenheit with gusts of up to sixty miles per hour. That was a bad situation. I've joked that I actually bought the farm out there on the ice and this is all a fading dream, or maybe I side-shifted into a reality where the best possible outcome was realized.
In your opinion, which is more terrifying: Cthulhu's Old Ones or the real world's various pantheons?
I'd have to go with the various world pantheons. Inventive as Lovecraft was, he's only one man (with a few dozen co-conspirators) pitted against the combined ingenuity and guile of innumerable storytellers whose work dates back to ancient times. No lone artist could hope to defeat the conspiracy of world mythology.
In a recent blog entry, you mentioned having a real-life doppelgangers. What would you say to your doppelganger if you met him (or if he's reading this interview).
Hey, have you happened to see any of my royalty checks?
Anything you can tell us about the novel you're currently working on?
I'm working on two novels. I don't want to say much about them except that both are contemporary; one is a noir thriller with lots of sex, violence and explosions, the other a more atmospheric piece modeled after '70s style occult novels, but with tentacles.
Any advice for aspiring writers?
More is always more. That is all.
Anything else you'd like to plug?
My short story "Strappado" will appear in Ellen Datlow's Poe anthology in early 2009; she also acquired a longish novelette called "Catch Hell" for her Lovecraft Unbound anthology slated for 2010. I recently sold a novelette to another prominent editor for an as yet unannounced anthology. More on that down the road.
Monday, September 15, 2008
Lit! Publish or Perish Recording
Last Sunday at the Manila International Book Fair, a panel on publishing and getting published was held. It's roughly a two-hour talk moderated by Sarge Lacuesta (the fiction editor of The Philippines Free Press--easily the most consistent publication that prints local fiction since it is a weekly magazine) and featured panelists Dean Francis Alfar (publisher/editor of Philippine Speculative Fiction), Jade Bernas (publisher of Story Philippines), and Kenneth Yu (publisher/editor of The Digest of Philippine Genre Stories).
For those who missed the talk, here's the recording. Both Filipino and English is used. |MP3| 63 MB, 136 minutes.
For those who missed the talk, here's the recording. Both Filipino and English is used. |MP3| 63 MB, 136 minutes.
Book Review: Last Days by Brian Evenson
Every Monday, I'll be doing spoiler-free, bite-sized book reviews.
Evenson's Last Days is a combination of various elements. The first part reads like some weird combination of Kafka, a mystery novel, and horror. The second part on the other hand embraces its absurdity and delves more into the human psyche. Combined, it's an unconventional reading experiences that provokes the reader one way or another.
The first thing I noticed is Evenson's protagonist who is not the most sympathetic of characters as there's a certain aloofness about him (think more along the lines of Kafka's K). Now some readers might complain about that particular aspect but it's not an issue with me. Instead, I was drawn into the narrative thanks to Evenson's easily-understood writing style and insertion of surreal elements. The characters have a distinctive tone to them, some utilizing and embracing cliche, others simply enigmatic which serves to heighten the atmosphere of mystery that pervades throughout the book.
Another element going for this title is the horror. On one hand, you have horror on the visceral level as there are a couple of gruesome scenes in here although Evenson isn't the type to expound on those details. What he focuses on instead is horror on the intellectual level for me, it works. Again, Last Days is reminiscent of a modern Kafka with its inclusion of the hero's "other-ness", frustrating scenarios, and ludicrous circumstances.
Overall, this was a fun and enjoyable read for me, playing with my curiosity and horror. The deal breaker for readers will probably depend on whether they're accepting of the protagonist or not but once you accept that this is a story that revolves more around plot and horror rather than characterization, it's a bizarre and rewarding read from then onwards. Last Days is fresh and invigorating at the same time employing subtle elements of horror and mystery.
Rating: 3/5.
Evenson's Last Days is a combination of various elements. The first part reads like some weird combination of Kafka, a mystery novel, and horror. The second part on the other hand embraces its absurdity and delves more into the human psyche. Combined, it's an unconventional reading experiences that provokes the reader one way or another.The first thing I noticed is Evenson's protagonist who is not the most sympathetic of characters as there's a certain aloofness about him (think more along the lines of Kafka's K). Now some readers might complain about that particular aspect but it's not an issue with me. Instead, I was drawn into the narrative thanks to Evenson's easily-understood writing style and insertion of surreal elements. The characters have a distinctive tone to them, some utilizing and embracing cliche, others simply enigmatic which serves to heighten the atmosphere of mystery that pervades throughout the book.
Another element going for this title is the horror. On one hand, you have horror on the visceral level as there are a couple of gruesome scenes in here although Evenson isn't the type to expound on those details. What he focuses on instead is horror on the intellectual level for me, it works. Again, Last Days is reminiscent of a modern Kafka with its inclusion of the hero's "other-ness", frustrating scenarios, and ludicrous circumstances.
Overall, this was a fun and enjoyable read for me, playing with my curiosity and horror. The deal breaker for readers will probably depend on whether they're accepting of the protagonist or not but once you accept that this is a story that revolves more around plot and horror rather than characterization, it's a bizarre and rewarding read from then onwards. Last Days is fresh and invigorating at the same time employing subtle elements of horror and mystery.
Rating: 3/5.
Rating System:
1 - There are better ways to spend your time.
2 - Ho hum books, usually typical of its genre. Probably only recommendable to die-hard fans.
3 - A cut above the rest, usually with one or more elements that sets it apart from the norm.
4 - Highly recommended and is easily a pioneer of the genre.
5 - A classic or it will be.
Book Review: The Scorpions Strike by C. L. Talmadge
Every Monday, I'll be doing spoiler-free, bite-sized book reviews.
The third book in an apparently long high fantasy series, The Scorpions Strike leaves little time for unfamiliar readers to catch up and instead heads directly into the conflict--in this case a trial. I hadn't read the previous books in the series yet but eventually, I managed to figure which are the good guys and which are the bad guys. And when in doubt, Talmadge follows the formula of other novels by including an appendix at the end of the book (for the record, I never had to use it).
The good points of the book is that the language is easy to understand and has a quick pace. She also has a handle on her female protagonists which are usually tragically flawed but not to the point that they are broken. The not-so-good points is that this feels formulaic and doesn't really stray too far from other mass market fantasy titles out there (to be more specific, mass market fantasy titles that are at least two decades old). Of course if you do happen to be readers who are looking for more of the same, this is the book for you as Talmadge writes two-dimensional villains you love to hate and plots that perpetually keeps her characters in dire circumstances. One pet peeve of mine with the book is that for a quasi-medieval society, their medical technology seems almost up to part with modern standards (blood tests anyone?). Perhaps this phenomena is convincingly explained in the earlier books but otherwise...
Overall, this is typical fantasy fare albeit with a focus on healing and conspiracy rather than warfare (although there are some of those in this book). Nothing too great but nothing that stands out as downright horrible either although don't expect too much from either the plot or the narrative style. New readers will only run into a few problems jumping midway into the series although I recommend starting with the first book.
Rating: 2/5.
The third book in an apparently long high fantasy series, The Scorpions Strike leaves little time for unfamiliar readers to catch up and instead heads directly into the conflict--in this case a trial. I hadn't read the previous books in the series yet but eventually, I managed to figure which are the good guys and which are the bad guys. And when in doubt, Talmadge follows the formula of other novels by including an appendix at the end of the book (for the record, I never had to use it).
The good points of the book is that the language is easy to understand and has a quick pace. She also has a handle on her female protagonists which are usually tragically flawed but not to the point that they are broken. The not-so-good points is that this feels formulaic and doesn't really stray too far from other mass market fantasy titles out there (to be more specific, mass market fantasy titles that are at least two decades old). Of course if you do happen to be readers who are looking for more of the same, this is the book for you as Talmadge writes two-dimensional villains you love to hate and plots that perpetually keeps her characters in dire circumstances. One pet peeve of mine with the book is that for a quasi-medieval society, their medical technology seems almost up to part with modern standards (blood tests anyone?). Perhaps this phenomena is convincingly explained in the earlier books but otherwise...
Overall, this is typical fantasy fare albeit with a focus on healing and conspiracy rather than warfare (although there are some of those in this book). Nothing too great but nothing that stands out as downright horrible either although don't expect too much from either the plot or the narrative style. New readers will only run into a few problems jumping midway into the series although I recommend starting with the first book.
Rating: 2/5.
Rating System:
1 - There are better ways to spend your time.
2 - Ho hum books, usually typical of its genre. Probably only recommendable to die-hard fans.
3 - A cut above the rest, usually with one or more elements that sets it apart from the norm.
4 - Highly recommended and is easily a pioneer of the genre.
5 - A classic or it will be.
Saturday, September 13, 2008
Saturday Plugs
I'm off to the Manila Book Fair in a few hours, keeping an eye out on the cosplay competition but in the meantime, here are some plugs:
- In case you missed my plug the other day, Craig Gidney doesn't have health insurance and you can help him by buying copies of his book at Lethe Press's pre-publication sale. Direct PayPal button here.
- Ellen Datlow posts excerpts of her summary of the 1987 horror scene.
- Vera Nazarian's The Top 12 Most Useful Individuals in Genre Publishing. It's a good list although I have a quibble. Her last personality, somebody named Charles A. Tan, doesn't deserve to be on that list!
- Lone Star Stories is still looking for a poem for its October 2008 issue.
- Cat Rambo is a double threat as she interviews Tobias Buckell and blogs about Superheroes in the Nebula Awards Blog.
- Small Beer Press will be selling its books for $10.00 this Sunday at the Brooklyn Book Fair this Sunday. (Pssst, grab a copy of Geoff Ryman's The King's Last Song.)
- Matt Staggs has some Spore images of creatures from popular SF titles. Rise Cthulhu, rise!
- John Grant's The Dragons of Manhattan is now available online! Or via his website, which is cheaper.
- Help with sock donations.
- Via Mary Robinette Kowal, check out Mike Brotherton's Ten Issues for Hard Science Fiction.
- Have you ever heard of the Primitive Boggart?
Friday, September 12, 2008
A Year of Podcast Listing
It's roughly been a year since I started doing my weekly round-up of RPG podcasts. I mean compare my first such listing with yesterday's. Thanks for everyone's support, especially Daniel Perez and Clyde Rhoer who were there to support me from the very beginning.
Philippine Speculative Fiction Stories Available Online
I was tweaking my blog and I finally added a link in the sidebar to my post on Philippine speculative fiction stories that have been published in online markets. Here's the list (will be updating that list in the future, not this entry):
Strange Horizons, January 6 2003
Strange Horizons, January 6 2003
- L'Aquilone du Estrellas (The Kite of Stars) By Dean Francis Alfar
- Excerpt from a Letter by a Social-Realist Aswang by Kristin Mandigma
- House 1.0 by Kenneth Yu
- The River Stone Heart Of Maria Dela Rosa by Kate Aton-Osias
- Peekli by Andrew Drilon
- The Twilight Express by Crystal Koo
- The Curse of the Friendly Forest by Rod M. Santos
- Glass by Nikki Alfar
- Metropolis by Crystal Gail Shangkuan Koo
- Little Hands, Little Feet by Kenneth Yu
- The Maiden and the Crocodile by Dean Francis Alfar
Podcast Focus: Writing Excuses
Every Friday, I'll talk about a podcast or two that catches my fancy.
URL: http://www.writingexcuses.com/
RSS Feed: http://www.writingexcuses.com/feed/
Description: Satisfying both my writer and geeky criteria, Writing Excuses are short podcasts (fifteen minutes long) which cover various aspects of writing as they interview people from all over the industry and share their own experiences. The podcast hosts include Brandon Sanderson (Wheel of Time alert!), Howard Taylor, and Dan Wells (how can you go wrong with such a well-rounded crew?).
URL: http://www.writingexcuses.com/
RSS Feed: http://www.writingexcuses.com/feed/
Description: Satisfying both my writer and geeky criteria, Writing Excuses are short podcasts (fifteen minutes long) which cover various aspects of writing as they interview people from all over the industry and share their own experiences. The podcast hosts include Brandon Sanderson (Wheel of Time alert!), Howard Taylor, and Dan Wells (how can you go wrong with such a well-rounded crew?).
Top 10 Best-Sellers as of 2008/8/7
From USA Today's best-seller list (you can find out their basis here):
- Twilight by Stephenie Meyer
- New Moon by Stephenie Meyer
- Breaking Dawn by Stephenie Meyer
- The Shack by William P. Young
- Eclipse by Stephenie Meyer
- 8 Sandpiper Way by Debbie Macomber
- Eat, Pray, Love by Elizabeth Gilbert
- The Last Lecture by Randy Pausch, Jeffrey Zaslow
- Night in Rodanthe by Nicholas Sparks
- Book of the Dead by Patricia Cornwell
Thursday, September 11, 2008
2008/9/11 Tabletop RPG Podcasts
Every Thursday, I post links to various podcasts that deals with tabletop RPGs.
Tabletop RPG (Mostly)
General Discussions/Reviews/Everything Else
- Pulp Gamer episodes: Friends and Fans (Out of Character), Geeks and Freaks (Out of Character), Buyer's Training (Gama Trade Show 2008 Seminar).
- Geek Radio Daily episodes: September 4, 5, 8, 9, 10.
- Fist Full of Comics and Games episodes: The Main Feed for September 1, 2008; Monarchs Comics Briefing for September 3, 2008.
- Secret Identity episodes: Issue #130.
- The Order 66 Podcast episodes: The Revenge of the Clones.
- Fell Calls!, The Podcast About the Iron Kingdoms, episodes: Some Pig.
- Bear Swarm! episodes: World Building: Genre.
- The Podge Cast episodes: Childish Things.
- Radio Free Hommlet episodes: The Ranger.
- Wandering Geek episodes: Gen Con 08 Recap Volume 2.
- Accidental Survivors episodes: Post Apocalypto.
- Animalcast episodes: Episode 58 where they talk about their ENnies experience.
- RPGCast episodes: "Alas, Poor Leo! I Knew Him, Setzer".
- Save Against Frostbite episodes: AO games letter bomb Pete.
- Narrative Control episodes: Episode 2.
- 2d6 Feet in a Random Direction episodes: Episode 37 where they talk about GenCon.
- Amorphous Blob Games episodes: "How and Why did you get into Game Mastering".
- Brilliant Gameologist episodes: GenCon Recap.
- The Gamer's Haven Podcast episodes: Gen Con Special Edition Coverage - Intro to Podcasting Seminar.
- Gateway to the Megaverse episodes: Shooting the Breeze.
- 3.5 Private Sanctuary episodes: Episode 47 where they talk about NPCs.
- Role Playing Public Radio episodes: Random Character Advice Generator.
- Secret Identity episodes: Issue #130.5 where they interview David Nakayama.
- The Basics of the Game episodes: Interview with Chris Doyle.
- Pulp Gamer episodes: Corey Konieczka of Fantasy Flight Games.
- The Tome episodes: Paizo Origins Interview.
- 2d6 Feet in a Random Direction episodes: Episode 38 where they chat with Ken Hite and Sean Knittner.
- Geekerati episodes: Author and Editor William Jones Visits the Geeks.
- The D&D Podcast episodes: Episode 24 where they interview Chris Tulach and Rodney Thompson.
- Writing Excuses interviews Steve Jackson.
- Heroic Cthulhu episodes: The Attack of the French (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8), Two (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6), OstRage (1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7).
- RPGMP3 episodes: Keep on the Shadowfell (11).
- Icosahedrophilia episodes: The Wellspring Part 1.
- Kore RPG episodes: Come to the Light,
- One Man and His Dice episodes: Air & Motion-Session 2 part 1.
- Virtual Play episodes: Beast Hunters, Blossoms are Falling, Uerlan Rebooted, Spirit of Terpcon, Spirit of Origins.
Wednesday, September 10, 2008
Essay: Electronic vs Print Layouts
Every Wednesday, I have an essay on any topic that catches my fancy!
John Joseph Adams has a post on Making e-Reading Easier and his solution is simple: flip the screen or switch to landscape format since our computer monitors support that shape. It's actually a brilliant idea and Dragon Magazine--Dungeon & Dragon's online magazine--goes one step further by actually designing the layout of their PDFs in landscape format. Why hassle the end-user when the content provider can give it to you in the most optimal format? Adams's and Dragon Magazine's solution isn't rocket science by any means yet it's effective. What impedes most people in my opinion is that they're stuck in the print paradigm. Most publications are laid out in the portrait so our electronic documents should similarly be laid out in portrait--even if that's not necessarily the most efficient way of doing things.
Of course in the case of Adams, changing the layout for the end-user is not an option, mainly because most likely, the works he is reading IS optimized for print. For example, electronic ARCs I receive are simply print galleys and aren't designed to be sold as electronic PDFs. On the other hand, we also have PDFs that are being sold in RPGNow, which have print counterparts. They're not laid out in landscape format simply because it's not feasible (or it's too draining on the publisher's resources) to redo the layout of the book just for an online audience so they simply re-use the print layout (adding bookmarks and links isn't as tedious as doing the work of an actual graphic designer although mind you, adding those extra features does take time).
I think for most of us, we're still operating under a print paradigm and so we don't really notice the lack of synchronization between the two, or why reading on a computer screen irks us so much. That's also part of the reason why it's difficult for us to innovate on the web--because our previous aesthetics and sensibilities interferes with how we perceive this "new" medium. (And I'm not one to talk--a friend recently called me to task on my blogger writing style because essays like these aren't really suited for my blog's layout as the text looks chunky and intimidating.)
Let's switch up things a bit: what is one thing that print excels at? For me, that would be our magazines and to a certain extent, comics. If it's just text and content, I think that can be reproduced on the web seamlessly as long as it's tweaked (no blocky layouts like this text you're reading). It's the combination of words and pictures and pull-quotes however that grab me as a print reader and doesn't really translate well on the computer screen. I mean how do you do a gatefold cover? Or a centerspread image? The moment you have to scroll to see the full image, you're doomed. Even an ordinary magazine cover is workable in an online medium except you miss out on the details. So good magazine layouts--one that incorporates both text and images (and when I speak of images, I'm not just talking about photos but the overall layout design which might include the "skin" of your page)--can never be perfectly translated on the web.
The same theory applies for comics but the biggest difference is comics on the Internet have adapted to the medium. The differences between online comics and print comics are noticeable such as the short, strip-nature of the former or the capability of using bleeds (artwork that fills the entire page) in the latter. Sure, there's room for overlap, such as PVP or Order of the Stick, which were also adapted for print but make no mistake, such comics were designed for online viewing first and print second.
What's an example of not-so-optimized layout? Just look at Newsarama. Now I'm a big fan of Newsarama and it's one of the websites I visit daily. However that doesn't mean I'm not aware of its layout problems. The front page is actually fine. It's when you click the articles that problems start to crop up. Just look at this interview with Garth Ennis and Joe Rybandt. Large central image on top--not a problem. Small, supplementary image on the side--not so good (especially considering I have to clink on a link to see the larger image).
How about an example of a site that maximizes the medium? Dr. Roundbottom is a website that impresses me. The layout is great and makes good use of the properties of the web. The images are large enough that one can see the details. The text is just the right length, not too intimidating but not too short either. Moreover, it's not trying to be print. Aside from the links, it also has audio recordings--something a print magazine could never accomplish, even if the said magazine came prepackaged with a CD. That's not to say it's perfect: I wish it had video for example. But Dr. Roundbottom I think is an example of the possibilities of publishing on the web* (Dr. Roundbottom is certainly an online model I'd pursue should I attempt something in the vein of The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases or A Field Guide to Surreal Botany).
Here's also one thing I noticed: even us bloggers don't simply stick to "just text". We utilize links, photos, and -gasp- video! (Who hasn't embedded or posted a link to YouTube?) Some even have audio posts and the like.
When it comes to the format of our electronic or print texts, I do think we have to pay attention and check what best suits the medium.
* Having said that, designing for the web is hell, everything from not knowing the resolution screen of your end-user (or even their web browser) to the 215 safe colors.
John Joseph Adams has a post on Making e-Reading Easier and his solution is simple: flip the screen or switch to landscape format since our computer monitors support that shape. It's actually a brilliant idea and Dragon Magazine--Dungeon & Dragon's online magazine--goes one step further by actually designing the layout of their PDFs in landscape format. Why hassle the end-user when the content provider can give it to you in the most optimal format? Adams's and Dragon Magazine's solution isn't rocket science by any means yet it's effective. What impedes most people in my opinion is that they're stuck in the print paradigm. Most publications are laid out in the portrait so our electronic documents should similarly be laid out in portrait--even if that's not necessarily the most efficient way of doing things.
Of course in the case of Adams, changing the layout for the end-user is not an option, mainly because most likely, the works he is reading IS optimized for print. For example, electronic ARCs I receive are simply print galleys and aren't designed to be sold as electronic PDFs. On the other hand, we also have PDFs that are being sold in RPGNow, which have print counterparts. They're not laid out in landscape format simply because it's not feasible (or it's too draining on the publisher's resources) to redo the layout of the book just for an online audience so they simply re-use the print layout (adding bookmarks and links isn't as tedious as doing the work of an actual graphic designer although mind you, adding those extra features does take time).
I think for most of us, we're still operating under a print paradigm and so we don't really notice the lack of synchronization between the two, or why reading on a computer screen irks us so much. That's also part of the reason why it's difficult for us to innovate on the web--because our previous aesthetics and sensibilities interferes with how we perceive this "new" medium. (And I'm not one to talk--a friend recently called me to task on my blogger writing style because essays like these aren't really suited for my blog's layout as the text looks chunky and intimidating.)
Let's switch up things a bit: what is one thing that print excels at? For me, that would be our magazines and to a certain extent, comics. If it's just text and content, I think that can be reproduced on the web seamlessly as long as it's tweaked (no blocky layouts like this text you're reading). It's the combination of words and pictures and pull-quotes however that grab me as a print reader and doesn't really translate well on the computer screen. I mean how do you do a gatefold cover? Or a centerspread image? The moment you have to scroll to see the full image, you're doomed. Even an ordinary magazine cover is workable in an online medium except you miss out on the details. So good magazine layouts--one that incorporates both text and images (and when I speak of images, I'm not just talking about photos but the overall layout design which might include the "skin" of your page)--can never be perfectly translated on the web.
The same theory applies for comics but the biggest difference is comics on the Internet have adapted to the medium. The differences between online comics and print comics are noticeable such as the short, strip-nature of the former or the capability of using bleeds (artwork that fills the entire page) in the latter. Sure, there's room for overlap, such as PVP or Order of the Stick, which were also adapted for print but make no mistake, such comics were designed for online viewing first and print second.
What's an example of not-so-optimized layout? Just look at Newsarama. Now I'm a big fan of Newsarama and it's one of the websites I visit daily. However that doesn't mean I'm not aware of its layout problems. The front page is actually fine. It's when you click the articles that problems start to crop up. Just look at this interview with Garth Ennis and Joe Rybandt. Large central image on top--not a problem. Small, supplementary image on the side--not so good (especially considering I have to clink on a link to see the larger image).
How about an example of a site that maximizes the medium? Dr. Roundbottom is a website that impresses me. The layout is great and makes good use of the properties of the web. The images are large enough that one can see the details. The text is just the right length, not too intimidating but not too short either. Moreover, it's not trying to be print. Aside from the links, it also has audio recordings--something a print magazine could never accomplish, even if the said magazine came prepackaged with a CD. That's not to say it's perfect: I wish it had video for example. But Dr. Roundbottom I think is an example of the possibilities of publishing on the web* (Dr. Roundbottom is certainly an online model I'd pursue should I attempt something in the vein of The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases or A Field Guide to Surreal Botany).
Here's also one thing I noticed: even us bloggers don't simply stick to "just text". We utilize links, photos, and -gasp- video! (Who hasn't embedded or posted a link to YouTube?) Some even have audio posts and the like.
When it comes to the format of our electronic or print texts, I do think we have to pay attention and check what best suits the medium.
* Having said that, designing for the web is hell, everything from not knowing the resolution screen of your end-user (or even their web browser) to the 215 safe colors.
Tuesday, September 09, 2008
Couple O' Plugs
- Dean Alfar has a new/old (new for international readers, not so new for local readers--but hey, you get to read it for free) story up at Bewildering Stories: The Maiden and the Crocodile.
- New issue of Shimmer Magazine!
- John Joseph Adam's upcoming anthology, The Living Dead, has a website! As usual, entire short stories, excerpts, and podcasts are available for download.
- You do know that SFF Audio has a podcast, right?
- Speaking of podcasts, Bruce Baugh has been reviewing various RPG Podcasts over at Tor.com. (Now if only someone else could aggregate RPG podcast links every week...)
- Check out Electro Velocipede's subscription drive ($20.00 a year!) and John Klima's benefactor special ($150.00 for everything!).
- Sybil's Garage is not only giving away free copies of its 3rd issue but is also currently open to submissions.
- Also check out the press release on Underland Press.
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