Uncanny editors Lynn and Michael Thomas return from the Chicago TARDIS convention with an impassioned plea for increased accessibility, in their editorial in the January/February issue.

One of the reasons this convention is such a joy for us is Chicago TARDIS and its staff are very attentive to accessibility… We go to a ton of conventions for work, and, sadly, this isn’t always the case. Many excellent conventions are addressing accessibility at their events, and improving every year, which we absolutely applaud and appreciate. Others have resisted, even though it’s both the right thing to do and a US federal law thanks to the Americans with Disabilities Act. After some recent conventions had some major failures with their accessibility again, we and Mary Robinette Kowal — with help from many others — felt it was necessary to create an SF/F Convention Accessibility Pledge, similar to the John Scalzi pledge about not attending conventions without harassment policies. Hundreds have signed the pledge, and it has also been covered by io9 Most importantly, we’re seeing many convention staff members joining together to share information and work to make their conventions more accessible. That’s awesome, and frankly, the point of the whole thing. Fandom is for everyone, including people with disabilities.

The January/February issue contains all–new short fiction by Maria Dahvana Headley, Nghi Vo, Christopher Barzak, Brit Mandelo, and Rose Lemberg, classic fiction by Sarah Rees Brennan, nonfiction by Chris Kluwe, Max Gladstone, Isabel Schechter and L.M. Myles, poems by Kayla Whaley, Leslie J. Anderson, and Bryan Thao Worra, interviews with Maria Dahvana Headley and Christopher Barzak, and a cover by Priscilla H. Kim. All that plus two podcasts!

All of the content became available for purchase as an eBook (PDF, EPUB, MOBI) on January 1, 2016.

Here’s the complete fiction contents:

“The Virgin Played Bass” by Maria Dahvana Headley
“The Spy Who Never Grew Up” by Sarah Rees Brennan (from Kiss Me Deadly: 13 Tales of Paranormal Love, 2010)
“Lotus Face and the Fox” by Nghi Vo
“The Creeping Women” by Christopher Barzak
“The Desert Glassmaker and the Jeweler of Berevyar” by Rose Lemberg
“The Sincerity Game” by Brit Mandelo

Poetry:

“tended, tangled, and veined” by Kayla Whaley
“The Exquisite Banality of Space” by Leslie J. Anderson
“Narrative of the Naga’s Heirs” by Bryan Thao Worra

Nonfiction:

The Uncanny Valley by Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas
Growing Up in Hyperspace by Max Gladstone
Thank You, Patreon Supporters! by Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas
Gatekeepers: The Nerd/Jock False Division by Chris Kluwe
Creating a Welcoming Fannish Community by Isabel Schechter
Quest for an SF/F Grandmother by L.M. Myles
Interview: Maria Dahvana Headley by Deborah Stanish
Interview: Christopher Barzak by Deborah Stanish

All that, and two podcasts:

Episode 8A: Editors’ Introduction, Nghi Vo’s “Lotus Face and the Fox” (as read Erika Ensign), Kayla Whaley’s “tended, tangled, and veined” (as read byAmal El–Mohtar), and an interview with Nghi Vo conducted by Deborah Stanish.

Episode 8B: Editors’ Introduction, Brit Mandelo’s “The Sincerity Game” (as read by Amal El–Mohtar), Bryan Thao Worra’s “Narrative of the Naga’s Heirs” (as read by Erika Ensign), and an interview with Brit Mandelo conducted by Deborah Stanish.

The cover this month, “Round Three,” is by Priscilla H. Kim.

Curious about how Uncanny does such great podcasts? Lynne and Michael pull back the curtain in their recent article for us, Behind the Microphones: How the Uncanny Magazine Podcast Gets Made.

Issue #8 is cover-dated January/February 2016. Read the complete issue here.

We last covered Uncanny Magazine with Issue #7.

Uncanny Magazine is edited by Lynne M. Thomas, Michael Damian Thomas, and Michi Trota, and published bi-monthly. The issue is priced at $3.99, and is available as an eBook (PDF, EPUB, MOBI). eBook Subscriptions are available at Weightless Books.

Our Late January Fantasy Magazine Rack is here. See all of our recent fantasy magazine coverage here.