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Strange Plants, Ruined Cities, and the Dangers of Antarctic Exploration: Weirdbook #43

Strange Plants, Ruined Cities, and the Dangers of Antarctic Exploration: Weirdbook #43

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Cover by Fotolia

It was a pleasure to get the latest issue of Weirdbook in the mail last month. Sadly, as has become almost routine, editor Doug Draa devotes much of his heartfelt editorial to eulogizing a lost contributor, in this case the talented author Joseph S. Pulver. (Though in the process he did misspell Pulver’s name, something also fairly routine for Weirdbook. A spellchecker would have caught the mistake, and the ones in the next few sentences. Amateur editing is part of the magazine’s charm, and certainly doesn’t bother most readers, but better copyediting wouldn’t hurt.)

Here it is, Weirdbook #43. Our 13th regular issue since the relaunch. I really can’t decide on whether calling this our “Baker’s Dozen” issue of our “Advent of the Apocalypse” issue…

This issue contains one of Joeseph (sic) Pulver, Sr.’s last stories, “Will Home Remember Me?” I say “last” because Joe passed away April 24th. It such (sic) an honor to receive the story last year. Joe was a genuine giant of weird fiction and a great man in his own right. He’ll be missed by his legions of fans and friends.

I want to believe that he’s giving them hell this very minute in not-so-Lost Carcosa and is enjoying himselv (sic) immensely while doing so!

Godspeed, Joe.

Draa and Wildside committed to an aggressive publication schedule when they relaunched the magazine five years ago, and for the most part they’ve achieved it, producing nearly three issues per year (plus the occasional Weirdbook Annual). And the magazine looks fantastic, with consistently striking cover art, and top-notch interiors by the great Allen Koszowski. Issue #43 contains stories by Black Gate writers John R. Fultz and Darrell Schweitzer, plus Adrian Cole, Joseph S. Pulver, Sr, Glynn Owen Barrass, L.F. Falconer, and others.

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A Man of Science: A Study of the Readership of Analog Science Fact-Fiction

A Man of Science: A Study of the Readership of Analog Science Fact-Fiction

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Here’s what I think is an interesting little item, a 20 page booklet (including covers) entitled A Man of Science: A Study of the Readership of Analog Science Fact-Fiction. This was published by Street & Smith, the then-publisher of Analog, and was a promo piece aimed at advertisers.

There’s no publication date, but my guess is it was published in early 1962 — on page 3, Ralph Sharp, Director of Research for the S&S mags, mentions that in the November 1961 issue of Analog a return postcard was included (I’ve looked through several copies of that issue and haven’t found one that still contains the postcard; I’d love to see that, if anyone has one). He states that the issue went on sale on October 17, and within a month 4,700 usable returns had been received by Intercity Research, an independent tabulating firm.

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Weird Tales Deep Read: May 1923

Weird Tales Deep Read: May 1923

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Cover by William Heitman

This time we’re considering another early Weird Tales, the third issue, May 1923. This was one of the oversized bed-sheet sized issues and contained 21 stories by 22 authors. Astonishingly, fourteen of these authors were one and done, with no additional published stories in the sf/fan field. Another two have two stories listed at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.

The two most significant authors in this issue are Vincent Starrett, a long-time newspaper man who produced several out of genre books and a single slim collection of fantasy stories published by Arkham House in 1965. The other is Edward Bulwar-Lytton (yes, of a “dark and stormy night” fame), represented by a reprint that is more of a curiosity than anything else.

The other author worth commenting is Culpeper Chunn (a byline that screams pseudonym), whose real name was Seymour Cunningham Chunn (1889-1927). His two stories in Weird Tales are his only listed genre works, but if you google his name you’ll find repeated offers for his book Plotting the Short Story (it’s in public domain, so naturally it’s currently available in countless editions, even on Amazon) so he must have some kind of track record, somewhere. But that’s not why he gets a mention here. The protagonist of “The Whispering Thing,” co-authored by Laurie McClintock (who otherwise has left no trace in the written record), is Jules Peret, a French-born ex-policeman and current consulting detective, “a small, effeminate man with delicate features, small hands and feet,” given to uttering extravagant oaths. Sound familiar? The first Jules de Granden story appeared in Weird Tales in 1925. I have no explanation for this extraordinary coincidence.

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A Shipwreck, a Mystery, and a 60-Ton Killer Robot: “The Ambient Intelligence” by Todd McAulty

A Shipwreck, a Mystery, and a 60-Ton Killer Robot: “The Ambient Intelligence” by Todd McAulty

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Lightspeed Magazine Issue 125 October 2020-smallHey hey! This is exciting — my first short story publication in many years appeared last week in Lightspeed magazine!

The story is “The Ambient Intelligence,” and it’s free to read online. It’s published under the name Todd McAulty, the name all my stories appeared under in Black Gate magazine all those years ago. Here’s what John Joseph Adams said about the story in his editorial for the October issue:

Welcome to Lightspeed’s 125th issue! Do you love power armor? Do you love giant robots? Do you love people in power armor fighting giant robots? Well then, we’ve got you covered! Todd McAulty’s newest short story (“The Ambient Intelligence”) is here to meet all your power armor vs. robot needs.

He’s not kidding about the robots. “The Ambient Intelligence” is the story of Canadian Barry Simcoe and his robot friend Zircon Border, who face off against a mysterious 60-ton killer robot hiding in a shipwreck on the shores of Lake Michigan… one that’s hiding a very big secret. It shares a setting (and two characters) with my debut novel The Robots of Gotham, but it’s not otherwise related to that book, and stands completely on its own.

Black Gate subscribers may remember (stretching back many years now) that Todd McAulty had four stories in the print magazine:

“The Haunting of Cold Harbour” (Black Gate 3, 2002)
“There’s a Hole in October” (Black Gate 5, 2003)
“Amnesty” (Black Gate 7, 2004)
“The Soldiers of Serenity” (Black Gate 12, 2008)

Read “The Ambient Intelligence” in its entirety here. And if you enjoy it, why not help support Lightspeed with a subscription? Six-months subs will run you just $17.94, for more than 50 stories — a whopping 350,000 words of fiction. It’s one of the true bargains in the fields. And thanks for your support!

Sorcery, Foxkin, Giants, and the Return of Dabir & Asim: Heroic Fantasy Quarterly #45!

Sorcery, Foxkin, Giants, and the Return of Dabir & Asim: Heroic Fantasy Quarterly #45!

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Epic Swamp

Heroic Fantasy Quarterly #45 was released on an unsuspecting world on the second of August. Four works of fiction, one outstanding poem, plus artwork and audio. A great issue that you should check out!

What have we got? This is what we’ve got:

Fiction Contents

Assailing the Garden of Pleasure, by Danial Ausema, with audio by Karen Bovenmeyer. The wounded apprentices of a corrupt teacher must gather what little power and skill they have to attempt to wrest the stolen parts of themselves from their corrupt master. The mastery of sorcery exacts a price. The search for vengeance exacts an even greater one.

Fox Hunt, by Rebecca Buchanan, with artwork by Simon Walpole and audio by Karen Bovenmeyer. There is a horror worming its way into the world of feudal Japan in this outstanding story. No bold samurai or powerful sorcerer fights against it — only a lone foxkin and a willful old woman stands in its way. A unique tale!

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Analog Science Fiction, January/February 2020, Moby Dick, a Side-Quest, and HP Lovecraft

Analog Science Fiction, January/February 2020, Moby Dick, a Side-Quest, and HP Lovecraft

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Part One: Analog

Back in the Before Times, I strolled, maskless and blissful, into Barnes and Noble and bought the Analog Science Fiction, January/February 2020 issue. It is a super-sized double issue with a reprint of a classic story from the 90s. I’ve read it in bits and pieces over the months and one tale stuck out at me — the cover story: “The Quest for the Great Gray Mossy” by Harry Turtledove.

Turtledove mines the classics with an enviable lack of shame in this Moby Dick pastiche. Is it even a pastiche? It is more of an abridged version, but with dinosaurs. Imagine if you had a test due on Moby Dick, but by some outlandish set of coincidences you lacked internet access and couldn’t even get your hands on an old copy of the Cliff Notes — hitting this story the night before would ensure you’d manage the test fine.

Honestly, while there wasn’t anything wrong with the story, it didn’t bring anything new to it, either. I mean, outside of the fact that they are dinosaurs.

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Bigfoot, Uplifted Creatures, and the Largest Black Hole in the Universe: September/October Print SF Magazines

Bigfoot, Uplifted Creatures, and the Largest Black Hole in the Universe: September/October Print SF Magazines

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Analog Science Fiction September October 2020-small Asimov's Science Fiction September October 2020-small The Magazone of Fantasy and Science Fiction September October 2020-small

Covers by Soo Lee, Maurizio Manzieri, and Bob Eggleton

When Illinois went into lockdown in March, and retail stores and movie theatres closed, life changed pretty quick. I thought an indefinite nationwide lockdown might be the death knell for the print magazines I’d been reading for decades, not to mention my local bookstores and comic shops. And yeah, I felt I little shallow for being preoccupied with that while tens of thousands of people were dying.

Nonetheless, I’m relieved to see that, with the pandemic (sorta?) under control and the hope of a vaccine on the horizon, stores in St. Charles are gradually re-opening, I can visit my local comic shop again, and the print magazines I love are back on the shelves.

I’m especially relieved because none of the steps I suggested back in April to worried readers worked at all. Chuck Timpko reported he was able to contact the Customer Service team at Asimov’s and Analog and order individual issues; I tried the same thing, but never saw any magazines. I vowed to support F&SF with a subscription, but I never saw that either. So I’m back to haunting the magazine racks at Barnes & Noble, wearing a face mask and furtively looking for the latest issues.

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Weird Tales Deep Read: November 1934

Weird Tales Deep Read: November 1934

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Weird Tales, November 1934. Cover by Margaret Brundage (for “Queen of the Lillin”)

We’re back on more familiar ground with this issue of Weird Tales from its classic period. More familiar authors are represented, and although not every story is a classic the editors at least avoided any real stumbles this. The issue grades out to a 2.1, which all in all is pretty decent.

Both Howard and Lovecraft appear, although the Lovecraft tale is a reprint and the Howard is the last installment of a serial. E. Hoffman Price, Paul Ernst, and August Derleth, seasoned pulp veterans all, also contributed stories. Price tale’s is part of his Pierre d’Atois stories; , d’Atois, like another Frenchman who appears in a series of WT stories, is an occult detective. The Ernst is one of his slighter efforts. The Derleth is somewhat more unusual, although, as is common, also rather slight. We have to cover already trodden ground with two serials this time around. I’ve included the information on those stories for those who haven’t read all the posts in this series.

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Uncanny Origins

Uncanny Origins

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Kickstarter Cover Collage

We here at Uncanny Magazine we are in the middle of the Uncanny Magazine Year 7: Space Unicorns Shine On Together Kickstarter, and after six years of bringing our Hugo Award-winning magazine featuring passionate SF/F fiction and poetry, gorgeous prose, provocative nonfiction, and a deep investment in the diverse SF/F culture, along with a Parsec Award-winning monthly podcast to readers and listeners, we asked each other, how did we get here?

Specifically, what science fiction and fantasy works started each of us down the path of becoming SF/F interviewers, editors, podcasters, and writers?

Podcast Producer Erika Ensign

SF/F was baked into my very bones. I’m told that mother and father, tried-and-true nerds themselves, went to see Star Wars when I was in utero. I’m not entirely certain that counts as a formative experience, but I like to claim it anyway. Some of my very earliest memories are watching Doctor Who with my mom (or sneakily, from the top of the stairs when I was supposed to be in bed) and listening to my dad read A Wrinkle in Time to my siblings and me. I truly don’t remember a time before SF/F came into my life, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

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Are Some “Classics” Best Neglected?: Eric Frank Russell’s Sinister Barrier

Are Some “Classics” Best Neglected?: Eric Frank Russell’s Sinister Barrier

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SBarrierUnknown

Sinister Barrier by Eric Frank Russell; Magazine version: Unknown, March 1939.
Cover art H. W. Scott. (Click to enlarge)

Sinister Barrier
by Eric Frank Russell
UK: World’s Work (135 pages, 5/-, hardcover, 1943)
US: Fantasy Press (253, $3.00, hardcover, 1948)

Here’s an early “classic” of science fiction that I came across in a used bookstore in Oakland early last year. I say “classic” with quotes because I had heard of the title for years, but hadn’t recalled ever seeing a copy. Indeed, the invaluable isfdb.com indicates that while it was included in an omnibus from NESFA Press in 2001, there hasn’t been a separate English language edition of the book since Ballantine Del Rey issued it in 1986, nearly 35 years ago. Hmm, why would this be?

Well, because it’s a terribly written book, dated both in language and in plotting and in its sexual and racial attitudes, exhibiting all the worst features of pulp writing, and far worse than the works of, say, Asimov and Heinlein that have survived from that era. That would be the reason modern publishers haven’t kept it in print. If it’s a classic in any way, it’s for its striking conceptual premise, and then only in its historical context. More on that in a bit.

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