News
November 16, 2004
I just added another 15 photos taken at the 2004 World Fantasy Convention. I'll try to add the rest before it all becomes a dim memory. November 9, 2004 I just put up nine photos taken at the 2004 World Fantasy Convention. More will be added as time allows ... September 5, 2004 I've started to add of photos of my trip to Noreason Four, the 2004 WorldCon, still currently in progress. August 7, 2004 I just received my contributor copies of Crossroads: Tales of the Southern Literary Fantastic, which contains my Randy Newman-inspired story, "My Life is Good." So to all of you Randy Newman fans who've e-mailed me since I first announced the sale on this site and asked when they could read the piece—go out and find a copy! August 6, 2004 My short story "The Last Supper," which appeared in the anthology The Book of Final Flesh, was given an Honorable Mention in Ellen Datlow, Kelly Link and Gavin Grant's Year's Best Fantasy and Horror: Seventeenth Annual Collection. August 2, 2004Noreascon Four, the 62nd World Science Fiction Convention, is only a month away, and here's where I'm slated to appear:
Thursday, Sept. 2 at 3:00 p.m.: "Autographing"
Friday, Sept. 3 at 10:00 a.m.: "SF Without Smiles"
Friday, Sept. 3 at 1:00 p.m.: "One Day in the Life of an Editor"
Friday, Sept. 3 at 5:00 p.m. "Writing for Comics"
Saturday, Sept. 4 at Noon: "Is It Fair?"
Saturday, Sept. 4 at 5:00 p.m.: "Saluting Jack Williamson: Eight Decades, and Counting"
Sunday, Sept. 5 at 4:00 p.m.: "This Book Sucks: How to (and How Not to) Write Reviews"
Monday, Sept. 6 at 10:30 p.m.: "Reading"
Monday, Sept. 6 at Noon: "Kaffeeklatsch"
Monday, Sept. 6 at 2:00 p.m.: "How Do You Know When You're Dead?"
As you can see, I'll be busy. Maybe I'll see some of you there.
July 13, 2004Science Fiction Weekly, which I've been editing for almost four years, has just won the 2004 Wooden Rocket Award for Best Online Magazine. I'm stunned to see that by the time voting ended, 12,381 verified Web surfers had made 68,725 nominations—a level of participation that amazes me, considering how much higher it is than that for other science-fiction awards.
In other news, my short story "Together Forever at the End of the World," which appeared in the anthology Men Writing Science Fiction as Women, was given an Honorable Mention in Gardner Dozois' Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-First Annual Collection. It's a lengthy list, but still—it's nice to be noticed.
May 25, 2004I've just received word on my final scheduling at Balticon, and the duplication in my previous entry has been rectified. On Sunday at 8:00 p.m., I will only have to attend a single panel (thought it might have been interesting to attempt to break the laws of physics by attending two simultaneously). So you'll find me at the panel debating the issue "Are Short Stories 'Amateur' Products?" See you there!
May 20, 2004This year's Balticon is coming up soon, and I've just received my tentative schedule. For anyone going, here's where you'll be able to track me down, though be sure to check the final program, as there will be changes (you'll soon see why):
Friday, May 28 at 6:00 p.m.: "Reading"
Friday, May 28 at 7:00 p.m.: "Small Press Publishing?"
Friday, May 28 at 9:00 p.m. "Is It Fair?"
Saturday, May 29 at 1:00 p.m. "How Short Stories Are Different to Write Than Novels"
Sunday, May 30 at 1:00 p.m.: "Choosing the Title for Your Book or Story"
Sunday, May 30 at 8:00 p.m. "Online Publications"
Sunday, May 30 at 8:00 p.m. "Are Short Stories 'Amateur' Products?"
And yes, I know—those last two panels take place simultaneously. I trust that the convention organizers will soon realize this.
May 17, 2004I just received my contributor's copy to Quietly Now: A Tribute to Charles L. Grant, containing my short story, "I Wish I Knew Where I Was Going." The book is a signed, limited edition with contributions by Stephen King, Peter Straub and others, so if you want a copy, you'd better act fast.
April 2, 2004I've just learned that my short story "The Last Supper" has made the final Stoker Awards Ballot in the short fiction category. "The Last Supper" first appeared in James Lowder's anthology The Book of Final Flesh. The is the second time a story of mine has reached the final Stoker ballot. The first was "A Plague on Both Your Houses," which oddly enough, was also a zombie tale.
Here's the full list of nominees in my category:
"Duty" by Gary A. Braunbeck (Vivisections)
"The Last Supper" by Scott Edelman (The Book of Final Flesh)
"Harvey's Dream" by Stephen King (The New Yorker)
"The Haunting" by Joyce Carol Oates (The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction)
"The Red Bow" by George Saunders (Esquire)
Whatever the outcome, it's a great honor to share a ballot with those four writers.
I'm leaving a PDF of "The Last Supper" up on my site so that HWA voters can continue to read it if desired. The winner in this and other categories will be announced at a banquet in New York at the Park Central Hotel on Saturday, June 7.
March 31, 2004
Saturday night at I-Con 23, I was given the Sam Moskowitz Award for "outstanding contributions to the field of science fiction fandom." At least, that's what the plaque tells me I've done. You can read my thoughts about whether I've done enough to earn it in Monday's Science Fiction Weekly editorial. (And if you're wondering why I'm wearing leis around my neck, it's because the awards banquet had a Hawaiian theme.)
At right, you can see me with David Kyle, who won the award back in 1999. You can understand why I feel honored to be in such company when you know that he was active in science fiction fandom four decades before I even discovered the concept. Other previous winners have been John L. Coker III (1998), James Gunn (2000), Hal Clement (2001), Charles N. Brown (2002), and Anne McCaffrey (2003).
March 9, 2004I've just received my schedule for I-Con 23, which will be held on the campus of the State University of New York at Stony Brook from March 26 through 28. Here's where you'll be able to find me:
Friday, March 26 at 7:00 p.m.: ReadingMarch 1, 2004
Friday, March 26 at 8:00 p.m.: "The Influence of Poetry on Prose"
Saturday, March 27 at 2:00 p.m.: "Writing for Comics"
Saturday, March 27 at 4:00 p.m.: "What's Going On?: Speculations on How the World Today will Affect the Future"
Saturday, March 27 at 5:30 p.m.: Awards Banquet, at which I will be presented with the Sam Moskowitz Award
Sunday, March 28 at 10:00 a.m.: "Today's Publishing Alternatives"
Sunday, March 28 at noon: "Writing for And Editing Anthologies"
The Horror Writers Association has just announced its Bram Stoker Awards Preliminary Ballot for Works Published in 2003, and I'm proud to say that my short story "The Last Supper" has made the short list in the short fiction category. "The Last Supper" first appeared in James Lowder's anthology The Book of Final Flesh, which has also made the cut.
This isn't the same as being nominated for a Stoker, as only those who make the final ballot can make that claim. But to make it easier for voters to track down this story and decide whether it's worthy of that final ballot, I have uploaded a PDF copy of "The Last Supper" to this site. It will remain here for as long as the voting period remains open.
February 29, 2004
The cover for Quietly Now, the Charles L. Grant tribute anthology which will contain my short story "I Wish I Knew Where I Was Going," has just been made public.
The cover painting is by Alan Clark, and the book itself should be available in April.
February 19, 2004I've just learned that I am to be presented with the Moskowitz Award, which is given out for contribution to science fiction, at I-Con 23, on the campus of the State University of New York at Stony Brook. Previous winners include Charles N. Brown, Hal Clement, James Gunn, David A. Kyle and John L. Coker III. An awards banquet will be held on Sunday, March 27th.
February 14, 2004
The Tor Books Spring/Summer catalog is out, including a listing for Crossroads: Tales of the Southern Literary Fantastic (the cover of which which can be seen in the Nov. 4 entry below).
It appears that my Randy Newman story (along with Michael Swanwick's tale) is considered to be "wildly funny" and "piquant." This hardcover anthology is still slated for an August release, but there's no need to wait until then—anyone who feels like it can order it now.
January 24, 2004
Today is my parents' 50th wedding anniversary.
They'll be getting remarried later this evening (assuming, that is, that each of them when asked still decides to respond to that all-important question with the answer, "I do.")
Those who care can check out three pages of family photos that I've just added to the site. As for the rest of you, come back in a few days once I've add other writing-related news.
January 22, 2004I just added an ancient image to my Photos page, which incorporates a quiz. See if you can identify the mystery guest.
January 20, 2004
I've just learned from the editors that the second issue of The Journal of Pulsepounding Narratives, which had been postponed from its original publication date of last October, has just been rescheduled.
So you'll be able to read "This is Where the Title Goes" in the Spring. I'll report on the exact date as soon as I hear of it.