Vote vote vote--and rec rec rec rec

[ellen_datlow]

Ok. Here's my impassioned plea/push/nag for anyone who reads this blog and is eligible to recommend stories and or novels for the various peer group science fiction, fantasy, and horror awards.
I know that some people feel that awards themselves are a bad thing and that they should all be abolished. I'm not talking to you. I don't believe that and I know I'm not going to change your minds.

Awards are NOT going to go away but they could become less visible (which I think is a bad thing). As an editor I really appreciate it when the stories/books I edit make final award ballots and win awards. And I think most writers are even more appreciative of this. It gives a sense of validation for what you're doing by your peers (for the Nebula and Stoker).

Right now is "award rec season" and there are discussions on both the SFWA Bulletin Board and the HWA Bulletin Board about how their respective awards are dying --not enough members are recommending works to even make a preliminary ballot.

Now some people think that this might be because no one likes the work being published.
Others that no one is reading enough short fiction to be interested in recommending works in those categories.
I have a really difficult time believing the first reason. I've been reading sf/f/h short fiction for twenty five years and have found no drop off in quality in any of those fields.

I can't answer for the second but I hope it's not true because if so my profession will die and I love editing short fiction.

If you care at ALL for the genre short story then I urge you to recommend the stories that you think are worth bringing to the attention of your peers.

This is totally off the cuff and I know if I thought about it more I'd have more to write--but I'd also probably just delete the whole post...

Comments welcome!

Comments

[nihilistic-kid.livejournal.com]

What, you don't read Nature? You're gonna miss my story in a couple of weeks! :)

Also, how about the "evil" themed issue of Tin House from this April?

Of the mags you list, those I have not seen and skimmed are Keleidotrope, Out of the Gutter, the Not One Of Us one-off (unless it actually was on the shelves at Pandemonium after all), Tales of the Talisman, Zahir, Prism, Fictitious Force, Whispers of Wickedness, and Horror Carousel.

What percentage of the best stories of the year would you say are coming out of those magazines? I'm not even asking about what you'll reprint, but what really knocked your socks enough enough to consider (maybe give an HM to or something)?

My blind guess is that the number of stories that are excellent in those magazines is a very very small one.

[ellen-datlow.livejournal.com]

Nope--no Nature, although I should probably ask Gardner to direct me to any dark stories in the series :-) If you story is dark, send it to me!
I'm getting the new Tin House--will have to get the "evil" issue--I THINK Kelly & Gavin get that regularly (not sure) so I'd like to think they'd mention it to me...will ask for it right now!!! I'm always looking for tips to journals/mags that might have dark fiction. I did see the 06 issue with the King story last year.

Prism is the the nonfiction pub of the BFS so has no fiction.
Out of the Gutter is new and I haven't yet read it.

None of the stories in any of those mags knocked my socks off but I thought some were interesting and well done enough to give honorable mentions to.

Zahir is a mixed-genre pub so only ever has some dark fiction:
six stories in 06 I liked enough to HM
this year one so far--

Whispers of Wickedness --last year one and so far this year one
Tales of the Talisman I haven't finished looking through (two issues are with my reader and one I've got)

Kaleidotrope (new mag--at least I'm getting it for the first time) just received and haven't gotten to yet.
Horror Carousel haven't read this year but last year it got three HM
Fictitious Force nothing

That's so, but I'm not looking for sf or fantasy so don't rec stories that are sf/f even if I like them.

I've regularly taken most of my picks from original anthologies and collections.

[nihilistic-kid.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I too think that anthos and collections have better short fiction than magazines!

I just mailed you the page proof to the nature story. It's a single page, as those features tend to be, so easy to print.

[ellen-datlow.livejournal.com]

I was surprised at noting that for my current volume, I actually chose more stories from mags than anthos/collections. This is very different from most years.

Thanks.

[velourmane.livejournal.com]

"A Zahir story ended up in Vandermeer's Best American Fantasy," she said, contributing very late.