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TTA Press
www.ttapress.com
Copyright ©
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NOTICE: This work is copyrighted. It is licensed only for use by the original purchaser. Making copies of this work or distributing it to any unauthorized person by any means, including without limit email, floppy disk, file transfer, paper print out, or any other method constitutes a violation of International copyright law and subjects the violator to severe fines or imprisonment.
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INTERZONE
SCIENCE FICTION & FANTASY
ISSUE 222
JUNE 2009
Cover Art
By Adam Tredowski
tredowski.cba.pl
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ISSN 0264-3596—Published bimonthly by TTA Press, 5 Martins Lane, Witcham, Ely, Cambs CB6 2LB, UK (t: 01353 777931) Copyright—© 2009 Interzone and its contributors Distribution—Native Publisher Services (t: 0113 290 9509)—Central Books (t: 020 8986 4854)—WWMD (t: 0121 7883112)—If any shop doesn't stock Interzone please ask them to order it for you, or buy it from one of several online mail order distributors such as BBR, Fantastic Literature ... or better yet subscribe direct with us!
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Fiction Editors—Andy Cox, Andy Hedgecock, David Mathew ([email protected]) Book Reviews Editor—Jim Steel ([email protected]) Story Proofreader—Peter Tennant Ad Sales—Roy Gray ([email protected]) E-edition (fictionwise.com) & Transmissions From Beyond—Pete Bullock ([email protected]) Website—ttapress.com Forum—ttapress.com/forum Subscriptions—The number on your mailing label refers to the final issue of your subscription. If it's due for renewal you'll see a reminder on the insert. Please renew promptly!
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CONTENTS
FICTION
JOHNNY AND EMMIE-LOU GET MARRIED—Kim Lakin-Smith
Illustrator: Warwick Fraser-Coombe
(warwickfrasercoombe.com)
UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES—Tim Pratt
LADY OF THE WHITE-SPIRED CITY—Sarah L. Edwards
Illustrator: Martin Bland
(spyroteknik.com)
MICROCOSMOS—Nina Allan
YS—Aliette De Bodard
Illustrator: Mark Pexton
(superego-necropolis.deviantart.com/gallery/#featured)
MOTHER OF CHAMPIONS—Sean Mcmullen
Illustrator: Anne Stone-Coyote
(astone.com)
FEATURES
EDITORIAL—Islington Crocodiles
ANSIBLE LINK—David Langford's News & Gossip
READERS’ POLL—The Results
BOOK ZONE—Paul Di Filippo & Jim Woodring interviewed, Various Book Reviews
MUTANT POPCORN—Nick Lowe's Film Reviews
LASER FODDER—Tony Lee's DVD/BD Reviews
CONTENTS
EDITORIAL—Islington Crocodiles
ANSIBLE LINK—David Langford's News & Gossip
R.I.P.
READERS’ POLL—The Results
JOHNNY AND EMMIE-LOU GET MARRIED—Kim Lakin-Smith
UNEXPECTED OUTCOMES—Tim Pratt
LADY OF THE WHITE-SPIRED CITY—Sarah L. Edwards
MICROCOSMOS—Nina Allan
YS—Aliette De Bodard
MOTHER OF CHAMPIONS—Sean Mcmullen
BOOK ZONE—Paul Di Filippo & Jim Woodring interviewed, Various Book Reviews
MUTANT POPCORN—Nick Lowe's Film Reviews
LASER FODDER—Tony Lee's DVD/BD Reviews
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EDITORIAL—Islington Crocodiles
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In this issue you'll find the results of the Readers’ Poll. Congratulations to Jason Sanford for topping the poll with ‘When Thorns Are the Tips of Trees', and placing fourth with ‘The Ships Like Clouds, Risen By Their Rain'. The latter is being reprinted in at least one Year's Best anthology: David Hartwell has taken it for his Year's Best Science Fiction 14. We think Jason had a very good 2008. Congratulations also to Kenn Brown for topping the Art poll for the second year running! Thanks everybody for your votes and comments, and to Martin for once again overseeing the whole process.
For the first time some readers were able to vote direct from the website (as well as the forum), thanks to the shiny new website built for us by regular contributor Paul Drummond. Please visit the site often, not only for regular updates (and to renew your subscriptions!) but for an increasing amount of online exclusive content that complements regular features and reviews in our magazines. For example, Black Static book reviewer Peter Tennant is already blogging up a storm, and we hope to add something similar to the Interzone section soon. We'll also dig out stuff from the archives occasionally, such as Andy Hedgecock's 2004 interview with David Peace, which Andy updated to coincide with the broadcast of Red Riding.
That's just phase one. We'll be adding a much needed new shop, a newsletter for subscribers, and fully incorporating our podcast Transmissions From Beyond and short-story reviews site The Fix.
Hopefully overseas subscribers will have noticed another improvement we've made recently: we're now using a much more reliable company for our overseas mail, and have upgraded the service to Priority which means your copies should be arriving much quicker. Don't forget that you can always let us know when your copy arrives on the forum's dedicated threads.
Finally, a couple of things I'd urge you not to miss.
The first is Paul Meloy's collection Islington Crocodiles which we've reprinted after selling out of the first edition. Everybody's raving about this book. Don't miss it again!
The other is Black Static issue 10, which we're giving away with all new Black Static and/or joint subscriptions received until the end of May.
Copyright © 2009
[Back to Table of Contents]
ANSIBLE LINK—David Langford's News & Gossip
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BSFA Awards. Novel: Ken MacLeod, The Night Sessions. Short: Ted Chiang, ‘Exhalation’ (Eclipse 2). Nonfiction: Farah Mendlesohn, Rhetorics of Fantasy. Artwork: Andy Bigwood, cover of Subterfuge ed. Ian Whates.
As Others See Us. On Red Dwarf and coolth: ‘For all his veniality and selfishness, Cat was a cool, smart dresser, unlike most Red Dwarf fans, who smelt of piss.’ (Patrick West, spiked)
Hugo Shortlist. Novel: Neal Stephenson, Anathem; Neil Gaiman, The Graveyard Book; Cory Doctorow, Little Brother; Charles Stross, Saturn's Children; John Scalzi, Zoe's Tale. Related Book: Farah Mendlesohn, Rhetorics of Fantasy; Cathy & Arnie Fenner, eds, Spectrum 15; Lillian Stewart Carl & John Helfers, eds, The Vorkosigan Companion; Paul Kincaid, What It Is We Do When We Read Science Fiction; John Scalzi, Your Hate Mail Will be Graded. (Many categories omitted. Interzone is up for Semiprozine as usual.)
Fantasy Centre, London's oldest-established genre bookshop, is to close: the proprietors Ted Ball and Erik Arthur have decided not to renew their lease in June.
Magazine Scene. Visual Imagination, publisher of Starburst, Shivers and Cult Times, seems to have died. * The cancelled US Realms of Fantasy was bought by Tir Na Nog Press, and continues. * Starlog print publication entered ‘temporary cessation'; it continues online.
Dave McKean's fantasy-themed UK postage stamps come out on 16 June.
As Others See Fantasy. Iranian TV exposed ‘Harry Potter and the Ziono-Hollywoodist Conspiracy'. In brief: Potterverse magic = ‘witchcraft and brainwashing’ = ‘evil essence of Zionism', because witchcraft was invented by ‘rabbis of ancient Egypt'. (Harvard MESH) Yes, it
's The Protocols of the Elders of Hogwarts.
Christopher Priest was named winner of the European SF Society Grand Master award at Eurocon 2009 in Italy. Ansible Link: ‘May we start calling you Emeritus?’ CP: ‘A mere “Grand” will do.'
Martin Amis and Howard Jacobson revealed their unique stature in comedy: ‘"You see before you the last two comic British novelists,” Amis announced. “If I had to pick three pieces of prose to make you laugh,” Jacobson said, “one would be by Martin and the other two would be mine."’ (Guardian) Reader's letter one week later: ‘Someone tell them that it's OK, they can relax: Terry Pratchett is still here. In fact, elsewhere in the same week's news, he was at Buckingham Palace, being knighted for services to literature.'
Arthur C. Clarke Award shortlist: Ian R. MacLeod, Song of Time; Paul McAuley, The Quiet War; Alastair Reynolds, House of Suns; Neal Stephenson, Anathem; Sheri S. Tepper, The Margarets; Mark Wernham, Martin Martin's on the Other Side.
Solaris, Games Workshop's sf/fantasy imprint, is up for sale. All scheduled titles will appear up to early 2010.
Don't Call It Siffy. The US Sci-Fi Channel is rebranding as Syfy, since its content ‘is broader than traditional science fiction.’ (TV Week) (The professional wrestling, for example, is pure fantasy.) Tactful explanation from TV historian Tim Brooks: ‘The name Sci Fi has been associated with geeks and dysfunctional, antisocial boys in their basements with video games and stuff like that, as opposed to the general public and the female audience in particular.’ Digging ever deeper, he added: ‘We spent a lot of time in the ‘90s trying to distance the network from science fiction, which is largely why it's called Sci Fi.’ The Channel's own ad agency disclaimed all responsibility for a brandname increasingly beset by syphilis jokes: ‘SyFy was a name generated internally and pretested at the channel...'
Stephen King assessed fellow-writers. Harry Potter vs. Twilight: ‘The real difference is that Jo Rowling is a terrific writer and Stephenie Meyer can't write worth a darn ... She's not very good.’ Also, Dean Koontz is ‘sometimes ... just awful.’ (Philly.com)
Nebula Awards novel shortlist: Cory Doctorow, Little Brother; Ursula K. Le Guin, Powers; Jack McDevitt, Cauldron; Ian McDonald, Brasyl; Terry Pratchett, Making Money; David J. Schwartz, Superpowers.
Adam Roberts, addressing the audience at the ‘Great Gollancz QUiz', did not mince words: ‘I love you all ... because I've had a lot of free beer.’ (Bookseller)
No Sex Please, We're Fannish. ‘I'm not afraid of sex, it's just not something I want to do. That's probably why I delve into the world of science fiction and Transformers, where sex isn't an issue at all.’ (Independent feature on asexuality, or ‘syfy’ as it is known)
Will F. Jenkins is remembered in Virginia, whose state legislature passed a resolution commending the sf he wrote as Murray Leinster and designating 27 June 2009 as Will F. Jenkins Day.
Harlan Ellison ('Doctor, I have this terrible sense of déjà vu.') is again suing CBS-Paramount over non-payment for exploitation of his Star Trek episode ‘City on the Edge of Forever'. Also named in the suit, for persistent failure to act on his behalf, is the Writers Guild of America—with a token claim of one dollar. (Deadline Hollywood Daily)
Thog's Masterclass. Gut Feelings Dept. ‘The small sound from deep in her throat jerked open Grisha's gut anger.’ ‘Small angry teeth bit inside his gut. They chewed at him a great deal these days.’ ‘The tiny teeth bit so hard in his stomach that he groaned aloud.’ ‘Pain vomited through him and he screamed.’ (all Stoney Compton, Russian Amerika, 2007) * Mental Gymnastics Dept. ‘The gentle voice [ ... ] droned on and on until each repetition seemed to trampoline into the gray matter of my mind.’ (Anne McCaffrey, Restoree, 1967) * Dept of Emotional Diagnosis. ‘My face drew back from my skull as if I were vomiting and tears ran from my eyes like blood from gashes. I was sad—’ (Neal Stephenson, Anathem, 2008) * House of Flying Digits Dept. ‘He hurled his pointing finger at Gizamon, then pounded his fist on his chest.’ (Laura Joh Rowland, The Snow Empress, 2007) [TAG] * Dept of Too Much Vindaloo. ‘She was a human arrow, burning flames at both ends, fired toward a single purpose.’ (Ibid)
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R.I.P.
Dave Arneson (1947-2009), co-creator with the late Gary Gygax of Dungeons and Dragons, died from cancer on 7 April; he was 61.
J.G. Ballard (1930-2009), who needs no introduction, died from cancer on 19 April; he was 78. His remarkable short stories of the late 50s and early 60s, infused with surrealism and offbeat psychology, rearranged the spectrum of sf possibilities. Memorable novels followed, moving from the poetic sf of The Drowned World (1962) and The Crystal World (1966) to the controversial, near-mainstream Crash (1973) and a bestselling fictionalization of his childhood in wartime Shanghai, Empire of the Sun (1984). At his best he depth-charged our minds with unforgettable imagery.
Michael Cox (1948-2009), UK biographer, novelist and horror critic who edited The Oxford Book of English Ghost Stories (1986 with R.A. Gilbert) and other Oxford genre anthologies, died in late March.
Chester D. Cuthbert (1912-2009), Canadian member of First Fandom whose fiction debut was in Hugo Gernsback's Wonder Stories in 1934, died on 20 March; he was 96.
Philip José Farmer (1918-2009), long-time US sf author and another who needs no introduction, died on 25 February; he celebrated his 91st birthday on 26 January. He won Hugos as Most Promising New Author in 1953, following his pioneering alien-sex story ‘The Lovers’ (1952); for ‘Riders of the Purple Wage’ in Dangerous Visions (1967); and for To Your Scattered Bodies Go (1971), opening the popular Riverworld series. He was perhaps best loved for the exuberant science-fantasies of his World of Tiers, beginning with The Maker of Universes (1965). In 2001, SFWA honoured him as a Grand Master.
John Kennedy (1945-2009), US author (central to the Colorado sf workshop) who published a handful of sf stories over four decades—the first in Galaxy in 1976—died on 18 March aged 63.
Edward Upward (1903-2009), UK writer whose work (including the Mortmere stories, with Christopher Isherwood) was often touched with surreal fantasy, died on 13 February. At 105 he was Britain's oldest living author.
Copyright © 2009 David Langford
[Back to Table of Contents]
READERS’ POLL—The Results
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Martin McGrath: The number of voters was down slightly on last year but the number of positive votes rose sharply while negative voting fell back, leading to a much higher ratio of positive to negative votes suggesting Interzone must be doing something right—at least as far as respondents to the poll are concerned.
The number of stories with negative aggregate votes continued to fall so that this year there was just one story in that category. Chris Beckett might have got a special issue to himself but his three stories managed to attract the highest number of negative votes for a single author—with ‘Poppyfields’ particularly splitting voters.
Once again, however, all of the stories published in 2008 attracted at least one positive vote and the number of stories that got no negative votes at all rose to seven (from four last year).
At the top of the poll Jason Sanford is the clear winner with the most popular story of all ('When Thorns are the Tips of Trees’ from issue 219) and another story ('The Ships Like Clouds, Risen by Their Rain’ from issue 217) at number four. He managed to see off Mercurio D. Rivera's ‘The Scent of Their Arrival’ in a close fought race at the top of the pile. Greg Egan's ‘Crystal Nights’ (issue 215) placed third and Chris Beckett's ‘Greenland’ (issue 218) filled out the top five.
Issue 217 was the most popular issue. The Mundane-SF issue 216 fared less well, limping in last.
The art vote was marginally higher than last year but exceptionally close. ‘Traveller', Kenn Brown's cover to issue 219, came out on top by virtue of having one more positive vote than six rivals on the same aggregate score. For the first time since art was included in the Interzone ballot the interior art challenged the covers for attention and
Vincent Chong's work on ‘The Ships Like Clouds...’ (issue 217), Paul Drummond's on ‘Little Lost Robot’ (issue 217) and Warwick Fraser-Coombe's on ‘Corner of the Circle’ (issue 218) were tied with the covers of issue 218 (Warwick Fraser-Coombe) and issue 216 (Chris Nurse) for joint second place. Overall, Paul Drummond's artwork attracted the highest number of votes.
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Thanks once again to Martin and everyone who voted, and congratulations to the winners and runners up in both categories.
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Stephen Tollyfield: I rediscovered Interzone in 2008. I had given up in the early 200s. I did not appreciate the full colour editions. The magazine seemed overblown—style over substance—and the content too influenced by The Third Alternative. I bought issue 217 from my local newsstand—reassured by the look and feel. I was however nearly put off completely by the first story I read, ‘The Two-Headed Girl'. However the rest of the stories were all good. I particularly enjoyed ‘Concession Girl’ which was a strong story in a proper SciFi setting. Even better was ‘Ships Like Clouds Risen by Their Rain’ by Jason Sanford, which was just wonderful in that weird but lyrical way.
Issue 218: As a long-time Interzone reader the Chris Beckett issue was well received. ‘Greenland’ was clearly the best story—and a great cover. Issue 219 was not so good and I really did not care for ‘The Shenu'. Jason Sanford's second story, ‘When Thorns are the Tips of Trees', was again the best story. If you continue to publish SF with genuine emotional content from authors I've never read before then I'll keep buying.
Doug Anderson: A good year for Interzone. I could have voted for many more stories but instead picked my favourites.
Dave Lee: Another resounding year for you. The Mundane SF issue was great, though I think it's all a matter of taste. Since the age of 18 I've reached for my blaster when I see ‘Third in a Ten-novel Series’ or titles that tell me there's sword and sorcery within. Keep ‘em coming!
Interzone Science Fiction and Fantasy Magazine #222 Page 1