Dr. Phil's Dreamwidth Journal

It's The Second Of July

And that means new issues of three of my favorite non-fiction SF/F sources. Yeah, I've probably written about this before -- so are you reading these, too? What, not yet? Yeesh!

More Words And Pictures Than You Can Shake A Stick At

The July 2009 issue of Locus magazine arrived today. We didn't get any mail on the 1st, so I think our postal person must've been sitting by the side of the road reading my copy. (Actually, it comes in a sealed envelope so no one gets it before you do!) When I first started reading Locus, I'd see the coverage of events and cons and see all these pictures -- and I'd find out what my favorite authors look like. Now I look and see my friends. People I've seen or even done panels on at cons. People I've workshopped with or were instructors at workshops. What? Am I becoming an insider in the biz? No, probably not. But I know the insiders now. (grin) I keep recommending Locus both to new writers who want to know how it all works and to SF/F/H fans who want to read interviews and learn about who's who and what's coming.

You can get subscription information from LocusOnline. Really, it's a LOT of content and the one print magazine I receive that I devour from cover to cover the day it arrives. It seems like all magazines are suffering from subscription shrinkage and Locus is no different. But so many authors and publishers reference Locus that I don't know what we'd do without it. PLEASE give it a try. There are some stores which carry single copy sales, but not around here. (grin)

Online...

Then there's IROSF -- The Internet Review of Science Fiction. It's free right now, but you want to subscribe. Why? So you get a nifty little e-mail reminder at the beginning of the month reminding you that the new issue is up. Reviews and neat articles about people and sub-genres and history. Check it out here and also their cool logo gear at CafePress.

Speaking of you, our beloved readers, we wanted to point out that IROSF no longer requires a subscription to view—for now. We've been experimenting with ways to make our material more accessible, and this particular one has been a mixed blessing. More and more people are stopping by to read an article or two each month, but then there's the trouble of being forgotten about the following month. We'd like to invite you to sign up for the site, which is not only free, but also keeps you in the loop. You can comment on our forums and articles, becoming part of the conversation here. You'll also receive an email each month, letting you know that a new issue has come out. So take a moment and "subscribe." It's fun, you won't miss all the great stuff that's coming in August, and did I mention that it's free?

And Across The Universe

And then there's David Langford's legendary Ansible. If nothing else, this long running (July 2009 is the 264th monthly installment) U.K. e-fanzine will make you laugh. Thog's Master Class is legendary.

And now I've done my community service for the month -- and I'm going back to reading IROSF and Ansible... having already made one pass through Locus. (double-steal-grin)

Dr. Phil