Journals, Newsletters, Magazines, and Webzines
I feel it's important to recognize the work of the talented artists working in the field of fantastic fiction, both dark and light. The following artists created art that I thought especially noteworthy during 2008: Cameron Gray, Newel Anderson, Lydia Burris, Sarah Xu, Minouk Duin, David Leonard, Ben Sowards, Dave Leri, Luke Ramsey, Donna Kendrigan, Andrew McKiernan, James Birkbeck, Vincent Chong, Steven Archer, Victoria Alexandrova, Jason Levesque, Jason Van Hollander, Saara Salmi, Will Koffman, Daniele Serra, Jane Chen, Brian Smith, Eleanor Clarke, Hendrick Gericke, Vincent Sammy, Pierre Smit, Kobus Faber, Laura Givens, Brad Foster, Dora Wayland, Chrissy Ellsworth, Keith Boulger, Carrie Anne Baade, Fatima Asimova, K. J. Bishop, Eric M. Turnmire, Sandro Castelli, John Picacio, Tim Mullins, Wayne Blackhurst, Steve C. Gilberts, Rodger Gerberding and Suzanne Clarke, Aunia Kahn, Zak Jarvis, Kiriko Moth, Bartlomiej Jurkowski, John Stanton, Harry Fassl, Sean Simmans, Dean Harkness, David Migman, Travis Anthony Soumis, and David Gentry.
There's an enormous annual turnover in small-press magazines, and most rarely last more than a year or two, so it's difficult to recommend buying a subscription to those that haven't proven their longevity. But I urge readers to at least buy single issues of those that sound interesting. Most magazines have web sites with subscription information, eliminating the need to include it here. The following are, I thought, the best in 2008.
Some of the most important magazines/webzines are those specializing in news of the field, market reports, and reviews. The Gila Queen's Guide to Markets, edited by Kathryn Ptacek, emailed to subscribers on a regular basis, is an excellent fount of information for markets in and outside the horror field. Market Maven, edited by Cynthia Ward, is a monthly email newsletter specializing in professional and semi-professional speculative fiction market news. Ralan.com is the web site for up-to-date market information. Locus, edited by Charles N. Brown, Liza Groen Trombi, and Amelia Beamer, and Locus Online, edited by Mark Kelly, specialize in news about the science fiction and fantasy fields, but include horror coverage as well. The only major venues specializing in reviewing short genre fiction are The Fix (http://thefix-online.com/), The Internet Review of Science Fiction (www.irosf.com/), and Locus but none of them specialize in horror. Dead Reckonings: A Review of Horror Literature edited by S. T. Joshi and Jack M. Haringa and published by Hippocampus Press is a fine review journal focusing on contemporary work while also considering the classics. In addition to the reviews, it includes the regular column "Ramsey Campbell, Probably." The first issue of Studies in the Fantastic edited by S. T. Joshi announces its intention to "provide a useful forum for scholars of various disciplines to probe the history, theory, and historical significance of weird fiction, ranging from the analysis of specific authors and works to broader cultural issues raised by the popularity and dissemination of the genre." Issue #1 contains articles by John Langan, George M. Johnson, Joshi, and others, plus original fiction and original and classic poetry. Wormwood: Literature of the Fantastic, Supernatural and Decadent edited by Mark Valentine brought out two issues in 2008, with articles by Peter Bell on Robert Aickman's work as an anthologist, Joel Lane about Fritz Leiber's taking the supernatural tale out of the countryside and into the industrial city, Mike Barrett's overview of Michael McDowell's fiction, Douglas A. Anderson's attempt to resurrect Alexander Crawford, an almost forgotten author of four novels, the ongoing series by Brian Stableford about the decadent world view, and other interesting items. The journal also runs a "late reviews" column covering rare fantasy and supernatural literature, and Camera Obscura, covering recent but possibly overlooked books. Lovecraft Annual edited by S. T. Joshi and published by Hippocampus Press is a journal devoted to H. P. Lovecraft. The second, two-hundred-plus-page issue has meaty articles on Lovecraft and his work, plus reviews. A must for anyone seriously interested in Lovecraft's work. Dissections edited by Gina Wisker, David Sandner, Michael Arnzen, Al Wendland, and Lawrence Connolly put out two online issues in 2008, with articles about the evolution of the heroine in horror film, the evolution of zombies and other pertinent subjects. Poetry is also featured on the website.