From: John Marco

Hello. I wanted to thank you for listing my upcoming novel, The Jackal of Nar, so prominently in your Forthcoming Books section. Now that the publication date is finally approaching, it's exciting to see the book getting some attention. I appreciate the mention!

If I might suggest one small correction, you list the main character as "General" Richius Vantran. Actually, Richius is not a general at all, and never becomes one in the story. This is probably some misinformation from the publisher, as I have seen this same mistake elsewhere.

Thanks for the correction. Only too happy to list the book. It's been one of the most well received debut fantasies we've seen this Fall. Contributing Editor Victoria Strauss has promised a feature review for January.

The Elusive Fey

From: Chris Greenway

Hi Rodger,

I was hunting through the site for a review of the 5th volume of the excellent Fey series by Kristine Kathryn Rusch and try though I might could not find anything other than Alien Influences. Could this be true? Has no one reviewed The Fey? Maybe I'm doing something wrong, but if I'm not you should think about getting a review of this series as it's one of the best I've read for some time, extremely inventive.

We certainly agree with the quality of the series. Unfortunately, we only assign one series review an issue, so we're forced to be fairly selective. Nonetheless, we hope to have a feature on the 5-volume The Fey series within the next two months. Thanks for checking, and stay tuned.

A New Short Fiction Market

From: Matthew Walls

Please allow me to introduce you to my magazine, LC-39. LC-39 is committed to science fiction as literature. We are a magazine for the science fiction writer. As such, LC-39 is more akin to an academic literary journal than the traditional "pulp:" it is printed on 70-pound paper stock with a laminated four-color cover. In addition, LC-39 has a circulation of 1000 and will publish 96+ pages/issue twice a year.

What is LC-39? As you may have guessed, LC-39 is an old NASA term for launch complex 39, which is the complex at the Kennedy Space Center where all of the Apollo moon missions were launched. Why launch complex? An integral part of LC-39's mission is to offer a forum to new and unpublished writers. Why? As a reader, I feel that much of mass science fiction has grown stale, so, as an editor, I am looking to introduce new voices to the genre.

The premier issue of LC-39 will publish in Spring 1999. Space is still available. Could you please assist me in my call for submissions by posting the following on your market list:

LC-39-Matthew Walls, editor. P.O. Box 9307, Baltimore, MD 21228. Hard/soft SF. Length to 20K words. LC-39 is looking for intelligent, imaginative, character-driven stories with scientifically plausible plots. New and unpublished writers are encouraged. Pays 1-2¢/word upon acceptance. Subscription for $12, single issue for $6.

Thank you for your assistance in this matter.

Matthew Walls, Editor
LC-39
P.O. Box 9307
Baltimore, MD 21228

From: Frank Newhouse

Dear SF Site,

I want to let you know that I really like this website! I come by about once a month or so to see what's new, and you've never disappointed me. I like the reviews, and would like to see more games featured along with the books.

I have a question, though I might have answered it in asking it. I have checked out your listings of Ezines a time or two, and found some really good ones. I visited one called The Orphic Chronicle from one of your writers but forgot to bookmark it, and when I came back to find it in the list, it wasn't there!? Do you not list your writer's 'zines because of a conflict of interest clause? I found it again by using a search engine, but it would have been easier if it was listed with the others.

Thanks for the kind words. The website you're talking about is S. Kay Elmore's excellent The Orphic Chronicle, a regular e-zine which includes professional fiction, reviews, and much more. It's at http://www.orphic-chronicle.com/, which you probably linked to from Kay's tag line. We somehow managed to overlook it in our own E-Zine list (sorry, Kay!), but we corrected that oversight immediately. Thanks for the tip.

Keeping Up With Gwyneth Jones

From: Gwyneth Jones

Dear SF Site,

I hope I'm sending this to the right address. I'm a British SF and fantasy writer & I've just put up a new home page which I'd like you to add to your authors index. The url is http://homepage.ntlworld.com/gwynethann/. My email address is gajones@dreamer.prestel.co.uk. Thanks.

You've got the right address. We've added your site to our Authors' Pages at www.sfsite.com/scribe/scribe10.htm. And thanks for all the great books.

Peeking into The Crook Factory

From: Lee Cobb

Are you guys sure Dan Simmons' The Crook Factory is a novel of "dark fantasy' as your webpages [The SF Site Forthcoming Books column] state? Is that confirmed? I have emailed Simmons - I acquired his address from a Simmonite on the web - and according to his short response, The Crook Factory "contains no fantastic or horror elements". Moreover, he states that "[n]one of my upcoming novels have SF or horror overtones."

Looks like you're correct. Managing Editor Rodger Turner, who hit the ground running with the advance proof the moment it arrived, writes:

"We characterized it as such from rumour and gossip we heard some months ago. It was wrong. The book is historical fiction (in the afterword, Simmons claims it is 95% true) of a period in Ernest Hemingway's life while he lived in Cuba. He ran a spy ring during the war observing Axis activity around Cuba and reporting back to the FBI via an agent."

We've corrected the mention in the Forthcoming books column. Thanks for the letting us know.

Next issue

In the January issue of the SF Site we'll have reviews of several exciting recent releases, including:

The Radiant Seas by Catherine Asaro
Noir by K.W. Jeter
The Complete Fuzzy by H. Beam Piper
If Wishes Were Horses by Anne McCaffrey
A Second Chance at Eden by Peter F. Hamilton

Plus the next installments of our Mark V. Ziesing Book List, our usual columns and detailed New Arrivals features, and a look at the best books of 1998. Be sure to join us on January 1st. We'll be here.