Science Fiction & Fantasy

I don't enjoy writing editorials. I much prefer to be behind the scenes, picking stories or artwork, but this month I feel obligated to say something. As you may have heard, last month, I was nominated for a Hugo Award in the Best Editor Short Form category. It blew my mind. Since Clarkesworld is my only editing job, this nomination can only come from you, our readers. I'm very overwhelmed by your support. Thank you! The honor is even more special to me as it is the first time an editor has been nominated purely on the basis of work done in a digital medium. As someone remembers when online fiction was considered second-class, this means a lot to me.

Clarkesworld is also represented in the Hugos by the fiction of E. Lily Yu (Best Short Story Nominee, "The Cartographer Wasps and the Anarchist Bees", April 2011) and Catherynne M. Valente (Best Novella Nominee, "Silently and Very Fast", Nov-Dec. 2011). Furthermore, two articles originally published in Clarkesworld appear in Daniel M. Kimmel's Best
Related Work-nominated book, Jar Jar Binks Must Die... and Other Observations about Science Fiction Movies. While not officially a Hugo, the Campbell Award for Best New Writer is part of the Hugo ceremony. This year, we are very pleased to see E. Lily Yu among the list of very talented Campbell nominees. Our congratulations and best wishes go to all of them.

The Hugo's weren't the only good news for Catherynne M. Valente. She's just sold two novels to Tor, one of which is based on "The Radiant Car Thy Sparrows Drew" from Clarkesworld #35. Can't wait for that one!

While I might not enjoy editorials, they are something I need to work on. Last month, I used our social networking presence on Twitter and Facebook to solicit some ideas for future editorials. The suggestions were all over the map, but a few homed in on the changes we've gone through over the years and data we've collected in regards to reading, writing and online fiction. That seems like a good theme to cover in our fifth anniversary year. Have you ever been curious about our readership, most popular stories, the slush pile or the trends we've observed? Now's your chance to ask. Email me at neil@clarkesworldmagazine.com or leave a comment on our website and I'll try to work those angles into next month's issue.

Until next time, thanks for reading!

-Neil