I saw this destroyer in Boston, on a precious day off following a business trip. I was impressed with how much depth it has below the waterline. You can only see this depth in drydock, or if you’re a good diver. On my return I discovered that two of the magazines to which I’ve submitted are undergoing editorial changes. Catherynne M. Valente is stepping down from Apex, and Ann VanderMeer will no longer be editing Weird Tales. These situations aren’t identical: as far as I can tell, Valente is stepping down to give herself more time to write, which is laudable, while VanderMeer has been let go by Marvin Kaye, who has bought the magazine with the intention of editing it himself. I am not a prolific writer, and when I have something to sell, I want to place it with a market where it’s a really good fit, both for the audience and for the editor. I chose to submit to Apex because I love Valente’s writing, and to Weird Tales because I love VanderMeer’s editorial taste. My good impression of VanderMeer was further borne out by a fantastic note she sent me on my first submission–she didn’t buy […]
In which I play with Babelfish
Here’s a paragraph from the middle of the story I’m working on. I used Babelfish to translate it into Mandarin and back again. …It was a bit clearer in the original. “The new cat, the starting, strolls by to smell the decision in mine face. His student opened in the shadow width. He invested his nose to me, and his whisker has itched my cheek.” Here’s something from the first scene: “In the air, contains the fat wool one kind of sickness warm smell or the cotton material: I imagined a rug merchant to try from any clean 50 year stain once was jewelry bright kilim.” In slightly less random news, I am officially a member of SFWA, as of today. Also, I recently sold a story to PodCastle, and this will be my first audio publication. […]