I should also add that the May LOCUS was a good month for FP and TB.

~Ken Rand's picture and the Where Angels Fear book cover were on the contents page
~There was a lovely picture of the whole crew from the Rainforest Writers Village (picture by Ivan Dorin)
~Of course, the Where Angels Fear review
~People and Publishing had announcements about some Fairwood forthcoming titles (Jay Lake's The Specific Gravity of Grief, Louise Marley's The SIngers of Nevya, Ken Scholes' Long Walks, Last Flights & Other Journeys, and the Exquisite Corpuscle project, edited by Frank Wu and Jay Lake)
~A picture of the new Talebones (#36) in the Magazines Received section
~A picture of Paul Melko's Ten Sigmas & Other Unlikelihoods in the Books Received section

Ken Rand's story collection, volume one, has been out a month now. Does it need more attention? Heck yes. I'll just say it: we want more orders of this baby. An excellent PW review, and now this, below, from Faren Miller of LOCUS. I'm flattered about the things she says about my press, but in the end, it's all Ken's doing. And rightly, she calls him  remarkable and a master of all the forms of speculative fiction. Review follows:

"Though small presses may seem to belong to another universe from the world of bestsellers, that universe is rapidly expanding. It’s particularly vital for the writers of short fiction, whose work might show up sporadically in some Year’s Best anthology but would never be gathered into a collection if not for the efforts of the small-press editors. Thanks to Patrick Swenson of Fairwood Press, I’ve belatedly discovered the remarkable work of Ken Rand in Where Angels Fear, first of a planned dulology showcasing his stories.

"This one features “the dark side,” while a later volume (The Gods Perspire, scheduled for fall), will be devoted to the “light.” Since Rand’s work is new to me, I can’t really say where the dividing line might be, but darkness doesn’t mean strictly horror: the title story is one of the few here that deal with anything like Ancient Evil. Other works range from far-future SF to apocalyptic visions of a ravaged Earth to contemporary strangeness, and even a few that could be dubbed high fantasy. (Rand himself calls the opposite poles “extreme space opera” and “extreme fantasy.”

"While some of the science fiction stories share a background, what makes everything here so clearly the work of just one author is a particular sensory and emotional vividness that places the reader right in the middle of the scene—without exposition, stylized language, philosophical musings or any of the other strategies that create narrative distance. You are there, sometimes a little bewildered at the start but keenly aware of your surroundings, alert for the next clue, and in touch with the protagonist’s mind whether the setting be deep space, an almost depopulated future Earth, Wyoming boondocks suddenly menaced by a plague of strange crickets, the mind of a man obsessed with an obscure ‘60s rock singer, or a disturbingly convincing dreamscape.

"There is also a nice bonus, 14 originals just as impressive as the reprints. Yes, Rand’s a prolific writer, but I think those extras have more to say about the state of publishing today: not enough magazines and theme anthologies dealing with SF, fantasy, horror, weirdness (or whatever you want to call it) for a master of them all to appear as often as he should. Fairwood Press has done us a real service by finding him another home."   ~Faren Miller, LOCUS

O's Doctor Who birthday party is over, and a great time was had by all. Our main centerpiece, a full-size Tardis, did not "materialize," as the owners of it could not come at last minute. His friend Kai was sick. Orion was very bummed, but he of course kept on. I'd say there aren't too many 6-year-olds running around out there with a sonic screwdriver, tardis playset, and a remote-controlled Dalek!











Flickr here.

Part One, because he has his party Saturday, with relatives and school chums. His actual birthday is the 29th. 

He requested a Doctor Who birthday. Ha! My wonderful geeky boy. But of course it ain't easy finding Doctor Who (the new one, by the way) decor. When I found some online, it was all in the UK, and it was ten business days to arrive. And the shipping would've been a chunk o' change. But we're figuring things out. In fact, there should be a Tardis here. Our friends Syne and Eric have one that they made for their son Kai's costume contest a few years ago. That will be cool. I blew up the first 3 comic covers of the new series, into small poster size, and laminated, so that will add a nice touch. And he'll get some fun Doctor Who toys from me that I found at Norwescon and online. 

Much to do to prepare. . .