The recent closures of Lone Star Stories and Talebones have promtped more blogs posts about the current state of short fiction. Mine yesterday was more of a personal musing; these are more about the field, from writers and editors with far more experience and blogging eloquence than me.

—Tor novelist and fellow Viable Paradise grad Sandra McDonald. I agree with her general pessimism about the lack of quality markets, but my view on that is affected in large part by the even more acute lack of markets for 7000-word secondary-world fantasy stories, like I write.

—writer Michele Lee, who I don’t know, but whose frustrations I understand and in some part, share.

—Lone Star Stories Editor Eric Marin, who seems surprised to hear that there are fewer quality markets out there than he thought. With some interesting comments, including by BCS author J. Kathleen Cheney, and one that points out the specialization or niche appeal of many of the remaining markets (BCS certainly qualifies there).

—Clarkesworld Magazine Editor-in-Chief and Publisher Neil Clarke, with his comprehensive annual analysis of the field. I agree with his description of Tor.com as more an online community than a magazine, especially since their fiction is infrequent and by commission only. He also gives a nice shout-out to BCS–thanks very much.

So is short fiction thriving, like Neil Clarke asserts, in large part because of new online magazines? Or is it in peril?

I’m conflicted, perhaps because I’m both a writer and an indie publisher. BCS is doing well, and I’m grateful for the support of our writers, our readers, and especially our donors. But as a mid-level writer trying to sell 7000-word fantasy stories, the market has and continues to look bleak.

Tags: BCS, HM

This entry was posted on Wednesday, June 17th, 2009 at 8:44 am and is filed under my magazine, SF/F, writing. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. Both comments and pings are currently closed.