Hugo the Cat is poised at the window, ready to fight the birds, squirrels, and bunnies. Green tulip tips are escaping from the earth. Tree pollen confuses our sinuses into filling up in the most uncomfortable ways. Three days ago, it was 17 degrees out.
Ah, it’s SPRING in Illinois!
A year ago, the Thomases were moving into our new home. The world was locked down, and we had no idea how long the pandemic would rage. Nor did we know if by 2021 the US would have a more competent and less corrupt government leading the response.
It’s been a hard and too often tragic road to this spring, but for the first time in ages, there’s some hope of the world returning to a bit of normalcy. It’s still full of challenges and obstacles, but it finally seems like it’s possible to make things better.
The Thomases are fully vaccinated. We’re still being super careful, but it definitely feels like progress. Caitlin remains healthy after her winter surgeries. And Uncanny Magazine is celebrating FORTY ISSUES!
Didn’t we just launch Issue 1?
Thank you, Space Unicorns, for joining us on this journey of art, kindness, community, and obstinate resistance to the dark. We’ve all done phenomenal work and added to the goodness of this world. Let’s keep it up, because the fascists are terrified of us.
PHENOMENAL news, Space Unicorns! Four Uncanny Magazine stories are finalists for the prestigious Hugo Award! “Burn or The Episodic Life of Sam Wells as a Super” by A. T. Greenblatt is a finalist for Best Novelette, “The Inaccessibility of Heaven” by Aliette de Bodard is a finalist for Best Novelette, “Badass Moms in the Zombie Apocalypse” by Rae Carson is a finalist for Best Short Story, and “Metal Like Blood in the Dark” by T. Kingfisher is a finalist for Best Short Story! Congratulations to everybody!
Even more wonderful news! Uncanny Magazine (Publishers/Editors-in-Chief Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas, Managing Editor Chimedum Ohaegbu, Nonfiction Editor Elsa Sjunneson, and Podcast Producers Erika Ensign and Steven Schapansky) is once again a finalist for Best Semiprozine!
Finally, Nonfiction Editor Elsa Sjunneson is a finalist for Best Fan Writer! Congratulations, Elsa!
It is an amazing list of Hugo Award finalists, many of whom are Uncanny authors and friends. CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYBODY!!! Thank you to everyone who nominated these works, and to the hard-working DisCon III staff. We are honored, ecstatic, and overwhelmed.
More outstanding news, Space Unicorns! FOUR Uncanny Magazine stories are finalists for the prestigious Nebula Award from the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America! “Where You Linger” by Bonnie Jo Stufflebeam is a finalist for Best Novelette, “Burn or The Episodic Life of Sam Wells as a Super” by A. T. Greenblatt is a finalist for Best Novelette, “Badass Moms in the Zombie Apocalypse” by Rae Carson is a finalist for Best Short Story, and finally “My Country Is a Ghost” by Eugenia Triantafyllou is a finalist for Best Short Story!
Also, “Shadow Prisons” by Uncanny Magazine Interviewer Caroline M. Yoachim from The Dystopia Triptych is a finalist for Best Novelette!
Congratulations to Bonnie, A.T., Rae, Eugenia, and Caroline!
It is an amazing list of finalists, many of whom are Uncanny authors and friends. CONGRATULATIONS TO EVERYBODY!!!
From SFWA:
The results of the final ballot will be announced at the 56th Annual Nebula Awards® ceremony during the 2021 Nebula Conference Online, June 4–6, 2021. Open to SFWA members and nonmembers alike, the annual Nebula Conference is taking place entirely online for a second year.
And now the contents of Uncanny Magazine Issue 40! The gorgeous cover is With Her Familiars on Mars by Galen Dara. Our new fiction includes Fran Wilde’s fashionable fae yarn “Unseelie Brothers, Ltd.,” José Pablo Iriarte’s story of death, mathematics, and family bonds “Proof by Induction,” Rachel Swirsky’s quirky magical handbag imaginings “Thirteen of the Secrets in My Purse,” Eugenia Triantafyllou’s tale of loss, defiance, and strength “How the Girls Came Home,” Emma Törzs’s dark exploration of relationships and toxicity “The Hungry Ones,” and Shveta Thakrar’s story of magic, friendship, and self-discovery “Heart Shine.”
Our reprint is “River, Clap Your Hands” by Sheree Renée Thomas, originally published in Stories for Chip: A Tribute to Samuel R. Delany.
Our provocative and compelling essays this issue include “A Love Letter to Libraries” by E. Lily Yu, “Babylon 5 and Antifascism” by Andrew Liptak, “The Protagonist Problem” by Ada Palmer and Jo Walton, and “More Than Meets the Eye: Transformers as Trans Fantasy” by C. J. Linton. This month also includes a new editorial column by Nonfiction Editor Elsa Sjunneson called “Imagining Futures: Imagination, Ltd.” Our gorgeous and evocative poetry includes “Self Portrait As a Printing Press” by Nnadi Samuel, “Paqtasultieg” by Tiffany Morris, “Mona Lisa’s Abecedarian to Leonardo da Vinci” by Abu Bakr Sadiq, and “Collection” by Vivian Li. Finally, Caroline M. Yoachim interviews José Pablo Iriarte and Shveta Thakrar about their stories.
The Uncanny Magazine Podcast 40A features “Unseelie Brothers, Ltd.” by Fran Wilde, as read by Erika Ensign, “Paqtasultieg” by Tiffany Morris, as read by Matt Peters, and Lynne M. Thomas interviewing Fran Wilde. The Uncanny Magazine Podcast 40B features “How the Girls Came Home” by Eugenia Triantafyllou, as read by Joy Piedmont, “Mona Lisa’s Abecedarian to Leonardo da Vinci” by Abu Bakr Sadiq, as read by Matt Peters, and Lynne M. Thomas interviewing Eugenia Triantafyllou.
As always, we are deeply grateful for your support of Uncanny Magazine. Shine on, Space Unicorns!
© 2021 Lynne M. Thomas & Michael Damian Thomas
