Realms of Fantasy: February 2009 (Issue 87)
Part eighty-seven in my ongoing retrospective as I read the fiction in Realms of Fantasy and offer my thoughts, right up to the present. This time around I’ll be dealing with February 2009 issue.
In my last retrospective, I mentioned that this issue marked a significant turning point in the magazine’s history. The reason for this is that it was while the February 2009 issue was out that news broke that Soverign Media would be canceling the magazine. To put it lightly, the way this went down was a royal mess. When this happened, Shawna McCarthy-the magazine’s founding editor and lone fiction editor in its entire history-was on vacation in Italy. I was holding down the proverbial fort in her absence. The problem here is that neither Shawna nor yours truly were informed of the magazine’s closure before the news broke on the Internet. My involvement with the magazine wasn’t as heavy as it would be in the coming issues, so of the two of us it was without question far more important that Shawna be informed beforehand. Still, it would have been nice if someone in the fiction department had been apprised of the situation. To make matters worse, the way Shawna learned about the news was that a reporter tracked down her number and called her while she was in Italy to ask her thoughts about the magazine closing down.
In a word? Ugh.
Now to be fair, I can understand why at least some of this mess happened. The publishers looked at the numbers and made a business decision that the April 2009 issue would be the last one, i.e. the next one. But meanwhile, magazines have ongoing production schedules, meaning there were deadlines in place for nonfiction and art for issues beyond April 2009. So they needed to get in touch with people to tell them to stop working on their assignments before they were handed in. That’s all part of business. I get that. And I know the publishers did make several unsuccessful attempts to get in touch with Shawna before the news broke. The problem is that it was never made clear that this news should be kept quiet until the appropriate time. The appropriate time would obviously have been when Shawna and I were informed, and a thoughtful official announcement could be made. Since there were plans for another issue beyond February 2009, there would have been enough time to make this happen without a problem.
Instead, the news was leaked. I know who leaked the news too, because shortly after I (abruptly) learned about the magazine’s closure (also from a phone call from someone not affiliated with the magazine), I did some online sleuthing, trying to see if this rumor had teeth. I found the source of the news pretty easily, but I will refrain from mentioning names. Even in retrospectives like these where I provide some behind-the-scenes information about the magazine, there is no need to needlessly hang someone out to dry. Since the magazine has suffered two more closures since then, good luck wading through the various online posts and articles if you want to track down the original bearer of bad news.
Suffice it to say that after seeing this I confirmed the news with the publishing office. Since the Internet was already raging with rumors mixed with facts at this point, I went online and confirmed the news, but declined to say anything more until Shawna was back and I had a chance to talk with her.
Needless to say I was pretty shocked, both at the magazine’s closure and at how everything went down. From there the save Realms of Fantasy movements began while Shawna was still on vacation, which was a heartening thing to see, though I was uncertain if they would make a difference. The magazine would eventually be saved, but we’ll get into that next issue.
As to the issue itself …
The cover to this one features the artwork of Daniel Merriam.
A rundown of this issue’s nonfiction is as follows:
In the Movie/TV column, Resa Nelson covers the movie Inkheart and The Spirit; in the Books column, Paul Witcover reviews The Ten Thousand by Paul Kearney, The House of the Stag by Kage Baker, The Company by K.J. Parker, A Field Guide to Surreal Botany, edited by Janet Chui and Jason Erik Lundberg, with illustrations by Janet Chui, Psychological Methods To Sell Should Be Destroyed by Robert Freeman Wexler, and Jeff VanderMeer reviews Mr. Gaunt and Other Uneasy Encounters by John Langan, The Engine’s Child by Holly Phillips, The Domino Men by Jonathan Barnes, and Things We Think About Games by Will Hindmarcha and Jeff Tidball; in Graphic Novels, Jeff VanderMeer reviews The Good Neighbors, Book One: Kin by Holly Black and Ted Naifeh, The Invisible Man by H.G. Wells, adapted by Rick Geary, Swallow Me Whole by Nate Powell, and From the Shadow of the Northern Lights: An Anthology of Swedish Alternative Comics, edited by Johannes Klennel; in Young Adult Books, Michael M. Jones reviews Hell Week by Rosemary Clement-Moore, How to Ditch Your Fairy by Justine Larbalestier, Skinned by Robin Wasserman, Rapunzel’s Revenge by Shannon, Dean, and Nathan Hale, Impossible by Nancy Werlin, Cybele’s Secret by Juliet Marillier, Vibes by Amy Kathleen Ryan, and Cycler by Lauren McLaughlin; in Folkroots, Stephen D. Winick writes about riddles; in the Artists Gallery, Karen Haber covers the work of the aforementioned Daniel Merriam; in Games, Eric T. Baker reviews Star Wars the Force Unleashed for Xbox 360 and PS3, the MMO Warhammer Age of Reckoning, the MMO Wizard101, Mountain & Blade for the PC, and Dark Horizon for the PC; and Jeff VanderMeer provides a profile of fantasy author, Joseph Nigg.
On to the fiction …
The lead story this issue is “The Radio Magician” by James Van Pelt, which marks his eighth appearance in the magazine. In this piece, our protagonist is a boy stricken with polio back when this was still a prevalent illness. His favorite pastime is listening to on the radio to the program, Professor Gilded’s Glorious Magical Extravaganza, our radio magician. In an act sheer will, determination, bravery, and belief, our polio-ridden protagonist takes himself to the radio station, hoping that Professor Gilded can cure him. While no such cure is found, he learns that magic among other things is all a matter of perception. I promise you that it’s not as depressing as it sounds. Art to this one was provided by Rob Johnson, which marks his fifth illustration in the magazine.
Next up we have “The Happiest Place” by Carrie Vaughn, which marks her seventh appearance in the magazine. In this piece, a young woman works as a fairy tale princess in an amusement park reminiscent of Disney World. However, while the venue is supposed to lend the vibe of the happiest place on Earth, our protagonist is in fact becoming emotionally worn down from constantly spending time with terminally sick children whose final wishes are to spend time with a “princess.” She’s granting wishes in a sense, but it’s taking an obvious toll. Everything changes though when she comes upon across a tiara that can grant wishes in the magical sense of the word. But doing this comes with an emotional cost as well. Art to this one was provided by Jada Fitch, which marks her fourth illustration in the magazine.
Then we have “Joy is the Serious Business of Heaven” by David D. Levine, which marks his third appearance in the magazine. This one is a lighthearted tale about the beauracracy of Heaven, and how sometimes even angels can lose their way and need to be reminded about what truly matters. Art to this one was provided by David Leonard, which marks his fourth illustration in the magazine.
After this we have “The River of Three Crossings” by Richard Parks, which marks his twenty-third appearance in the magazine. This one is another Lord Yamada tale, the fifth such to appear in the magazine. In this piece, Lord Yamada and his drunken priestly sidekick help a young child put the ghost of her bandit father to rest, and their good deed yields some unexpected results. Art to this one was provided by Tiffany Prothero, which marks her fifth illustration in the magazine.
Last but not least we have “Fossil Fuels” by Alan Smale, which marks his fourth appearance in the magazine. This one takes place in underground mines of Yorkshire, England in 1937. In these dark depths, a tragic, ancient, and eternal battle is played out once again, as a pair of archetypes do battle, one representing the future and order, the other the past and chaos. Care to guess who wins? Art to this one was provided by Chris Cocoazza, which marks his tenth illustration in the magazine.
So that wraps up this issue. And my favorite story? “The Radio Magician” by James Van Pelt. And my favorite artwork? Tiffany Prothero’s illustration to “The River of Three Crossings” by Richard Parks. Next time I’ll put a cap on the Soverign Media era of Realms of Fantasy when I tackle the April 2009 issue. Until then …