Vanishing markets

If you write short fiction in fantasy or science fiction (or both), you should be using Ralan.com to keep track of markets -- what's new, what's changed, and what's closed.

This morning, I got the monthly newsletter and discovered two things: Odyssey Workshop has a LiveJournal blog, and the Year's Best Fantasy and Horror series has been canceled.

I went looking for more info on the YBFH and found Gavin Grant's original post, Ellen Datlow's comments, and Terri Windling's post. Honestly, the canceling of this series of year's best shook me more than the closing of Realms of Fantasy. Not that I was going to appear in either any too soon.

Between these closings and the news that the Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction is going bi-monthly, I'm realizing that short fiction print markets for science fiction and fantasy are dying out. I have no doubt that on-line markets, whether donation or subscription, will remain viable, but especially at the pro level, print is rapidly fading.

So if there is a print magazine that you enjoy -- it doesn't have to be pro -- get a subscription to it, even if you know you will not get around to reading it every time it comes in. If you don't know which magazine you might like, go to a bookstore (or better yet, a con, which will have all sorts of hard-to-find magazines in the dealers' room) and pick up a variety to decide among. I currently subscribe to Weird Tales and Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet. I'll probably add one or two others this year. Ones I'm considering: Fantasy, Interzone, Space & Time, and Talebones.

If you have a favorite print magazine, please let us know in the comments. And if you have some good news or other insights into the short fiction market, chime in with that, too.