Mabfan's Musings

[Original Press Release at http://www.apexbookcompany.com/blog/2009/01/apex-magazine-welcomes-guest-editor-michael-a-burstein/]

Apex Magazine is delighted to announce that the April issue will be a special one devoted to the concept of how the future will remember the past, and edited by award-winning writer and Apex author Michael A. Burstein.

“Ever since we published Michael’s collection I Remember the Future, we’ve been hoping that Michael could find the time to edit an issue,” said Jason Sizemore, publisher and editor-in-chief of Apex Magazine. “Michael’s looking for stories that evoke the same themes that tie his own stories together, such as the slipperiness of history and the dangers of forgetting the past.”

Burstein will be reading for this special issue of Apex Magazine from January 15th until March 15th. He said, “I want to thank Apex for this opportunity to edit an issue of the magazine. I’m looking forward to seeing the stories come in, and I’m hoping for some powerful ones that will stay with me for a long time.”

Guidelines for submission:
Stories for the special issue should be submitted as per the guidelines given on our submission page at http://www.apexbookcompany.com/submissions/. Please place the words “SPECIAL ISSUE” in the Subject line of the submissions. Michael will be looking for dark science fiction stories devoted to the concept of memory, including the slipperiness of history and the dangers of forgetting the past. Payment will be at the usual rate.
In the body of the email, please feel free to mention previous publication credits, if any.

Please mail submissions to our standard submission address. Our slush wrangler will forward all SPECIAL ISSUE submissions to Michael.

Michael is also interested in short poems (devoted to the theme). The payment for a poem will be $5.

Submissions should only be sent between the dates of January 15th and March 15th. Any submissions for the special issue sent outside of those dates will be deleted unread.

For more information on Apex Magazine, please visit http://www.apexbookcompany.com/apex-online/.
For more information on Michael A. Burstein and I Remember the Future, please visit http://www.mabfan.com and http://www.bursteinbooks.com.

I'm pleased to announce that I Remember the Future is now available as an eBook from Fictionwise. In the first week of release, the eBook is being offered at 40% 15% off, so if you've been waiting for the eBook here's your chance to get it at a low, low price.

It's available in all sorts of formats, including Kindle.

I Remember the Future eBook

I'm a member of the Authors Guild, and yesterday, I received email from Roy Blount, Jr., the president of the Guild, encouraging us to get our friends to consider buying books as gifts this holiday season. Roy has graciously given the members permission to quote from his email:

We don't want bookstores to die. Authors need them, and so do neighborhoods. So let's mount a book-buying splurge. Get your friends together, go to your local bookstore and have a book-buying party. Buy the rest of your Christmas presents, but that's just for starters. Clear out the mysteries, wrap up the histories, beam up the science fiction! Round up the westerns, go crazy for self-help, say yes to the university press books! Get a load of those coffee-table books, fatten up on slim volumes of verse, and take a chance on romance!

There will be birthdays in the next twelve months; books keep well; they're easy to wrap: buy those books now. Buy replacements for any books looking raggedy on your shelves. Stockpile children's books as gifts for friends who look like they may eventually give birth. Hold off on the flat-screen TV and the GPS (they'll be cheaper after Christmas) and buy many, many books.

Today, I discovered that the American Association of Publishers is also getting in on the act, with their new website,Books Are Great Gifts, which includes a lot of resources on books and authors. So I encourage everyone who is still trying to figure out what gifts they are getting friends to consider books.

(And I would be remiss not to mention that personally, I think that I Remember the Future would make a most excellent gift as well. And I'm not alone; I know of a few folks out there who had me sign copies as gifts to friends and family.)

Tomorrow is the last day of the Apex Publications raffle!

See this post for reminders about what's being offered for the raffle – including a signed ARC of I Remember the Future – and consider buying a ticket to support my publisher....

As part of the promotion for I Remember the Future, this month I am appearing on the local cable access TV show Brookline Writes. Brookline Writes is a TV show devoted to featuring Brookline writers. I'm appearing on a panel discussion with Dan Kimmel and Gary Wolf. Here's the official listing:

“Brookline Writes,” a series of lively panel discussions about books broadcast on Brookline Access TV, continues its second season with December’s program on science fiction. Joining host Peggy Hogan are Michael A. Burstein, author of the short story collection “I Remember the Future;” Daniel M. Kimmel, film critic and Internet science fiction reviewer, whose new book “I’ll Have What She’s Having: Behind the Scenes of the Great Romantic Comedies” is just out; and Gary K. Wolf, the celebrated author of the novel “Who Censored Roger Rabbit?” whose literary vision of humans cohabitating with animated characters became a reality in the $750 million blockbuster Disney/Spielberg film “Who Framed Roger Rabbit”and inspired the themed Toontown Disney Parks at Disneyland and Tokyo Disneyland. His latest science fiction novel, “Space Vulture,” is a collaboration with his childhood friend, Archbishop John J. Myers.

In their wide-ranging, provocative exchange, the three writers discuss with Hogan their individual introductions to their genre, the attractions and challenges of creating alternate universes, and the differences between science-based fiction and fantasy, as well as the peculiar pleasure of visiting Disney’s version of a world you created. Broadcasts continue through December. See www.batv.org for a full schedule.

If you don't live in Brookline, clicking on the link above will bring you to the TV show's website where you can also watch the half-hour on streaming video.

Tomorrow evening the town of Brookline will have its annual First Light Festival from 5 pm to 8 pm.

The festival includes local authors reading from their work at Brookline Booksmith, and it so happens that I've got the first slot, from 5 pm to 5:15 pm. The website of the Brookline Public Library Authors' Collaborative currently lists all the authors who will be reading, and when.

I'll be reading the interlude sections of the title story of I Remember the Future. Come hear me read if you can, and you can also pick up a signed copy of the book.

The December issue of Apex Magazine is now available on their website. This issue includes two items I'd like to point out:

• An interview with me, in which I discuss a few of my influences and talk about what's next;
  
  
• A really freaky short story by Jennifer Pelland called "Organ Nell". As soon as I read this story, I rushed to recommend it for both the Nebula and the Stoker. Highly recommended.
  

I hope everyone who celebrated the holiday had a good Thanksgiving. If I have a moment, I'll try to post a little bit about what Nomi and I did.

In the meantime, here's a few quick announcements related to (what else?) I Remember the Future.

First of all, Apex Publications has informed me that all of the pre-ordered hardcovers have shipped, with the exception of those that were damaged or went missing. If you are expecting a copy of the book and have not received an email from Apex, you can assume that your copy is on its way.

Second, Apex Publications routinely offers free fiction at their Get a Taste of Apex page, and right now they're offering one of my stories from I Remember the Future. The story, Paying It Forward, is one of my favorites, and this is your chance to read it for free if you haven't read it yet. As an added bonus, they've even put up my afterword to the story, which is original to the book. So go read and enjoy.

Finally, as I noted last week, on Saturday morning I was the featured guest on the WBAI radio program Hour of the Wolf. If you missed my appearance (which was taped a two months earlier), you can now listen to it via mp3 streaming audio on the WBAI archives at Michael A. Burstein on WBAI's Hour of the Wolf. As an added bonus, for part of the interview I read aloud the title story of my collection.

So there you have it. Two free stories to enjoy, one on a website, and one as an "audiobook." Let me know what you think.

A few quick announcements:

First of all, for those of you in the New York City area, this Saturday morning WBAI (99.5 FM) will be broadcasting my latest appearance on the Hour of the Wolf radio show. The host, Jim Freund (LJ:jfreund), and I taped the interview on September 19, so you'll have to cast your mind back to International Talk Like a Pirate Day when you listen. But this is your chance to hear me read the title story of my collection I Remember the Future.

If you're not in New York City, the show is also available via streaming audio over the Internet. For more information, check out WBAI, New York.

Secondly, there have been two recent reviews I've been meaning to mention. Fortunately, Apex Publications has already done so on their blog, so I can link to their announcements.

The first review was in Science Fiction Weekly. In the Apex blog post on the review, Apex extracts out some nice praise for "Time Ablaze." Paul Di Filippo wrote the review, and he makes it clear that my writing style is one of clarity. I would probably have added the word "Asimovian" to describe my style, and I'm not the only one. As Robert J. Sawyer said on his own blog, "Michael A. Burstein is an Isaac Asimov for the new millennium."

The second review is not available on line unless you're a paying member of the magazine, but it's a nice one. The American Library Association publishes a monthly magazine called Booklist, in which they make their recommendations to member libraries. As noted by Apex in their blog post about the review, Regina Schroeder of Booklist had praise for the two new stories in the book:

“Empty Spaces,” the first of the new tales, is another speculation in the particle-accelerator saga of the three supercollider stories. “I Remember the Future” is a touching ode to the golden age sf writers who inspire Burstein. Like those of the early sf masters, Burstein’s stories aren’t always carried by the characters; speculation takes center stage more often than not. That said, he has got a good hand on the classic genre tropes, and the collection is well worth reading.

I'm particularly pleased by this review because of my own association with our local library, and because I know that Bookiist receives thousands of materials for review every month, and they only publish reviews for items that they are actually recommending to their members. So, to be as transparent as my writing, I'm hoping this will help generate some library sales.

Two things I didn't want getting lost in the shuffle of my publication party post...

First of all, the November 2 issue of Apex Magazine is reprinting my 2003 story The New Breed, which originally appeared in Men Writing Science Fiction as Women edited by MIke Resnick. If you missed the story when it first came out, here's your chance to read it for free.

And secondly, Apex Publications has announced their annual Apex fall raffle. They have a lot of excellent items being raffled off, including a signed Advance Reading Copy of I Remember the Future. So if you'd like to help support my publisher and have a chance to win some signed books or story critiques, now's your chance. (Personally, I may try to win the story critique from publisher Jason Sizemore himself.)

Just a reminder...

As the publication date of I Remember the Future is approaching, the deadline for pre-ordering an autographed hardcover directly from the publisher is also coming up fast.

That deadline is Wednesday, October 15, a week from today.

After October 15, you'll still be able to order a hardcover copy from the publisher or buy it from your favorite bookseller, but to get it autographed you'll have to find me at a convention or a book signing. Also, only in the pre-ordered hardcovers will I write a phrase such as "Thanks for pre-ordering the hardcover!" making it clear to folks on eBay that you've purchased a special item.

So, if you want to pre-order the autographed hardcover, click here.

And don't forget the publication party on November 2. (Copies purchased at the publication party will say, "Thanks for coming to the publication party!" or something similar.)

The second issue of Polu Texni is now up, featuring my short story "Collapse." This is somewhat of a departure for me, and I'm curious about the reactions of my readers.

The issue also features a short interview with me as well.

So on a whim I searched for I Remember the Future on Good Reads and found it was listed. Further investigation showed that the book now has order pages at Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

• I Remember the Future (trade paperback) listed at Amazon
  
  
• I Remember the Future (trade paperback) listed at Barnes & Noble
  
  
• I Remember the Future (trade paperback) listed at Good Reads
  

Somehow, this starts making it seem more real. It's...going to be a book.

I need to update http://www.bursteinbooks.com soon, with a full list of all retailers that will be carrying the book, including Pandemonium, Mike's Comics, Brookline Booksmith, Mystery Galaxy, Borderland Books, Zeising Books....

(But where should one buy the book? See my previous post FAQ: Buying the Book.)

A new webzine has just published their first issue as of Monday. Quoting from their "About" page:

"Polu Texni (πολύ τεχνικός) is a Greek phrase meaning many arts. It’s the same root word as polytechnic. Polu Texni is a web magazine about mixed-media arts and speculative or weird fiction. We’re interested in the intersection where different media, styles, crafts, and genres meet to create something more interesting than what they would be alone."

The September 15 issue includes artwork by Pat Lillich, fiction by Jack Skillingstead and the first part of a story by Adam Rurik, and interviews with Lillich and Skillingstead.

The September 29 issue will feature my new story, "Collapse." When it appears, I'll make sure to point people to it, and to my interview.

Ian Randal Strock, who among other things is the author of the upcoming Random House book The Presidental Book of Lists: From Most to Least, Elected to Rejected, Worst to Cursed—Fascinating Facts About Our Chief Executives, has started a blog devoted to a discussion of US Presidents, Vice Presidents, their families, elections, and things relating to them.

gnomi and I are fascinated by presidential trivia and history, and the blog looks like it's going to be a lot of fun.

Check it out at http://uspresidents.livejournal.com (or uspresidents).

I am pleased to announce that Nomi and I will be hosting a publication party for my upcoming book, I Remember the Future. Here are the details:

When:
Sunday, November 2
2 pm to 4 pm Eastern Standard Time (please note we change the clocks that morning!)

Where:
Hunneman Hall
Public Library of Brookline
361 Washington Street
Brookline, Massachusetts
USA

What:
Come celebrate the publication of Michael's story collection, I Remember the Future. Join us in Hunneman Hall on the second floor of the main library in Brookline, Massachusetts. Enjoy kosher hors d'oeuvres and soft drinks. (Signed copies of the book will be available for purchase.)

If you are reading this, you may consider yourself invited. However, in order to get a proper head count, we'd appreciate it if those of you who are attending would let us know in advance. Send me an email and I will add you to the official evite.

For anyone and everyone who is interested in the intersection of Jewish themes and speculative fiction:

At Readercon on Sunday (which happened to be the 17th of Tammuz, a Jewish fast day), writer Leah Cypess gathered a small group of Jewish speculative fiction writers together. We sat in the Con Suite, not eating, and discussed the issues involved in writing science fiction and fantasy stories that have a Jewish element or theme to them.

Although there already exist groups devoted to the discussion of Jewish science fiction (the group at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jewishSF/ comes to mind), as far as we could tell there was no group specifically devoted to Jewish science fiction from the perspective of the writer. Therefore, Leah decided that we should form such a group, and setting up an email discussion group on yahoo is the start.

So, if you're a writer who is interested in writing Jewish speculative fiction, feel free to join. Our grandiose plans include a possible small convention devoted to Jewish speculative fiction, and the question of how to get more markets to publish such fiction.

The group can be found at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jewishSpecFic/ . Our one-line description: Jewish Speculative Fiction Writers is for writers who are interested in working on fiction at the intersection of speculative fiction and Jewish themes. A LiveJournal Community for the same purpose is at jewishspecfic.

So you've been meaning to pre-order a hardcover copy of the collection I Remember the Future: The Award-Nominated Stories of Michael A. Burstein, but you're having too much trouble remembering the URL http://www.apexbookcompany.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=30 ?

No worries! Just type in http://www.BursteinBooks.com, and you'll be automatically redirected to the order page!

Remember, that's BursteinBooks, for books by Burstein!

(And, as I've mentioned before, remember that the book will be available from all the usual places, but only the pre-ordered hardcovers will arrive already autographed.)

Back on April 7, I announced that my new collection I Remember the Future was ready for pre-order. While Apex Publications is still taking pre-orders, and anyone who pre-orders a hardcover copy of the book will still get it signed, the Tuckerization contest is at an end.

I am delighted to announce the winners of the Tuckerizations, two people who will have characters in the two new stories named for them (or for a friend or family member of their choice):

Solomon Davidoff
Bob Leigh

Congratulations to both of you! And thanks for pre-ordering the book.

As for everyone else who pre-ordered the book already and was entered into the Tuckerization raffle, you have my thanks as well. I'm sorry you couldn't all win, but I am still very grateful that you chose to pre-order the book.

Pre-order "I Remember the Future: The Award-Nominated Stories of Michael A. Burstein

Friends,

I'm pleased to announce that Apex Books is now ready to take pre-orders for "I Remember the Future: The Award-Nominated Stories of Michael A. Burstein," which will be published in September. The book can be pre-ordered on the Apex Books website catalog at its own URL (http://www.apexbookcompany.com/cart.php?m=product_detail&p=30). You can pre-order either the hardcover or trade paperback edition, and although the paperback is slightly cheaper, I can give you two good reasons to order the hardcover.

First, all pre-ordered hardcover copies of the book will be autographed. If you want one of the original autographed copies of the book, that will be the only way to get one.

But second, we decided to sweeten the pot a little for those of you willing to step up to the plate early and order a hardcover copy of the book. And so we are announcing the "I Remember the Future" Tuckerization contest.

Everyone who pre-orders a hardcover copy of the book by June 15 will be entered into a raffle. Two lucky winners will have their names used as names of characters in the two new stories, "Empty Spaces" and "I Remember the Future."

For those of you who have never heard of Tuckerization, it means the naming of characters in stories for real people. The tradition is credited to Wilson Tucker, who named many of the characters in his books for his friends. More information on the practice can be found at the Wikipedia page on Tuckerization (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tuckerization).

So...think about it. If you pre-order the hardcover book by June 15, not only are you guaranteed to receive an autographed copy of the first bound collection of my fiction, including two brand-new stories and afterwords for each story, but you'll also have a chance to have a character in a story named after you. (You can still pre-order the autographed hardcover after June 15, but the contest deadline is June 15.)

Pre-order "I Remember the Future: The Award-Nominated Stories of Michael A. Burstein