SFF Hot from Printers: New Releases discussion

I guess it is time to shift to 2022 works, after all in June I'll be just 7 months to the year's end. Usual rules apply

I have a couple of books I want to read but I am not sure they will be available from the library in time.

The Cartographers (11 weeks to wait until I am first in line) and The Atlas Six (10 weeks to wait until I am first in line). I think they might both be fantasy, though. I cannot tell from the descriptions, really. Input on this?

I've also wanted to read The Atlas Six but I'll add Siren Queen (which my library already has but GR says its not out until May) and Kaikeyi.

I can't seem to find much SciFi in my list...

Are we waiting for the Hugo shortlist to nominate a Hugo work as well?

Hmm, the Expanse novella is well down the series, so probably a bad fit. So I'll take a punt on Braking Day

So I guess we aren't picking a book from the Nebula shortlist, then? Oh well, perhaps is all for the best: Nebulas being what they are.

Antti wrote: "So I guess we aren't picking a book from the Nebula shortlist, then? Oh well, perhaps is all for the best: Nebulas being what they are."

If there is a demand I'd say let's take one, but I guess your assessment may be correct and therefore there won't be enough members wanting to read them. I may err, in which case please anyone voice up your desire to have 2021 Nebula nominee as our monthly read in June 2022, with another one being 2022 work

June is so far away to be reading Nebula nominees in my opinion. What if we just made buddy read threads for those? The only one I haven’t already read is Plague Birds.

I second Siren Queen. I don’t have any other ideas atm.

I've checked reviews of 2022 books and bestsellers on Locus Magazine's site, but haven't seen anything that works for me (there are books by Charles Stross and T. Kingfisher, but both are not the first volumes in respective series), so if anyone interested I may go for an experiment - what about reading 2022 issue of SFF magazine? There are several with most stories available online (Clarkesworld, Uncanny, Lightspeed), often even with audio, plus before the war I subscribed for Galaxy's Edge Magazine, Interzone and The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction - they are on https://weightlessbooks.com in not DRMed epub/mobi/pdf and I guess I may share an issue with members if they offer not to share any further. I admit that most stories are so-so but a greater awareness (and maybe support) of short SFF prose can be nice

I’m definitely down for reading a magazine.

Kristenelle wrote: "I’m definitely down for reading a magazine."

Then we ought to select a magazine and an issue. If we go for freely available (even if supporting them by buying an issue, usually for $2.99 or 3.99 I guess can be the right thing to do) then the most often present in awards (if we assume it is a measure of quality) are Clarkesworld and Uncanny, a bit less presented - Apex, Lightspeed, Beneath Ceaseless Skies and Strange Horizons.

Among pro-zines The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction is quite nice and unlike Analog & Asimov's SF they are on Weightless. Analog & Asimov's SF are on Magzster, where you have to read on web or android/apple tablet/phone, but not on e-reader (my preferred way) unless buying on Amazon (in this case only on kindle/pc)

I think my favorites generally are light speed, uncanny, beneath ceaseless skies, and Khoreo. We could do the usual nomination process and then read whatever is most current of what we vote for.

Kristenelle wrote: "I think my favorites generally are light speed, uncanny, beneath ceaseless skies, and Khoreo. We could do the usual nomination process and then read whatever is most current of what we vote for."

Ok, I'll set a poll for magazines tomorrow. Everyone is free to add magazines to the list

This sounds like fun! I don't ready any magazines beyond the short stories we've all read together. I trust you guys. I do really like listening to short stories, so I hope some are available in audio like you said Oleksandr.

Rebecca wrote: " I do really like listening to short stories, so I hope some are available in audio like you said Oleksandr."

Note that a lot of magazines have only some not all stories on audio, so it'll be still nice to get a copy or read on the web. For usually a mag has stories, poetry, review and editorials. I'll do a list later

Let's start with maybe #1 among modern SFF magazines - Clarkesworld - https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/
The 186 March 2022 issue https://clarkesworldmagazine.com/prio...
All fiction has audio versions, all non-fic in text only. One translated story.

Oleksandr wrote: " Clarkesworld -
The 186 March 2022 issue."

So are you nominating the March issue, or Clarkesworld in general? I'm a bit unsure as to how this works. Could I nominate the April issue, should I want to do that? Or do we nominate/vote on different magazines, and then read the latest issue of that magazine?

For the sake of simplicity I'd say that only one issue of a magazine should be nominated each voting round, but actually choose which issue to nominate, and probably on a first-come-first-serve basis. So if Oleksandr nominates March 2022 of Clarkesworld, that's the only issue of that zine for this vote.

My initial idea was to have two stages - first choose a magazine, and second an issue. I took March 2022 as an example just to show what parts are on audio - the most recent is April, but I guessed they haven't voiced it all yet (this is just 4th day of the month, with 2 weekend days). I'm open to other ideas

Ok, I'll nominate Khoreo mag issue 2.1. I had a good experience reading issue 1.1 and they put all their stories on their podcast to listen to. https://www.khoreomag.com/

Kristenelle wrote: "Ok, I'll nominate Khoreo mag issue 2.1. I had a good experience reading issue 1.1 and they put all their stories on their podcast to listen to. https://www.khoreomag.com/"

Great! I've seen it discussed in another group but haven't read it

I've looked Khoreo is a greater detail, and tbh I have some reservations about it - the mag can be great, but I guess (I have to read to judge) that its concept of publishing works that "explore some aspect of migration" may be limiting. Have enjoyed most works from the first issue, Kristenelle?

I think I'll nominate Apex, in that case (https://apex-magazine.com/). I have never read a full issue of Apex, but of the short stories I've read in recent years, it seems to have most consistently non-bad stories for any magazine.

Oleksandr wrote: "I've looked Khoreo is a greater detail, and tbh I have some reservations about it - the mag can be great, but I guess (I have to read to judge) that its concept of publishing works that "explore so..."

The mag publishes immigrant and diaspora authors, but the stories don't have to be about immigration. I had a good experience with the first issue. There were a couple stories that didn't work for me, but the rest were great. I nominated a couple for the Hugos this year.

I'll nominate Samovar Magazine: http://samovar.strangehorizons.com/

Kalin wrote: "I'll nominate Samovar Magazine: http://samovar.strangehorizons.com/"

Oh cool, I didn't know about this one.

OK. Since y'all are picking some less well-known ones, I will, too. Translunar Traveler's Lounge

https://translunartravelerslounge.com/

Issue 4 had two stories that I loved and a few others that I found interesting. Issue 6 is out now.

Hi all! I made polls which are here
1. Book read
2. Magazine choice, where I allowed write-in answers if you want to add another

Let me remind you about the polls, now only five members have voted, there are two ties, so your vote is paramount. Links to the bolls in the previous post (#28)

Today is the last day to vote and in SFF novel monthly read there is a tie. Cast your vote to decide!

The polls are over, SFF book read will be Braking Day by Adam Oyebanji and the magazine will be Clarkesworld. Soon I post contents of issues so far so we may select an issue

ISSUE 184 – JANUARY 2022
The Uncurling of Samsara by Koji A. Dae
The Lion and the Virgin by Megan J. Kerr
The Five Rules of Supernova Surfing or A For Real Solution to the Fermi Paradox, Bro by Geoffrey W. Cole
Bishop's Opening by R.S.A. Garcia
No One at the Wild Dock by Gu Shi
Learning to Hate Yourself as a Self-Defense Mechanism by Andrea Kriz
For Whom the Psychopomp Calls by Filip Hajdar Drnovšek Zorko
Zero-g Zoo: Trying to Solve Reproduction in Space by Julie Nováková
Working Towards Legacy: A Conversation with Ann & Jeff VanderMeer by Arley Sorg
It’s . . . Complicated: A Conversation with James S.A. Corey by Arley Sorg
Editor’s Desk: 2021 in Review by Neil Clarke
Cover Art: Return to Heaven 7 by Zezhou Chen

ISSUE 185 – FEBRUARY 2022
The Massage Lady at Munjeong Road Bathhouse by Isabel J. Kim
The Plasticity of Youth by Marissa Lingen
You're Not the Only One by Octavia Cade
Informed Consent Logs from the Soul Swap Clinic by Sarah Pauling
The Old Moon by John McNeil
The Direction of Clocks by Jess Levine
Babirusa by Arula Ratnakar
COVID-19 and the Mental Health Crisis by Douglas F. Dluzen
Community and Story: A Conversation with Zoraida Córdova by Arley Sorg
Staying Loose: A Conversation with Max Gladstone by Arley Sorg
Editor's Desk: 2021 Reader's Poll Finalists by Neil Clarke
Cover Art: Talk by JC Jongwon Park

ISSUE 186 – MARCH 2022
The Dragon Project by Naomi Kritzer
Saturn Devouring His Son by EA Mylonas
Rain of Days by Ray Nayler
The Memory of Water by Tegan Moore
Wanting Things by Cal Ritterhoff
It Takes a Village by Priya Chand
Meddling Fields by R.T. Ester
Commencement Address by Arthur Liu
Validating Rage: Women in Horror by Carrie Sessarego
Breaking the Gender Barrier: A Conversation with Regina Kanyu Wang and Yu Chen by Arley Sorg
Friendship in the Time Of Kaiju: A Conversation with John Scalzi by Arley Sorg
Editor's Desk: The Best from 2021 by Neil Clarke
Cover Art: SurtiBot and Mister Oink by Alejandro Burdisio

ISSUE 187 – APRIL 2022 (not on site yet, subscription/purchase only)
Doc Luckless and the Stationmistress by Thoraiya Dyer
Two Spacesuits by Leonard Richardson
Dream Factory by Greg Egan
Hanuman the Monkey King by Pan Haitian
An Expression of Silence by Beth Goder
An Urge To Create Honey by Martin Cahill
The Carrion Droid, Zoe, and a Small Flame by Parker Ragland
Finding Endor: The Quest for Habitable Exomoons by Julie Nováková
A Whole World of SFF: A Conversation with Rachel Cordasco by Arley Sorg
Unpredictable Changes and Surprises: A Conversation with Djuna by Gord Sellar and Jihyun Park
Editor's Desk: Looking Ahead, 2022 Edition by Neil Clarke
Cover Art: Ashes by Yuumei