Editor’s Note – September 2010

Redstone Science Fiction #4 is up and running. August was a busy month for us at Redstone, and we wouldn’t have it any other way.

Our Accessible Futures contest wrapped up and Sarah Einstein and I went through all the submissions and agreed that “Lunar Voices (On the Solar Wind)” by Nick Wood was the best of several quality entrants. He does a great job of incorporating the use of British Sign Language into a story of lunar isolation and solar radiation. Sarah’s essay on the contest provides some insight into the contest process and why Dr. Wood’s story embodied the ambitious ideals of the contest.

Our main fiction this month is an excellent story, “Salt of the Earth” by Mary Robinette Kowal. She won the 2008 Campbell Award for Best New Writer and has been a finalist for the Hugo and Locus awards. As one of this year’s new SF markets, we are excited to have a writer of her caliber submit to us. But we wanted to make sure that we were publishing a quality story, and this is certainly an excellent work. The ending to this very personal SF drama punched me right in the gut. We were also lucky enough to ask Ms. Kowal few interview questions. Her answers provide an excellent insight into her writing process.

Henry Cribbs, our monthly columnist, considers the idea that Lou Anders raised in his interview with us in Issue #1 – What is science fiction’s answer to Harry Potter? As usual, Henry mixes a fan’s enthusiasm with an academic eye to a produce an entertaining and thoughtful piece.

Paul Clemmons, our publisher, is working on an interview with another leading neurosurgeon. We’ll be posting that when all the details are worked out.

Next month we’ll be publishing a tremendous original story, “Witness” by Vylar Kaftan, and we’re also reprinting one of my favorite stories from recent years, the Sturgeon-nominated “His Master’s Voice” by Hannu Rajaniemi. We can’t wait.

We’re constantly working to get the word out and to get the best material possible in. To paraphrase Epictetus, we’ve decided what we would become, and we’re doing what we have to do. So we can’t begin to express how pleasantly surprised and thankful we are for how welcoming and generous the speculative fiction community has been to us. We’re working to repay you all by providing some interesting reading. We hope you find something you enjoy.

Michael Ray
Editor
RSF