Special Feature:
Interview with Kurt Kirchmeier
Associate Editor at Flash Me Magazine
Excerpt: "I think every author I read inspires me in some way or another, but the two who have had the biggest impact on me are probably Ray Bradbury and Charles de Lint. When I read Bradbury I feel like I’m glimpsing enthusiasm in its purist form. He reminds me that I’m supposed to be having fun. With Charles de Lint, it’s the gritty contemporary landscapes and underlying redemptive themes that really get me. I think he can largely be credited for the fact that hope is a common theme in my own works of urban fantasy."
Book Reviews:
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"Once again, Ilona Andrews has
created a masterful story in a well-crafted world with deep and
intensely charismatic characters."
Magic Strikes by Ilona Andrews
Reviewed by Elizabeth Hull
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"Revealing Moments is a
mixture of reprints and original works that delve into the human
experience."
Revealing Moments by Wayne Scheer
Reviewed by Jennifer
Dawson
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"Strange? Yes. Implausible? No,
because Rayner successfully crafts an inherent logic into his surreal
story."
The Amadeus Net by Mark A. Rayner
Reviewed by Janet
Paszkowski |
Interviews and book reviews are published in our subscription PDF issues. For more information on our subscription, including pricing, please click here.
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This last quarter was a real whirlwind for the magazine. With a record number of submissions, a record number of stories accepted outright, and so many staff changes my head is still spinning. It's a wonder we survived. We did, and we came out stronger than before.
For the first time in years, we are fully staffed. We lost Janet, Jim, and Faye, but we hired new editors Jannette and MargeAnna, a new administrative assistant named Sarah, and a publishing assistant named Sara. These new additions enabled us to get our April issue completed weeks earlier than normal, which is impressive considering how backlogged we were near the end of the submission deadline.
We also promoted J.C. and Kurt to Associate Editors. You can learn more about all of our staff here.
This issue spurred several changes in our editorial process and payment structure, though. We will now require six YES votes to accept a story outright, instead of five. On the other hand, all stories selected for an issue will be eligible for the coveted Feature Story slot. We are also standardizing our payment structure so that all published stories receive a cash payment in addition to a year's subscription to Flash Me Magazine.
You can read all the details regarding payment changes here and learn more about our editorial process here.
This issue sees the return of three FMM alumni: Wayne Scheer, Mark Allan Gunnells, and Lydia Ondrusek. Wayne Scheer has once again scored the coveted Feature Story slot, but all three of these returning contributors were in the running for it this quarter, which didn't surprise me at all. We do have four new faces this quarter, but all seven of the stories published this quarter were accepted outright, which is a Flash Me Magazine first! That means five editors agreed that these stories were not only publishable, but that we had to be the ones to publish them. Irony, humor, memory, wit, naivety, hope, and perseverance. That's what we offer you this quarter.
And if you're thinking about sending us submissions in the upcoming months, keep in mind that we're looking for light-heartened, fun stories for upcoming issues. We’re generally suckers for stories that make us cry, but we’d love to laugh this year. We also have our upcoming all-fantasy issue this October. Check out the special guidelines before submitting.
--JDawson, Editor-in-Chief
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