Nonfiction

Editorial, September 2011

Welcome to issue fifty-three of Fantasy Magazine! Here’s what we’ve got on tap this month … Fiction: “Lessons from a Clockwork Queen” by Megan Arkenberg, “Using It and Losing It” by Jonathan Lethem, “The Nymph’s Child” by Carrie Vaughn, “Three Damnations: A Fugue” by James Alan Gardner. Nonfiction: “Steampunk and the Architecture of Idealism” by David Brothers, “The Language of Fantasy” by David Salo, “Ten Reasons To Be a Pirate” by John Baur and Mark Summers, “Feature Interview: Brandon Sanderson” by Leigh Butler.

In Sept. 2011 (Issue 54)

Nonfiction

The Weirdest Fairy-Tale Wishes Ever Made

by Genevieve Valentine

Thanks to a tireless awareness campaign on behalf of folklorists everywhere, the dangers of your standard wishes are well-known these days. In the wrong hands, we all know, a wish can go terribly wrong.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

Michael Swanwick: Author Spotlight

by T.J. McIntyre

The problem Donna, Russ, and Piggy have is that they live in a world which is, so far as they can tell, entirely devoid of magic. Also, they’re adolescents, which amounts to the same thing.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

How to Stock Your Magic-Fighting Toolkit

by Abby Goldsmith

Supernatural evil is perhaps the oldest fear among humankind. Every culture throughout history recognizes some form of the evil eye, and acknowledges some form of a curse.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

Author Spotlight: Laura Anne Gilman

by Jennifer Konieczny

In this week’s Author Spotlight, we ask author Laura Anne Gilman to tell us a bit about her story for Fantasy, “Crossroads.” What inspired your story “Crossroads”? Could you tell us about the process of writing it? The story, or at least the opening lines, came out of a writing assignment that I gave my class during […]

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

The Messengers, Monsters, and Moral Instructors of Islamic Literature

by Saladin Ahmed

Angel, Djinn, and Ghoul: each of these creatures appears in numerous Islamic scriptures or stories, from the Qur’an to the Thousand and One Nights to epic poetry.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

Author Spotlight: Nisi Shawl

by Wendy N. Wagner

I felt rather presumptuous using the word “pragmatism” in the story the title. I know it has a bunch of baggage. My research has been in other areas of the discipline.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

Feature Interview: Seanan McGuire

by Paul Goat Allen

I can say with complete sincerity that I am not a group of human individuals working to produce my annual output. I cannot comment on the possibility of my actually being an alien hive-intelligence here to conquer your world.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

Author Spotlight: Cory Skerry

by T.J. McIntyre

People who try and protect their children from the world by enforced ignorance strike me as blinding themselves in the most tragic of ways.

In August 2011 (Issue 53)

Nonfiction

Artist Spotlight: Laura Diehl

by J.T. Glover

Seasons, in my mind, are particularly charged with their own color feelings. In brainstorming things to do as personal pieces, they were a fun way to give myself a theme.