Comments on: Early Editors

By: Michael A.. Baanks

Michael A.. Baanks — Thu, 25 Oct 2012 00:20:06 +0000

Now that we’re living in the future and have email, we don’t have to resort to mail or in-person visits (the latter impossible for those of use living in places like Milford or Oxford, Ohio).

I often think that having to mail in manuscripts was a useful barrier to discourage those who weren’t really serious (or very good) in their writing. And it was certainly fun getting rejection slips with “Almost” or “Close” scrawled at the bottom. Or–a fine rarity–a letter asking for a rewrite!

My first submission to Asimov’s drew a letter from Isaac Himself that opened by telling me how good the story was, and how much he liked. It went on for a page and a half telling me how and why it needed rewriting. It was a subtle matter, and I rewrote it and it was published.
–Mike

By: John Boland

John Boland — Sat, 13 Oct 2012 15:37:18 +0000

As Fred recounts those days with obvious pleasure, I look back on the days when IF and Galaxy were on the stands. Rarely I have a recurrent dream of finding a news stand I haven’t been to before, with one of those old revolving wire racks, and there in the rack by God is a new issue of IF, cover by Pederson (of course). And I wonder how long has this been going on?

By: Enrico

Enrico — Wed, 10 Oct 2012 04:14:27 +0000

Fascinating stuff. Where else could you find a first-person account of the SF scene in 1936, but posted online in 2012!?

Fred, do you still have that map of all the magazines? Since I go to Manhattan daily I am inspired to try and visit some of the locations.

By: Rob Hansen

Rob Hansen — Tue, 09 Oct 2012 19:45:44 +0000

I can honestly say it would never have occurred to me you became an agent because you could save money on postage. Wonderful! What a fascinating look at a world that doesn’t exist anymore.

By: Chuk

Chuk — Thu, 04 Oct 2012 23:08:53 +0000

Thanks for this look back.

By: Robert Nowall

Robert Nowall — Tue, 02 Oct 2012 12:33:40 +0000

Another alas for me…in the days when I started writing, I lived too far away to wander into an NYC SF editor’s office by walking into it…later, when I could’ve driven into the city and wandered in, I found myself living much father away, too far to drive. It was all correspondence for me—some rejections which told me someone had actually *read* the story, but, in the few-and-far-between stuff I put out now, nothing but form rejection for ten years or more.

Is it any wonder why I turned to Internet Fan Fiction for awhile?