Editor Selection Nearing Completion

Well, the email responses have been sent out to everyone, and the new editors have been selected. There were far more interested editors out there than I had realized--a lot more, and in the week (yes that's one week) we received almost fifty applicants. That is why it took more time to cycle through the trial story edits than I had anticipated.

Once I receive the return emails from the final two, I will announce the new members of our team.

Joe :-)

FantaSciCon Jeopardy Challenge

Thanks everyone for your participation in the first ever Jeopardy Challege which was held Saturday (3/17/07) at FantaSciCon. The event was an overwhelming success, and we have been asked by at least two other local Cons to host a Jeopardy game at their events as well. I have posted a couple of pictures of the winners below. Unfortunately, I was unable to sync up with all of the winners for a photo-op, so if you participated, and you do not see your picture there, please forgive us.

Thanks again for your participation.

Joe :-)

Call for Fiction Editors

Well, things have been going great for us around here, especially since the launch of the new web layout. In fact things have been going so well, we have grown to almost 40,000 page views and between 2,000 and 3,000 unique visitors per month. And that number is continuing to grow.

That being said, the amount of submissions has increased to a point that we cannot sufficiently keep up with the heightening workload. Lonny and I spoke about this, and we agreed that it was time to bring in some new blood as fiction editors.

Aberrant Dreams is officially looking for two to three additional speculative fiction editors who would be willing to donate their time to help out and join our virtual family. There is at this time no funds from which to pull payment for these services, but that may change at a future date. This is a change to work with us, help build a lasting literary institution, and to put your two cents in for the stories we select. What we will offer is that while you are working with us you will receive a contributor’s copy for the annual anthology, a brief bio for you will be included on the site, and you will become a part of the Slip of the Pen webcomic family, in which a caricature of you will appear from time to time.

***Edit***

We have received a lot of interest and many editors are currently trying out for the role. We expect to make our choices by the end of next week, and I will let everyone know the results. Thanks to those who have contacted us.

Thanks in advance,

Joe :-)

February 2007 Content Added

Three new stories have been added to the site.

1. Follow the Monkey, by Tom Pendergrass
2. A. T. T. A., by Greg Beatty
3. A Thousand Souls, by Marie Brennan

What are you doing hanging around here? Go check them out.

We hope you enjoy!

Predators and Editors!

I just realized that the Predators and Editors voting is underway and will conclude tonight. Please check it out and support us by voting for Aberrant Dreams at the following link:

You Like Us! You Really, Really Like us!

Well, so far the feedback on the new web site design has been very positive, and that is a load off my (and I'm sure, Lonny's) shoulders. It's funny that when you get ideas in your head and you're not sure how well they will be received, it's kind of like a little gremlin gnawing on the base of your skull with an almost ravenous zeal. But we have been fortunate so far and there has been no negative feedback sent. Yet, there are more things waiting in the wings, as it were--more changes and more content to be uploaded as it is completed. I'm sure the fans out there will enjoy it--hell, I enjoy creating it--yet still the little gremlin nibbles away. Hmm...I may need to seek professional help for that :-)

If there is indeed anything negative at all about the new format is that we have had to suspend unsolicited poetry and artwork submissions (hopefully that will change in the future). Also, there is no longer have a recognizable structure to the individual issues on a less that annual scale. That fact has complicated magazine reviews of Aberrant Dreams a bit, and this is particularly perplexing since the reviews are a source of additional exposure. Over the past two, going on three, years, we have found that exposure has by-and-large been the single hardest obstacle to overcome (well, that and making enough money to support Aberrant Dreams, but I digress).

I had an email discussion about this just yesterday, and it was decided that the reviews would be best derived from the annual anthologies which will be towards the end of 2007. The reasoning for this decision is because the anthology will be a much more completed package for the reviewers, with stories and other content not posted on the web. I look forward to holding one of these anthologies, but alas that's still many months away (*grumble, grumble*).

Major Site Update and Submissions Are Open!

As you may have already noticed, the site has been completely redesigned from the ground up. This rendition requires Macromedia Flash 8.0 to view properly (it's free from their website). We hope you like it.

Also, submissions are open again!