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!

Writer’s Challenge Entries Now Closed

Entries for the current Writer’s Challenge are now closed. We will be announcing the winners very soon once the selections are made and the appropriate writers are informed.

Aberrant Dreams Issue #9 Online!

Aberrant Dreams Issue #9 is now available online! The final line up for the issue is quite impressive as you will see from the details below.

***Featured Story***
Azathoth’s Starship, by Gerald W. Page and Jerry L. Burge

***Fiction***
Desperate Barbarians, by Verna McKinnon
Bradbury County, by Rob Shelsky
Mandatory, by Jon Hansen
The Infinite Vision, by Robert A. Madle
The Locket, by Vera Searles
Plague Ship, by Joseph Green

***Poetry***
The Dragonfly, by Victor Hugo
If God Came to New Orleans, by Gerald W. Page
By Candlelight, by Rie Sheridan Rose
The Black Vulture, by George Sterling

***Departments***
Perpetual Carrots, Editorial
Movie Corner, Movie Reviews
Myles Cabot Presents, An Interview with Greg Bear
Reader’s Eye On…Rob Shelsky

New Merchandise Available

We have set up a shop on www.spreadshirt.com that contains original t-shirts for Aberrant Dreams, HD-IMAGE, and Slip of the Pen. If you like what we do, feel free to help support our efforts by purchasing one through our merchandise link on left menu bar.

Aberrant Dreams Issue #9 is Coming Soon–I promise!

Well, after a bit of trouble selecting the final line up for issue #9, we have completed it, and it is under the final round of proofread. This means that Aberrant Dreams #9 will be coming very soon, and I am sure it will be worth the wait! Look for it by the end of the week. At that time, we will also be closing the contest for entries and our editorial staff will begin selecting the winning stories to go to the selected writers. I can’t wait to see what stories come out of it.

Lonny and I have been rebuilding the website from the ground up, and the finished product is much more complete, original, and ultimately, a great expression of who he and I really are. It will combine the aspects of HD-IMAGE, Aberrant Dreams, and Slip of the Pen into a more complete, entertaining package. It is currently stacking up to launch by the first of the year. I hope you like it.