Djibril Alayad

General editor

Djibril ist ein Historiker und ein Futurist.

Favourites in the genres: Speculative Fiction: Philip K. Dick, classic, but unsurpassed—paranoia, speculation, social relevance, head-fucks... everything that science fiction should be; Ursula K. Le Guin, some classic socially relevant SF and fantasy, still fighting the good fight; Ray Bradbury, iconic dystopias and unsettling fantasies; William Gibson, stands for the wider Cyberpunk phenomenon. Dark Fantasy: Clive Barker authors some of the darkest, sickest writing I've seen, a wonderful fantasist; Franz Kafka's imagination and unrelenting darkness of vision qualify him as a master of horror even if that genre didn't really include him at the time; HP Lovecraft—"eldritch horror" may not cut it now, but the vision of the hostile, uncaring, amoral universe that would drive you mad if you recognised it was gloriously paranoid; Marion Z Bradley's combination of spiritual, optimistic, social/feminist SF/fantasy, and tireless outreach could be an example to anyone.

Magic Realism/Slipstream/Postmodern: Jorge Luis Borges was possibly the most mischievous writer in history, one of the inspirations for this magazine; Ben Okri writes some of the most moving, politically eye-opening, spiritually entertaining work I've seen recently; Isabel Allende is sensual, caring, courageous, her stories are epic fantasies and astute social observation all at the same time; Umberto Eco is wittily erudite and cleverly postmodern, he manages to write exquisitely researched parodies without alienating the reader who just wants entertained; Gabriel García Márquez is the ultimate magic realist, his novels manage to be traditional folk-tales and radical political allegory rolled into one, without sacrificing their humanity, literary worth, or sheer readability for an instant; Salman Rushdie may be too clever for his own good, but he's still not afraid to shock, and he really does write modern fantasy.

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Bruce Stenning

General editor

Would ideally live in a cave in some warm clime, popping out to adjust solar panels and microwave antennae in order to operate numerous computers and other bits of electronic apparatus. After a short while much shouting and cursing might be heard from the mouth of this cave. He has been known to: dance Argentine Tango; play Blues guitar; spend inordinate amounts of time writing utterly pointless bits of software; and to rant hysterically at the world and the organisations which inhabit it.

Favourites include:

Fiction by: Jorge Luis Borges; Philip K. Dick; H. P. Lovecraft; Iain M. Banks; William Gibson; Charles Sheffield; David Zindell.

Films: Ghost in the Shell; 2001: A Space Odyssey; Memento; The Limey; Ring; Dark Water.

Nonfiction by: Daniel Dennett; Richard Feynman; Douglas Hofstadter; George Monbiot.

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Leoba Tauber

Associate Editor

Leoba doesn't appreciate labels, which she feels are limiting (when applied to one's self), potentially dangerous (when applied to other people), and overly restrictive (when applied to art or literature - as in, "I can't read anything by Vernor Vinge because I don't like 'hard' Science Fiction."). She believes that people and art should be accepted (or not) based on their own merits and not as symbols or types. She's been called a nihilist but disputes this. She just doesn't think very highly of humanity. Please feel free to prove her wrong.

For Leoba, the best stories are those that defy labeling. Their characters may not be sympathetic, but they are always interesting. Like still waters, they run deep - and if you look far below the surface you may see something there, something moving, hidden, mysterious. Leave something up to her imagination, will you please?

Favorites: •JRR Tolkein conceived and built a world based on his academic work. Scholarship begets art. How lovely is that? •Robert Aickman is known for short stories he himself described as "strange"—sometimes frightening, sometimes nonsensical, often with very unsympathetic characters—the best ones I have to read two or three times to understand what is going on. Waters deep to the point of impenetrable, but still great fun. •H. P. Lovecraft does some very interesting work on the relationship between the mind and the body, and how can you not love the whole Cthulhu thing? The strain of racism and anti-immigrant sentiment that runs through his oeuvre just makes it that much more uncomfortable for a modern reader. His stuff is frightening, weird, funny, and sometimes - just sometimes - a little over the top. Have you noticed? •Despite the fact that he's fetishized in some circles, Neil Gaiman is undeniably great. I especially like his work anthropomorphizing ... anything, really. ‘October in the Chair’ is a favorite. •I hadn't read anything by Richard Matheson until the film I Am Legend came out (still haven't seen that). That novella, and his short stories, are interesting reading not only in their own right, but also as historical documents showing a very dark and depressing vision of the future coming from the height of the Cold War. •Clive Barker's Books of Blood—there's nothing else like them. I don't usually go for blood and guts, but Barker's particular combination of b&g, delving the black depths of the human psyche, and sick humor, really appeals to me. •I haven't read him in years, but cut my teeth on Stephen King. His stuff scared my socks off and I appreciated his descriptive sex scenes. •Vernor Vinge's Across Realtime is a fabulous "what if?" with challenging science and believable characters. •Peter Straub's Mr X is probably my favorite book. The world of Lovecraft brought to 1990s small-town Illinois... sexy, interesting, mysterious, and very amusing for those schooled in HPL. I read Straub's Ghost Story, at my brother's suggestion, which I didn't find nearly as affecting, but I expect the reading experience would be much different for a man ("women are scary! oooooo...") •My other favorite book is A. S. Byatt's Possession—romance, mystery, alternative history (okay, that's a stretch... it's still a wonderful book). •Audrey Niffenegger's Time Traveler's Wife: also romantic, very sad. Questionable science, but so what? Sometimes Leoba likes to cry.

•The Sandman and The Preacher. Dysfunctional families, monsters, angels and demons having sex? Count me in.

•Eternal Sunshine of the Spotless Mind, Adaptation, Being John Malkovich, Memento (pretty much anything that messes with minds and/or time). I don't really watch many films.

•I also regularly read Apex Magazine and listen to Pseudopod.

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John Thornton

Associate Editor

John sits in a darkened room every day painting moving pictures to make the imperfect world we live in look utopian.

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