So, three folks regularly read one or two of the Big Three, one person used to read them, and one person has never read 'em.
I'm a bit like John Garcia, in that I regularly read only one magazine - Asimovs. I don't have anything against Analog or F&SF, but I don't have time to keep up with more than one. William T Goodall wrote: > The style of story I like best is probably that published in _Asimov's_ > *but* since I buy Gardner Dozois' annual anthology, and since it usually > contains mostly stories from _Asimov's_ I feel getting the magazine as > well would be redundant. I try to read his "Years Best" anthologies, but usually end up finishing only the stories that look the most promising or non-familiar, and then neglect the rest. But IMO, there are a lot of non-Asimovs stories in there. (They're the ones I read.) That's the great thing about the "Year's Best" series, it can serve as a sort of primer for whats happening in all the other magazines. (Or maybe as an "Asimovs" primer for Analog readers. ;) ) Jeffrey Miller wrote: > ..and actually no, I haven't, should I put it on my list? I haven't read that magazine lately, but in it's "Harsh Mistress" days (loved that title) it was a promising SF adventure 'zine. The general quality was a bit low, but that was years ago, so things have probably improved since then. You really should give the bigger SF magazines a chance, Jeffrey. They're the best value out there if you're looking for variety. A typical $4.95 magazine has six or seven stories, and as many authors, while a $9.99 novel has only one. But the genre certainly seems to have moved past the days when the pulps (and then the digests) were the centre of the field. New authors still come out of the 'zines, but a lot of the biggest stars seem to appear, full grown, as novel writers. I still love the magazines, though. It's fascinating to read the short work of a writer like Greg Egan or Stephen Baxter, and then compare it to their novels. And when they're working with a shorter piece, authors can do wild experiments in style and concept that might sink a novel. I hope there'll always be a place for prozines in SF. Kevin Street
