Are you old enough to look back with nostalgia to the days of the pulp science fiction magazines? If not, do you wish you were? I wrote about them as part of my history of science fiction. Well, sigh no more (as Shakespeare said). Amazing Stories has been an ezine and then a website for some time and is now running a Kickstarter campaign to go into print as a proper magazine, paying authors proper rates for their short stories. I’ve backed them and I urge you to do the same. The campaign finishes on 7 April, so don’t hang about. Click on the Kickstarter link and pledge some money.
The way Kickstarter works is that various rewards are offered for various levels of pledge, but nothing happens unless the required amount is reached. They’re looking for $30,000. If that level of pledges (or above) is reached on 7 April, the money will be collected from all those who pledged. If not, no money is collected. It really is all or nothing. Here is the press release from 8 March:
AMAZING STORIES KICKSTARTER CAMPAIGN BEGINS TODAY
Experimenter Publishing Co. Plans to Bring the World’s First SF Magazine Back Into Print
Hillsboro, NH: Today, the Amazing Stories Kickstarter crowdfunding campaign begins. The Experimenter Publishing Company hopes to harness the energy of the science fiction community and bring an icon of the field back into print publication on a regular quarterly schedule.
Experimenter plans to publish its first new issue for a Fall 2018 release and will be distributing the magazine at Worldcon 76 in San Jose CA. Professional, SFWA qualifying rates of 6 cents per word will be paid and Experimenter intends to become a fully SFWA qualifying market within its first year of operation. Several stories by well known authors have already been contracted, as has cover art by a highly respected artist.
Following five years of growth and development as an online multi-author blog serving the interests of science fiction, fantasy and horror fans, the publication of well-regarded articles produced by over 175 contributors, read by over 40,000 registered members, and following the publication of three special editions, a comic book and a growing selection of anthologies, classic novels and facsimile reprints, Experimenter believes the time is right to launch the quarterly magazine.
Following the initial distribution, copies of each issue will be made available for subscription and individual purchase in both print and electronic formats. A special collector’s edition is also being contemplated.
Stretch goals will be used to increase author and artist pay and to obtain content for future issues. Numerous contributor rewards, from novels and anthologies to your face on the magazine’s cover, are being offered.
Amazing Stories intends to publish a wide range of fiction primarily focused on expressions of positive futures; as in days gone by, the magazine hopes to publish visions of the future that will inspire future generations.
The Kickstarter Campaign can be accessed here. The staff, contributors and members of Amazing Stories hope their fellow fans will join them in making this campaign a success!
About Amazing Stories: Amazing Stories is an online multi-author blog and social site for science fiction, fantasy and horror fans, published by The Experimenter Publishing Company of NH. It publishes reviews, interviews, commentary, critique, and analysis of subjects of interest to fans, as well as occasional short fiction. The website was established in December 2012. The site has published over 7,200 articles and stories, acquired over 175 contributors and close to 43,000 registered members since that time.
