Ich möchte auf diesem Wege meiner Tochter Juliana zu ihrem 32sten Geburtstag gratulieren.

Ich hoffe, Du bist Deinem Interesse an Kunst und Kultur treu geblieben und hast inzwischen einen Beruf in diesem Bereich angefangen. Vielleicht erfahre ich ja irgendwann, ob wir noch mehr miteinander gemeinsam haben.

My novella “Briefe an eine imaginäre Frau”, published in Nova #31, has been nominated for the Kurd Lasswitz Preis, one of the most prestigious German science fiction awards, in the category of best German science fiction story of the year 2022.

The story has initially been written in English and its original version “Letters to a Non-Existing Wife” will be published later this year in the first printed issue of the international science fiction magazine InterNova, along with tales by Tetiana Trofusha and Guy Hasson.

Another issue of the international science fiction magazine InterNova, that I edit in collaboration with numerous international writers, editors and fans, has recently been uploaded. This time it’s a mixed issue under the loose motto “New Fabulists”, with stories from seven countries and an insightful guest editorial about the current developments of international science fiction by my veteran collaborator Guy Hasson from Israel.

An e-book version in various formats can be downloaded here.

p.machinery has recently published issue #32 of Nova, the German speculative fiction magazine that I co-founded in 2002. It includes stories by Thomas Grüter, Karsten Lorenz, Victoria Sack, Ricky Wilhelmson, Aiki Mira, Wolf Welling, Benjamin Hirth, Frank W. Haubold and Canadian guest writer Brandon Crilly. The nonfiction section presents, apart from an updated German version of my essay on James Tiptree, jr.’s story “Her Smoke Rose Up Forever” – initially published at the World Culture Hub -, three insightful obituaries of the renowned Austrian researcher, computer artist, science fiction and popular science writer Herbert W. Franke.

Nova #33, due to be published later this year, will be the last issue of Nova that I have compiled as a story editor. With Nova #34 I will hand over matters to my more than capable colleague Marianne Labisch who will be supported by upcoming critic and editor Yvonne Tunnat.

A few years ago I had the idea for a new book series called Cutting Edge, intended to present the best of contemporary German language speculative fiction, supplemented with selected German classics and works by outstanding international writers, to an audience outside of the usual science fiction readership.

The idea could only be realized by overcoming some difficulties. After differences with two previous publishers Cutting Edge finally found a home as an imprint of my frequent collaborator Michael Haitel‘s small publishing house p.machinery. Luckily some of my favorite German writers stuck with me despite the delays and the first two Cutting Edge books were published in December. The focus of the series will be on short fiction, so we naturally started with two story collections: Belichtungszeit, a selection of Thorsten Küper’s best short stories and novellas from 2003 to 2019, edited and with an afterword by me, and Am Abend kamen die Schnecken, the latest story collection by my long-term friend and collaborator Horst Pukallus.

For both books I also acted, for the first time, as a cover artist. In line with Cutting Edge’s ambition to publish fiction based on fresh, innovative concepts, I had the idea of trying new ways with the book design and using generative artworks as cover illustrations. I devised an own procedure of generative image crossing, using public domain photos by Martin Vorel as source material. The result, however, would only have been half as interesting without Tom Turtschi‘s stylish cover design and logo.

Further books are in preparation, including a story collection by Tom Turtschi himself who is not only a seasoned graphic design professional but also a noteworthy writer.

Auf diesem Wege möchte ich meiner Tochter Juliana ein frohes Weihnachtsfest und einen guten Start in ein glückliches und erfolgreiches neues Jahr wünschen.

Wo immer Du bist und was immer Du tust, ich bin mir sicher, dass ich stolz auf Dich sein kann. Ich habe Dich nicht vergessen und hoffe, dass wir uns eines Tages wiedersehen werden.

The second online issue of the international science fiction magazine InterNova, that I edit in collaboration with writers, editors and translators from numerous countries, has just been uploaded and is available here. (An e-book version in various formats will follow soon.)

This time it’s a theme issue about contemporary science fiction from Greece, compiled with support of the Science Fiction Club of Athens. It includes seven stories by six writers, a survey article about the history of science fiction in Greece and an interview with Nebula Award nominee Eugenia Triantafyllou.

Another InterNova online issue is planed to be published before the end of the year.

The first online issue of the international science fiction magazine InterNova – a subproject of the World Culture Hub that I edit in collaboration with writers, editors and enthusiasts from around the globe – has just been uploaded. It features short stories by Brandon Crilly (Canada), Adriana Alarco de Zadra (Peru), Louis Evans (USA), Bruce Golden (USA), Guy Hasson (Israel), Helmuth W. Mommers (Austria), Frank Roger (Belgium), Ana Cristina Rossi (Costa Rica) and Cristian-Mihail Teodorescu (Romania). The issue can be read here.

Of all the magazine issues that I have edited or co-edited over the years this one perhaps has filled me with most relief. I was plagued with a bad conscience towards a number of writers and collaborators when a planed relaunch of the magazine some years ago didn’t come about due to my prolonged health problems. It was a long road to finally get the magazine going again and I’m grateful to all writers who believed in the project and contributed stories, essays and interviews. I owe a special thanks to Adriana Kantcheva, a Bulgarian speculative fiction writer living in Germany, who was the first to join in as a volunteer editorial helper. She will continue to contribute work as her time permits and I’m looking forward to our further collaboration.

Yvonne Tunnat, one of the busiest reviewers of the German science fiction community, has invited my co-editor Marianne Labisch and me to an interview about our work on the German science fiction magazine Nova and the coming relaunch of its international sister magazine InterNova. The interview is available on Yvonne’s literature podcast Literatunnat.

Ich möchte auf diesem Wege meiner Tochter Juliana zu ihrem 31sten Geburtstag gratulieren.

Ich hoffe, daß es Dir gut geht und daß Du weiter Deinen Weg gehst. Mein größter Wusch ist es, Dich in diesem Leben noch einmal wiederzusehen. Ich habe Dich nicht vergessen.