Written by The Specusphere team | 03 January 2009

Astrid:
Welcome to the first edition of The Specusphere for 2009. On behalf of the team I'd like to wish all readers and their families a bright and prosperous 2009.

Working on The Specusphere has been rewarding, but not without its challenges — just juggling my professional writing career with volunteer work on this webzine has made for some 'interesting' moments and some all night marathons to meet deadlines. My initial role on the zine was to do author promotions and previews, but this quickly expanded, due to numerous requests, to also working on 'up and coming' releases from publishers.

The other team members and I have engaged in many debates and speculations – the 'if only scenarios' about the role of this webzine and its future directions – whether it had a future and how best we could serve the needs of the 'speculative' community, particularly the readers. We have a wish list of what we would love to do – given the time and resources, but realised that these visions would have to wait — we would concentrate on what we do now and hopefully do it well. We have been approached by other webzines to reprint our articles in their publications (the last being a French spec fic zine to have certain articles translated into French for their readers). I am indebted to Stephen, Satima and Amanda who have patiently guided me through my sharp learning curve – though the intricacies of direct web uploading have eluded me and Amanda has kindly done all the webmistress stuff for me.

While the world economy may fluctuate and while we all face personal challenges in the times ahead, the one constant is our love of the speculative in its infinite diversity. We will continue to bring you interviews and reviews, articles and news and I hope that The Specusphere will have your support in 2009.

Whether you are a writer, or a publisher I am happy to assist you in presenting your work to the speculative community, so please do not hesitate to contact me. Readers and "fans", I would really like to hear from you as to what you would like to see at The Specusphere, this webzine is, after all, for you ...

Amanda:
Being a webmaster is somewhat like being a writer. Just about anyone can do it, but not so many people can do it well, and even fewer people ever achieve recognition for it. Websites are so diverse – there are some that have been thrown together without much thought, others that have thousands of visitors every day, and everything in between. Some websites are a drain on their webmaster's spare time and money whereas others provide both income and opportunities.

The Specusphere is not a money-making venture.  In fact it is a labour of love and all of us derive our income from other work, much as we would wish it otherwise. We appreciate the time and effort put in by our collaborators and contributors, none of whom receive payment. And thank you to the readers who visit faithfully, even if only when our email bulletin goes out as a reminder.  We hope you enjoy what you read and that it has special relevance for you.

I've been part of the Specusphere since Stephen Thompson, the late Shayne Hall and I founded it back in 2004. Being creative people, we had many ideas for what the Specusphere could become. These far exceed what you may have seen on the site (some ideas fly, others don't). We have tried some things and found them to take too much time, others we have modified to reach that crucial balance between time-to-maintain and value-to-readers. With Satima and Astrid with us, we are powering ahead with our reviews and up and coming sections.  We need more people to help develop in these and other areas. Please read some of our ideas and contact us if you can help!

Satima:
I've been writing and editing for The Specusphere – and before it morphed, its predecessor Visions magazine – since 2002. But this last year, something has changed. Suddenly, we are getting lots of hits. Suddenly, the publishers have realised we're kosher and are sending us more books to review than we can handle. Suddenly, I have a team of good, enthusiastic reviewers who review as many of those books as they possibly can, and the feedback from publishers is A1.

This has brought problems – nice problems. We don't mind having them, but they do need attention. Speaking personally, I can say that The Specusphere is now taking far, far more of my time than I ever envisaged when we started out, and the other team members are in the same boat. The week before each deadline, Stephen, Amanda, Astrid and I run around in ever-decreasing circles (and we all know where they wind up, don't we?) tearing our hair. The fact is, if The Specusphere is to continue growing at its present rate, we need more hands on deck each issue, or we will collapse under the weight of work. This has happened to numerous other zines and I'd hate to see it happen to us. We don't want to fold. In fact, we'd like to expand. Stephen, our trusty editor-in-chief, has suggested six or eight jobs that could be given to new volunteers, should any of you wish to step forward. Do give the idea some thought. We need you.

I hope you enjoy this issue – there are lots of articles, interviews, stories and reviews for you to enjoy. And as long as you're enjoying them, we'd like to keep them coming. We just need more help, that's all. Your help. Please.

Stephen:
I just want to add that I enjoy working with my collaborators on The Specusphere. I'm thoroughly impressed with their professionalism, their wisdom, their energy, their humanity. Without them The Specusphere would have died a miserable death ages ago.

Of course without readers the whole shebang wouldn't be worth doing. Many thanks to all readers who have commented, praised and criticised The Specusphere, and special thanks to all the contributors that have helped make the webzine the eclectic mix it is today. I hope we have in some small way broadened your appreciation of just how vast this genre is, and also how deeply it is ingrained into our culture. The speculative fiction muse is everywhere.

The year has been full of mixed blessings, personally and professionally, but The Specusphere has been the one great constant that has given me so much enjoyment (and enjoyment includes all the highs and lows – it's that rollercoaster ride that makes it so interesting).

So, to all you crazy diamonds out there, all you consumers and creators of this great genre, may all your wishes come true in 09.