I owe you all a lot of posts. There are awards nods to acknowledge, cover sneak peeks to post and such, and I think that my time on holidays is re-energising me to the point where that’s going to happen, and soon.  However, for the moment a brief sketch of my year. I was updating my bibliography page this morning to reflect sopme new information, and thought you might like to see what my projected 2010 is like.  I should probably add that my 2011 and 2012 schedules are going to be much more, um, relaxed.

2010 – Anthologies etc.

1. The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year: Volume 4, Night Shade Books, March 2010, tpb
2. Special issue of Subterranean Online, Subterranean Press, April 2010
3. Swords and Dark Magic: The New Sword and Sorcery, (with Lou Anders), HarperCollins Publishers, New York July 2010, tpb; Subterranean Press, July 2010, Ltd ed. hc
4. Legends of Australian Fantasy, (with Jack Dann), HarperCollins Publishers Australia, Sydney, July 2010, tpb
5. Wings of Fire, (with Marianne S. Jablon), Night Shade Books, July 2010
6. Godlike Machines, The Science Fiction Book Club, New York, August 2010, hc
7. Phantasmagoria and Madness: Tales from the Steampunk Century, (with Bill Shafer), Subterranean Press, 2010
8. Eclipse Four, Night Shade Books, October 2010

2010 – Author collections edited.

1. Mirror Kingdoms: The Best of Peter S. Beagle, Subterranean Press, March 2010, hc
2. The Best of Fritz Leiber, (with Charles N. Brown), Night Shade Books, April 2010, hc
3. The Green Leopard Plague and Other Stories, Walter Jon Williams, Night Shade Books, April 2010, hc
4. Hard Luck Diggings: The Early Jack Vance, (with Terry Dowling), Subterranean Press, June 2010, hc
5. The Best of Kim Stanley Robinson, Kim Stanley Robinson, Night Shade Books, August 2010, hc
6. The Best of Larry Niven, Subterranean Press, 2010, hc
7. The Best of Joe Haldeman, Subterranean Press, December 2010, hc

I’m still a little dazed.  Last Tuesday we headed down to Dunsborough for our first annual actual family holiday. Marianne, Jessica (9), Sophie (8), five iPods and a buttload of crap, all aimed at making sure we rested and relaxed.

And we did.  The accommodation was exactly right – kudos to Marianne for that – so we really only needed to relax and enjoy. We ate takeaway, went down a cave, up a lighthouse, swam in a freezingly cold swimming pool frequented by the local duck population, wandered up to the local bakery some mornings for almond croissants, down to the beach to watch winter take hold on some staggeringly beautiful mornings and evenings (Geographe Bay is stunning), and reconnected as a family away from the dominating influence of the online world.

Did I get away from work? No! Of course not. It’s too soon for that.  Wednesday afternoon I ducked onto the internet for 10 minutes, which allowed me to resolve an unknown editing crisis, Thursday I spent 10 minutes going over a book contract, and even went in search of a payphone so I could buy us plane tickets for Melbourne and WorldCon (we’re booked!).  But I didn’t do much. I did less.  And I felt refreshed for it.  I even read a novel (for fun!).

It was ridiculous that it took me days to unwind to the point where I could. The first two days I picked books up and put them down, fiddled, and I even listed to a third of Terry Pratchett’s Wintersmith as an audiobook, but by Friday I was relaxed enough to pick up Guy Gavriel Kay’s staggeringly good UNDER HEAVEN – a historical fantasy set in 8th Century China – and when I did I adored it.  Kay is a wonderful, wonderful writer and this is his best book.  For three days I simply drank it down, and was sad to get to the end of it.  I was given a proof by my dear friend Theresa at HarperCollins, but will be making a point of buying a final copy because it’s so awesome.

We got home on Tuesday afternoon to a beautifully clean house (thanks mum!) and have spent the last couple days spinning our wheels, playing with friends and not quite getting ready for back to school (and work). The girls are back at school next Tuesday and I’m off till the end of the month. I’ll pick up the editing in earnest next week, but for now I’m happy to putter.  There’s taxes to finish, two books to work on, but also some gardening to do and we might even take on the ‘book problem’.

One odd thing is that I’ve been toying with the idea of podcasting. There’s no doubt in my mind this has to do with my close encounters with both Tony C. Smith and with the Galactic Suburbia triumvirate, but it could be fun. I’m not up to date with the mechanics of it, and I’m not sure I really want to host something, but if I could get some Locus chums to chat about SF, with maybe a few guests, it could be swell. Yes?

The Leiber collection that Charles Brown and I co-edited just got a PW star:

Fritz Leiber: Selected Stories Edited by Charles N. Brown and Jonathan Strahan. Night Shade (Diamond, dist.), $24.95 (364p) ISBN 978-1-59780-180-5

The versatility of SFWA Grand Master Leiber (1910–1992) is ably demonstrated by these 17 superb stories, each of which has “wonder blazing at its core.” “Smoke Ghost” places a classic ghost story in a modern urban setting, while the dread in “Coming Attraction” reflects the uneasiness of the cold war. The powerful “Gonna Roll the Bones” explores man’s compulsion toward self-destruction, while a different archetype is revealed in “The Girl with the Hungry Eyes,” which reveals the vampiric seduction of modern consumerism. There are three tales of adventurous rogues Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser, including the Nebula Award–winning “Ill Met in Lankhmar,” in which youthful derring-do leads to heart-wrenching tragedy. Longtime fans and new readers alike will treasure this accessible and wide-ranging collection. (June)

I worked it out a little while ago. I started working for Locus in 1997, took a short break, and then resumed in 1999.  I became Reviews Editor in 2002. In 2004 I started editing freelance in earnest, and have so far completed thirty-nine books and am working on eight more.  All of this while holding down a full-time day job with a State government department and helping raise two daughters, one born in 2000 and the other born in 2001.

We took the girls to the US to visit relatives in 2002 and again in 2006, and spent a week with visiting inlaws in Dunsborough about two years ago. But other than that, we’ve not taken a simple, no hassles holidays since the girls were born, and I’ve not had a break without some kind of editorial work to do since 1999. Eleven years. That’s too long.

So, for the next week I’ll be gone, incommunicado, offline and unavailable. I’m not taking the laptop with me, and I don’t plan to check email. If you need anything to do with my editing please contact either my agent, Howard Morhaim, or the people at Locus .  I’ll be back in a while, refreshed and ready to go, but for just a little while I’m kicking back and taking it easy. See you soon!

Note: This doesn’t mean the house will be unattended. We have a housesitter and my mother will be here all the time overseeing maintenance etc.

The good folk at Aussiecon 4 have released the final 2010 Hugo Awards nominations.  It’s a terrific ballot – full of well deserved nominations and wonderful surprises – and I am just thrilled to be nominated for Best Editor, Short Form.  My sincere thanks to everyone who nominated me – it’s humbling. I’m joined again in the category by the formidable Ellen Datlow, Gordon Van Gelder, Sheila Williams, and Stanley Schmidt.  I genuinely am honored to be in their company. I’m also delighted beyond words that Peter Watt’s novellette “The Island” from The New Space Opera 2 and Nicola Griffiths’ novelette “It Takes Two” from Eclipse Three are nominated.

I am also over the moon that Tony C Smith’s Starship Sofa is up for Best Fanzine. I love the podcast and dug myself out of bed at 4.30am this morning to appear on their Hugo Special. Go check it out. We had enormous fun and Tony is a very deserving nominee (the first ever podcast!).  Oh, and congratulations to Fred Pohl and Jack Vance for making the ballot again! It’s really exciting. So much fine work, so many wonderful nominees, and so many friends involved (apologies to any I didn’t mention, but congratulations!!!)