Well, it's three days before I have to leave for Zebracon 16. I know I'm getting ready for another wonderful Zcon, since we've already had a natural disaster. Our neighborhood endured a tornado just before Zebracon 15, and we were still reeling from the disasters at the World Trade Center, the Pentagon, and the crash in Pennsylvania. This year, we merely had a hurricane. After 2001, that was nothin'! We can handle a measly hurricane! Well . . . except for the fact that we were without power for a week which postponed the zines . . . which is why I'm pulling yet another all-nighter to get this publication ready for the printers. And I thought those all night study sessions in college wouldn't mean much out in the real world!

For those of you who came in late: the Dangerous Visions zines are open to stories with themes that other editors may not want. Death, rape, S&M, partner betrayal (a term I particularly dislike), infidelity, and other themes that some fans find uncomfortable can all find a cozy niche here in my own little disturbed corner of the universe. Obviously, someone wants to write these stories because I keep getting them, and someone wants to read these stories, because the first issue of DLDV sold out of its initial printing and had to be reprinted. Of course, I'm not getting much feedback, so for all I know, the zines aren't being read, but the optimist in me keeps insisting that no one needs door stops that badly. Stones are cheaper.

While we have far less stories this time, the diversity of subject matter and the way it is handled is amazing to me, as is the high quality of the writing. The stories are intense, something I love in fiction. These are not stories you will easily forget.

I have to thank all my wonderful writers for having the patience to work with me: Lucy, Ionnia, jat, and Dana. I need to send a huge thank you to artists Merle Decker and Carol Davis who willingly offered me some unpublished art of theirs, which I ended up holding hostage in my house for almost two years. And another big thank you goes to the artist Virginia Sky who gave me so much more than I ever expected when I asked if she'd be interested in doing a Starsky & Hutch project. I was hoping for an illo or two, but she filled the Rosey Malone story with a whole bunch of beautiful pics. Big wet kisses to you all.

Well, I'm pretty punch drunk from sleeplessness by now, so before I say something incriminating, let me sign off here. Enjoy the stories. Send me more. I already have two in the hopper for the next production. I know there are more Dangerous Visions out there!

P.S. Along with the two recent anthology zines, I'll be publishing two novels by two different authors. Anyone who enjoys the Dangerous Visions zines will love these novels: Dark Night of the Soul by Elizabeth Lowry, and My Lover My Hero by Alana Searles. If you're interested in these zines, just contact me.