Views from Medina Road

Tuesday; therefore. Once or twice a week I stroll the bookstores looking to see what's new, using the selected forthcoming books list (which is compiled by the magazine staff, and resorted by me for website posting) as a spotting guide. I'm not so deep in the book biz that I don't still enjoy browsing the tables and shelves at Borders and Barnes & Noble. The advantage of brick and mortar shops is finding the unexpected, in ways that don't happen while surfing Amazon.

Today, the US edition (Del Rey trade paperback) of Morgan's Broken Angels is out; I buy that, and the trade pb of the new Nebula Awards volume, which I already saw last Friday. These will show up on the next Monitor/New Books page in a week or so. Perplexed currently about several MIA February Tor books, including one I'm actually looking forward to reading (by Paul McAuley) that was listed in various places as due on sale February 2nd, or February 24th, and yet which still is not for sale anywhere yet, even though a couple *March* Tor titles have appeared on the shelves. No, I don't get review copies, since I don't commission reviews (it never being the intent of Locus Online to compete with Locus magazine, but rather to supplement it, and leaving the selection of the occasional book reviews I do run to the reviewers)--well, actually, I do get a smattering of review copies, seemingly at the whims of individual publicists (or self-published writers); nothing consistent, and too rarely anything I would actually have bought myself or am interested in reading.

My previous posts about potential Hugo Award website categories have brought about thoughtful responses from both Cheryl Morgan and Ariel (of The Alien Online). Now in rereading my original remarks I worry that I overstated my case, or sounded self-serving, or blah blah... but I will leave well enough alone. Meanwhile, the SMOFs debate on the subject has evaporated.

275 Locus poll ballots received so far, including some paper ballots transcribed by the Locus magazine staff. Ahead of last year's pace.