A couple of interesting things turned up in my blog feeds while I was out today. The first is a new LiveJournal called World SF News. This is nothing to do with the World SF folks in China. Rather it is an effort by the folks behind Apex Magazine to promote an international-themed anthology that they are working on. As the blog is looking to post stories about SF developments all around the world (and not just in the English language) it could turn into something very interesting indeed. I know I have a lot of readers outside of the UK and North America. I hope you’ll pop over there and offer them some news.

The other new development is Verb Noire, a proposed new small press which aims:

To celebrate the works of talented, underrepresented authors and deliver them to a readership that demands more.

What does that mean? That if you’re a talented writer with an awesome, original story about a POC girl/guy/transgendered character, there is a place for you. And that if you’re a sci-fi/fantasy fan who has grown tired of the constant whitewashing of these genres, there is a place for you, too.

Right now they are in the process of raising funds to get started. I have to admit that I’m a bit nervous about this. Running a small press is hard. I don’t like the idea of asking you to give people money when I have no idea who they are or what experience they have, and they don’t give their real names on their web site. On the other hand, what they are trying to do sounds very welcome, and I lot of people that I know and trust are already giving them support. So I’m leaving you to make up your own minds, and hoping that something actually comes of this.