So says Bookgasm. And note that they’re not saying FF2 is the best sf anthology of ’08, but the best book — including novels, collections, anthos, everything. Wow. A stellar short list, compiled by Ryun Patterson. It feels like I blog every week about FF2, but the kudos for this book just keep coming. Congrats to Lou and the authors, once again!

Gentle note — sf anthologies are notoriously poor sellers for any publishing house. I have no idea how well FF2 is selling, but if you haven’t yet bought a copy, please consider doing so. Personally, I’m a fan of sf anthos, and if an excellent series like this is going to continue, then it’s gotta sell. Rave reviews alone don’t pay the bills. 🙂

Terrific review over at SF Signal for the sf antho FAST FORWARD 2, edited by Lou Anders. John DeNardo gives his story-by-story takes, and it’s a really fun read. Wow, the FF2 juggernaut just keeps rolling, doesn’t it? Congrats to Lou and all of the authors.

Recent raves for FF2:
Bookgasm
Discover Magazine
Futurismic
BoingBoing
SFDimensions

And it’s really fun to read the various critical takes on my cover art because frankly, cover art doesn’t get reviewed (or even mentioned) in most reviews. ‘Wish it did! So thanks to SF Signal, Bookgasm, SciFi Dimensions and Futurismic for the kind consideration. 🙂

VV is a very bad man. While the rest of us struggle to eek out a basic round of Xmas cards to our pals, this guy’s sending out original hand-made solid bronze elf sculptures as his Xmas greeting. This showed up in my mailbox the other day, and yeah, I was floored. Props, Vince. Happy Holidays to you and Michelle. Many thanks, and again, huge congrats on your first Chesley Award this year in the 3D category. I suspect it won’t be your last. 🙂

He’s a living legend and one of our true and few gentle giants. He may not have coined today’s hot buzzword “multiverse”, but he popularized it, and built entire civilizations there long before today’s cool kids arrived. (Edit: MM himself kindly clarifies that he indeed coined the term to describe multiple universes, while William James coined it in 1895 to describe states of mind. The truth — straight from the source!:)) I don’t want to get too gushy, but simply put, Mike’s a hero and a true friend, and quite frankly, I’d take a bullet for the man.

I suppose the best b-day gift an author can receive is for folks to buy his/her books, and since we’re in the gift-giving season, the new Del Rey editions of Mike’s classic ELRIC work make excellent stocking stuffers. 🙂 The first three of a six-book series are available here, here, and here. If you’re reading this, please join me in leaving a comment below, or on your own blog, and wishing Mike a birthday salute.

One last thing — this past April, I had the honor (along with Betsy Mitchell) of presenting Mike with SFWA’s Grandmaster Award at the Nebula Ceremony. My speech was a collage of tributes from not only myself, but Alan Moore, Neil Gaiman, China Mieville, Jeff Ford, Jeff Vandermeer and Chris Roberson. In honor of Mike’s b-day, here it is again.

In the previous blogpost, ces asked for a better look at the art sans typography for the forthcoming WAR AND SPACE: SELECTED SHORT STORIES OF LESTER DEL REY, VOL. 1. So here you go….:)

Cover art by me for this one: a forthcoming book from NESFA Press titled WAR AND SPACE: SELECTED SHORT STORIES OF LESTER DEL REY, VOL. 1. Alice Lewis is doing the jacket design and layout. Steven H. Silver is the editor. The book’s slated for a 2009 release, and the second volume will be called ROBOTS AND FANTASIES. They’re not taking orders for Vol. 1 yet, but I’ll post a note here when they are…

The geniuses of SF Signal have posted their latest Mind Meld — “The Best Genre-Related Books/Films/Shows Consumed in ’08”. My list is here, if you scroll down a bit. Hey, and thanks to my fellow contributors, I found a couple of cool, new gift-giving ideas to boot! Bob Eggleton, Andy Remic, Paul McAuley, Mary Robinette Kowal, Marc Gascoigne, and Mike Resnick are just a few of the bright sf/fantasy minds that list their faves. Don’t miss Part Two of the lists here. Fun stuff all around. 🙂

SciFi.com reviews Dan Simmons’ forthcoming hardcover MUSE OF FIRE and gives it a big, fat “A”! Paul Di Filippo breaks it down. And the mighty io9 spotlights their December book picks and MUSE is amongst their featured picks. Nice! 🙂

Very sad news — James Cawthorn, the fine sf/fantasy illustrator best known for his seminal visualizations of Elric of Melnibone, died Tuesday. John Coulthart eloquently commemorates Cawthorn’s artistic contributions and his impact on the Elric saga. This quote from Mike Moorcock sums up that impact: “Jim Cawthorn and I have been inseparable for over twenty-five years, sometimes to the point where I can’t remember which came first–the drawing or the story. It is his drawings of my characters which remain for me the most accurate, both in detail and in atmosphere. His interpretations in strip form will always be, for me, the best.”

As for my own thoughts about Cawthorn–he and I never met, but because I’m currently doing illustrations for Del Rey’s new editions of the Elric series, I almost feel like we have because I’ve studied his early Elric drawings so intently. When I visited Mike while preparing to illustrate the Del Rey edition, ELRIC: THE STEALER OF SOULS, I kept pressing him for his favorite visual takes on Elric. He was reluctant because he wanted me to be free to follow my own unbiased path, which is typical of Mike’s generosity. Finally, he pointed to the image you see here and said he would always see Cawthorn’s Elric as the definitive interpretation. It’s a testament to Mike and Jim’s genius that Elric so explosively fires the engines of all creators who encounter him. My work doesn’t look anything like Cawthorn’s, nor does Yoshitaka Amano’s, Michael Whelan’s, Robert Gould’s, or any of the other illustrators that have added to the visual legacy of Elric. We’ve all tried to contribute our own unique vision to Elric. The angst, majesty, and power of the character never ages. Today, as Mike related the bad news of Jim’s passing, I’m working on more Elric illustrations for the forthcoming ELRIC: THE REVENGE OF THE ROSE. The goodness of Jim Cawthorn’s Elric drawings will remain in my thoughts as I finish the rest of this work. Thanks for lighting that first match, Jim.

Been so busy here that I just realized Michael Moorcock’s ELRIC: THE SLEEPING SORCERESS is now available. If you’re keeping score at home, this is the third of a six-volume ELRIC trade paperback series from Del Rey. I illustrated the cover and interiors for the first volume. The great Michael Kaluta did the art chores for the second one. THE SLEEPING SORCERESS features cover art by me and interior illustrations by Steve Ellis.

Speaking of Elric, more good news — SPECTRUM 15: THE BEST IN CONTEMPORARY FANTASTIC ART is now available, and one of my Elric interiors was selected by the Spectrum jury for inclusion. The drawing is from the first ELRIC volume, ELRIC: THE STEALER OF SOULS. I call this piece, “Elric The Damned.” It’s 11″x17″, pencil on crescent board. If you haven’t checked out the latest edition of SPECTRUM, you owe it to yourself. Arnie & Cathy Fenner have assembled another amazing showcase, and if you know anyone who loves genre art, SPECTRUM 15’s pretty much the best holiday gift I can imagine.

Just read the December issue of LOCUS MAGAZINE. Gardner Dozois breaks down 2008’s best sf anthologies in his column, “Gardnerspace”.

Gardner: “This has been an almost unprecedented year for the number of first-rate original SF anthologies published, at least since the heyday of ORBIT, NEW DIMENSIONS, and UNIVERSE in the ’70’s.” He goes on to say, “…I’d have to say that the three strongest original SF anthologies of the year were Lou Anders’ FAST FORWARD 2, Jonathan Strahan‘s ECLIPSE 2, and Strahan’s THE STARRY RIFT….” And then the kicker, “Of these, I think I’d give a very slight edge to FAST FORWARD 2.” Awesome. Congrats to Lou and all of the contributing authors! Proud to have done the cover art for this one. And speaking of LOCUS, if you aren’t a print subscriber yet, have you heard they’ve got the October issue online for free? Seems they may start making the print mag available on a web-subscription basis. Let ’em know what you think!

(pictured L to R): Traci Picacio; Mary Robinette Kowal; Richelle Mead. My previous entry covered the tourist half of last week’s Philly trip; this time around — the Philcon Experience. I was Artist Guest of Honor so I didn’t take many photos at the con, and wish I would have. It was a great con weekend — all of my panels were lively and fun to do; my slideshow presentation was well-attended and went off without a hitch; sold some work in the Art Show (not to be taken for granted in a tough economy); met lots of new folks; and even won a couple of merit awards in the Art Show, including “Best In Show/Popular Choice” for the cover art for ADVENTURE, VOL. 1.

(pictured L to R): Elspeth Kovar; Serena Powers; Tim Powers; Dennis McCunney; Traci Picacio. The great Jeff Ford was in the house on Friday night and it was terrific to hang with him as always. Never tried a Whiskey Sour before I had a few Friday night, but now I know why Ford likes ’em so much. HarperCollins/Eos editor Diana Gill dropped by Sunday and it was great seeing her as ever. Pleasure spending time with Richelle Mead, Mary Robinette Kowal, Andrew Wheeler, Alan Beck, Greg Frost, Ray Ridenour, Bud Sparhawk, Jane Jewell, Michael Walsh, Diane Weinstein, Gary Frank and wife Nancy, Keith R.A. DeCandido, John Grant, and many others. Spent quality time with Principal Speaker (Author GOH) Tim Powers and his wife Serena once the show was over, and in a taxi to the airport. Like a cappella singing? Check out the Chromatics. Missed ’em while I was judging the Masquerade but they were the intermission entertainment. Will catch up later via YouTube.

Special Guest Scott Christian Sava of DREAMLAND CHRONICLES fame was kind enough to bestow copies of his illustrated books to both me and Tim at the show’s end. Thanks a bunch, Scott!! Being GOH at a show like Philcon makes you grateful to all the volunteers who work hard to make it happen. Shoutouts to the entire Philcon Committee, but especially to Mark and Margaret Trebing, David Silber, Eric Gasior, Rock Robertson (thanks for the help with the slideshow!!), Terry Graybill (who produced some terrific promo bookmarks and palmcards), Nathan Lilly (nice job with the program book!!), Filthy Pierre, Shirley Avery, Martin Deutsch, Byron Connell, Diane Kovalcin, Rob Himmelsbach, Tina Connell, the Wombat, Rhea Hoch, Gary Feldbaum, Debby Lieven, Christine Norris, Suzanne Rosin, and more. Dennis McCunney was the Hotel Liaison, but seemed to be more than just that and in more places than one at the same time. He was awesome. Thanks, Dennis! Mad props to Joni Dashoff and Andrea Senchy who made the Art Show a success. Joni taught me and Traci what a “jug handle” was and made me realize that driving in Europe is probably easier than navigating the back roads of Jersey. Last — I’ve gotta give huge props to Todd Dashoff who really seemed to wear ten hats all at once and seemed to always come through in the clutch. It was a pleasure being in their midst this past weekend and with all members of the Philadelphia Science Fiction Society. Loved it, and look forward to returning to Philly, somewhere down the road.

Traci and I are back home from a whirlwind week in Philadelphia and Philcon in Cherry Hill, NJ. This report covers the tourist side of our trip, in the days before Philcon. The next report will be the Philcon experience. Without further ado, some highlights!

WIZ WIT: We arrived in Philly three days before Philcon. It was our first visit to the City of Brotherly Love so we wanted tourist time. First stop: Pat’s King of Steaks to sample the local cuisine. So much hype about Philly’s legendary cheesesteak sandwiches. So much said that it wasn’t a genuine Philly experience unless you ordered it “wiz wit”, which means with Cheez Whiz and with onions. So I did. Verdict: pretty good, but I still wasn’t quite sure about Philly’s love affair with Cheez Whiz. So I did the natural thing when unsure about cheesesteaks wiz wit, and after just exploding my daily cholesterol count — I finished it and went to Jim’s Steaks (visiting bookstores along the way) and ordered another cheesesteak wiz wit. Verdict: Pat’s was good. I like Jim’s better. Tastier onions. Better balance between all the flavors. Current cholesterol count after two Philly cheesesteaks in one afternoon: off the charts. Epilogue: we later talked to lots of native Philadelphians about cheesesteaks and not a single native liked Cheez Whiz, or would even go near the stuff. Go figure.
Traci abstained from the whole cheesesteak thing and we decided later that evening to hit the Continental Midtown which was fabulous. Crazy 50’s moderne decor, basket chair-pods hanging from ceiling chains, huge calamari salads, lobster mac & cheese, and yummy sidecar drinks. After a long dinner, we had a nightcap up on their roof deck and it was the end of a great first day.

WORLD-CLASS: Maybe Cheez Whiz wasn’t such a big hit for us, but the Philadelphia Museum of Art sure was. I expected it to be pretty good, but it was truly one of the best museums I’ve seen. Good Picassos, Braques, Bocklins, Dalis….great ones by Degas, Toulouse-Latrec, Turner, Van Gogh, and Rubens. The only disappointment was Duchamp’s NUDE DESCENDING A STAIRCASE was loaned to Paris and wasn’t there. Definitely one of the ones I wanted to see, but overall, what a great museum. We managed to hit an exhibition of Frank Gehry’s design process over at the Perelman, and later, the Rodin Museum, which was tremendous — especially THE GATES OF HELL (detail photo seen above).

LIFE IN THE SHIRE: We spent time with Joe McCabe (editor of FearNet.com) and his photographer wife Sophia Quach. Joe will be moving to LA next year because of his job, but he loves Philly. He said he feels like living in and around the town is like “living in the Shire.” Personally, I can see why, when urban murals like the one above are part of the everyday scenery. This wasn’t what Joe was talking about when he made the comment, but I’ve never seen a better piece of urban mural than this one (created by Meg Saligman). Just part of everyday life in Philly.

MORE URBAN MAGIC: Philly’s Chestnut Park reminds me of Paley Park in NYC — a secluded green oasis in an urban jungle. Love this gate designed by Christopher Ray, and the funky animal sculptures sprinked throughout. This wasn’t a planned destination, but just surprised us out of nowhere.

STRANGE BIRD: Loved this bird, which is a detail from the same gate (seen in the upper right corner of the sculpture).

WEDNESDAY WITH WYETHS: I’m a huge admirer of the work of N.C. Wyeth, Howard Pyle, Harvey Dunn and Dean Cornwell. Really, you can’t go wrong with any of the Brandywine artists, or with Andrew Wyeth. So Joe and Sophia took us out to Chadds Ford, and the Brandywine compound, where we visited the Brandywine Museum. The museum has a little beeper that sounds off when visitors get too close to the paintings. I set the beeper off a lot when I saw paintings like the TREASURE ISLAND one above. Didn’t care either. I’ve stared at these in books for years, so seeing the originals up-close was a huge experience. We visited N.C. Wyeth’s house and studio as well, and it made me want to fly home right there and get back to work. So inspiring.

BE AFRAID: Had to show these. Joe works in the Comcast Center which dominates Philly’s skyline and downtown. That’s currently where Fearnet.com’s corporate offices are. This is their bathroom signage.

LIBERTY & INDEPENDENCE: Our last tourist day in Philly was largely spent visiting the Liberty Bell and Independence Hall (the Hall seen in background here behind the Bell). In previous days, we’d had several meals at Reading Terminal Market, and we did another lunch there (DiNic’s and Bassett’s). For the most part, I hate formal tours, but we did a brief one for Independence Hall, and it was well worth it. All and all, Philly’s a tremendous town! Philcon Report in the next blog entry…