This anthology is a reality because of the dedication, hard work, and patience of all the authors whose work resides between its covers. One year ago, at Readercon 2012, a group of local writers, all graduates from various years of Jeff Carver’s and Craig Shaw Gardner’s Ultimate SF Writing Workshop, had a reunion dinner. From a conversation at that large table, the seeds for this anthology project were sown.
In the past year, we have worked together to honor the workshop model, employing peer review, critique, and revision in order to create Pen-Ultimate.
From the start, we decided to donate 100% of the proceeds from Pen-Ultimate’s sales to the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America’s (SFWA) emergency medical fund. This fund offers interest-free loans to SFWA members facing unexpected medical expenses. We hope you will enjoy reading our stories as you support an important cause.
Lisa (LJ) would like to thank her co-editor, Talib S. Hussain, for his patience and for dealing with a control freak with such grace. She would also like to give a special shout out to Chris Howard for the fabulous cover and to Mary Ann Marcinkiewicz for copy-editing in the eleventh hour. And Lisa is grateful for Jeff and Craig’s support, guidance, and friendship.
Talib would like to thank Jeff and Craig not only for their valuable workshops in which he learned a LOT, but also for their continued efforts to ensure that all graduates from their workshops stay in touch and share their ideas and progress. He would also like to thank Lisa, who had the initial inspiring thought that sparked the first anthology conversation and for many fun collaborative discussions as we reviewed stories and process (she’s not really a control freak … ).
Lisa Janice (LJ) Cohen
Talib S. Hussain
July 2013