The deal:

Last Drink Bird Head is a variation on a surrealist writing game: we gave the phrase to over 70 writers and asked them “Who or what is Last Drink Bird Head?” The results run the gamut from the hilarious to the terrifying, with each writer bringing their signature style and voice to the enterprise.

Last Drink Bird Head is edited by Ann and Jeff Vandermeer and includes these contributors: Daniel Abraham, Michael Arnzen, Steve Aylett, KJ Bishop, Michael Bishop, Desirina Boskovich, Keith Brooke, Jesse Bullington, Richard Butner, Catherine Cheek, Matthew Cheney, Michael Cisco, Gio Clairval, Alan M. Clark, Brendan Connell, Paul Di Filippo, Stephen R. Donaldson, Rikki Ducornet, Clare Dudman, Hal Duncan, Scott Eagle, Brian Evenson, Eliot Fintushel, Jeffrey Ford, Richard Gehr, Felix Gilman, Jon Courtney Grimwood, Rhys Hughes, Paul Jessup, Antony Johnston, John Kaiine, Henry Kaiser, Caitlin R. Kiernan, Tessa Kum, Ellen Kushner, Jay Lake, Tanith Lee, Stina Leicht, Therese Littleton, Beth Adele Long, Dustin Long, Nick Mamatas, JM McDermott, Sarah Monette, Kari O’Connor, Ben Peek, Holly Phillips, Louis Phillips, Tim Pratt, Cat Rambo, Mark Rich, Bruce Holland Rogers, Nicholas Royle, G Eric Schaller, Ekaterina Sedia, Ramsey Shehadeh, Peter Straub, Victoria Strauss, Michael Swanwick, Mark Swartz, Alan Swirsky, Rachel Swirsky, Sonya Taaffe, Justin Taylor, Steve Rasnic Tem, Jeffrey Thomas, Scott Thomas, John Urbancik, Genevieve Valentine, Kim Westwood, Leslie What, Andrew Steiger White, Conrad Williams, Liz Williams, Neil Williamson, Caleb Wilson, Gene Wolfe, Jonathan Wood, Marly Youmans, and Catherine Zeidle

Steve Aylett? Rikki Ducornet? Gene Wolfe? Swanwick? BSC Imperial commander Hal Duncan? Some big timers up there, I mean you are getting a Rachel Swirsky and Jeffrey Ford story for pennies. Not to mention this is the return of the Ministry of Whimsy, a faith that I used to tell people I had hidden rank in. All they did previously was publish The Troika, which is one of the greatest books ever written. For more details and to get your pre-order on, check out Wyrm’s site.

Here is the release:

Shared Worlds, an innovative two week workshop in fantasy and science fiction worldbuilding is currently seeking applications for attendance from students grade eight to twelve who have an interest in creative writing and fantasy worldbuilding.

The program is held from July 19 through August 1 on the campus of Wofford College in Spartanburg, SC, and offers an intensely creative atmosphere in which students learn all aspects of building their own fictional world through instruction in creative writing, history, art, philosophy and physics and then apply that knowledge by creating fiction, games and more.

This year’s instructors include assistant director and two time World Fantasy Award winning author Jeff VanderMeer, Weird Tales fiction editor Ann VanderMeer, role playing game designer Will Hindmarch, Spiderwick Chronicles creator Holly Black and New York Times bestselling author Tobias Buckell, plus Wofford College’s own Dr. Christine Dinkins, philosophy professor, and Jeremy Jones, lecturer and camp director.

Although the emphasis of this think tank for teens is on fantasy, according to Jeff VanderMeer the things that the participants learn will be very useful in real life.

“This really is a unique opportunity for talented teens to mix having fun and flexing their imaginations with developing skills that will serve them well no matter what they decide to do with their lives.”

Tuition is $2,250 and includes room, board, instruction and all needed program material. Students who pay in full before May 1st will receive a discount of $250. A limited number of partial scholarships ($500) are available.

* For more information about Shared Worlds, visit http://sharedworlds.wofford.edu.

    
Check out Jeff VanderMeer speaking on the workshop:

    
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These will be signed by Ann and Jeff!

Table of Contents

“Bufo Rex” by Erik Amundsen (Weird Tales)
“The Ruby Incomparable” by Kage Baker (Wizards)
“The Last and Only” by Peter S. Beagle (Eclipse 1)
“Mario’s Three Lives” by Matt Bell (Barrelhouse)
“Interval” by Aimee Bender (Conjunctions)
“Minus, His Heart” by Jedediah Berry (Chicago Review)
“Abroad” by Judy Budnitz (Tin House)
“Chainsaw on Hand” by Deborah Coates (Asimov’s)
“The Drowned Life” by Jeffrey Ford (Eclipse 1)
“The Naming of the Islands” by David Hollander (McSweeney’s)
“Light” by Kelly Link (Tin House)
“The Revisionist” by Miranda Mellis (Harper’s)
“In the Middle of the Woods” by Christian Moody (Cincinnati Review)
“Story with Advice II: Back from the Dead” by Rick Moody (Mississippi Review)
“Ave Maria” by Micaela Morissette (Conjunctions)
“Logorrhea” by Michele Richmond (Logorrhea)
“Memoir of a Deer Woman” by M. Rickert (Fantasy & Science Fiction)
“The Seven Deadly Hotels” by Bruce Holland Rogers (shortshortshort.com)
“How the World Became Quiet: A Post-Human Creation Myth” by Rachel Swirsky (Electric Velocipede)

This is scheduled to be published some time in the near future and BookSpot Central would like to thank Jeff VanderMeer for allowing us to showcase this title!

This contest is open to all BookSpot Central members. Just PM (private message) me at our forums and you’re entered. Please include address/shipping information with your entry so we can get the prizes out to you as quickly as possible. Winners will be announced on January 3rd!

Please be sure to visit our contest page to be up to date with all current contests hosted at BookSpot Central.  We currently are running five active contests and are always adding more from all of the best publishers in the world!

Good luck to all!

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Our first focus will be on Best American Fantasy 2008 which should be hitting shelves soon via Prime Books and is edited by Jeff and Ann VanderMeer.

Table of Contents

1. “Bufo Rex” by Eric Amundsen (Weird Tales)
2. “The Ruby Incomparable” by Kage Baker (Wizards)
3. “The Last and Only” by Peter S. Beagle (Eclipse 1)
4. “Mario’s Three Lives” by Matt Bell (Barrelhouse)
5. “Interval” by Aimee Bender (Conjunctions)
6. “Minus, His Heart” by Jedediah Berry (Chicago Review)
7. “Abroad” by Judy Budnitz (Tin House)
8. “Chainsaw on Hand” by Deborah Coates (Asimov’s)
9. “The Drowned Life” by Jeffrey Ford (Eclipse 1)
10. “The Naming of the Islands” by David Hollander (McSweeney’s)
11. “Light” by Kelly Link (Tin House)
12. “The Revisionist” by Miranda Mellis (Harper’s)
13. “In the Middle of the Woods” by Christian Moody (Cincinnati Review)
14. “Story with Advice II: Back from the Dead” by Rick Moody (Mississippi Review)
15. “Ave Maria” by Micaela Morissette (Conjunctions)
16. “Logorrhea” by Michele Richmond (Logorrhea)
17. “Memoir of a Deer Woman” by M. Rickert (Fantasy & Science Fiction)
18. “The Seven Deadly Hotels” by Bruce Holland Rogers (shortshortshort.com)
19. “How the World Became Quiet: A Post-Human Creation Myth” by Rachel Swirsky (Electric Velocipede)

So what you will see periodically for the next couple of weeks are reviews of stories from Best American Fantasy 2008 popping up in their own individual posts all, however, leading to the same discussion thread at our forums. You will be able to navigate through all of them via our tags.

To kick it off a bit I asked Matthew Cheney (the series editor) what he thought when he hears the words ‘American Fantasy’.

My first thought on hearing the words “American fantasy” is not a single thought, but many — for instance, I immediately wonder what “American” means and what “fantasy” means and what they are doing together. Whose America? Whose fantasy? With our series, at least, we’ve made these questions central to the project by allowing the guest editors great freedom in defining the terms. The books are each a provisional answer by the guest editors to not only the vexing question of what constitutes “the best”, but also to the question of what “American” and “fantasy” might mean. – Matthew Cheney

So there you go and I hope you enjoy!

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I stole this from a couple of carousers, maybe even a carousing couple; two scallywags if I ever layed my eye on one. Me and my mate Corto Maltese met them in San Lorenzo and did them up good until an evil monkey swooped and saved their hides!

Most troubling, we can’t even sell it as the bastard put his name on it!

ummm…yeah

Something real cool here, we have up this time a copy of the forthcoming, Fast Ships, Black Sails, an anthology of pirate stories being published by Night Shade Books later this year.

Synopsis:

Do you love the sound of a peg leg stomping across a quarterdeck? Or maybe you prefer a parrot on your arm, a strong wind at your back? Adventure, treasure, intrigue, humor, romance, danger–and, yes, plunder. Oh, the Devil does love a pirate–and so do readers everywhere.

Swashbuckling from the past into the future and space itself, Fast Ships, Black Sails, edited by Ann & Jeff VanderMeer, presents an incredibly entertaining volume of original stories guaranteed to make you walk and talk like a pirate.

Come along for the voyage with bestselling authors Naomi Novik, Garth Nix, Carrie Vaughn, Dave Freer, Michael Moorcock, and Eric Flint, as well as such other stellar talents as Kage Baker, Sarah Monette, Elizabeth Bear, Steve Aylett, and Conrad Williams–all offering up a veritable treasure chest of piratical adventure, the likes of which has never been seen in the four corners of the Earth. Highlights include a brand-new Garth Nix Sir Hereward & Mr. Fitz novella, as the two clever ne’er-do-wells storm the sea-gates of the scholar-pirates of Sarkoe.

If ever you had a yearning for adventure on the high seas, now’s the time to indulge it, with Fast Ships, Black Sails. You’ll return with a sword shoved through your sash, booty in a safe harbor, and beer on your breath. We promise.

It’s the VanderMeer family, so you know they aren’t bringing anything but the best from the best. You can get more info on the book, including a table of contents at Night Shade’s website.

This contest is open to all BookSpotCentral members, just PM (private message) me at our forums and you’re entered. A winner will be drawn on October 25th. Please include address/shipping information with your entry so we can get the prizes out to you as quickly as possible.

Please be sure to visit our contest page to be up to date with all current contests hosted at BookSpotCentral. We currently are running three active contests!

I want to thank Jeff VanderMeer and Night Shade Books for allowing us to bring this opportunity for fortune and glory to BookSpotCentral (and for the opportunity to talk funny)

Good luck to all!

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