Here's the second batch of Bad-Fic winners! Check the April issue for more Bad-Fic.

	Love in Bloom - By Don Edwards.
	The Stars Like Flying Toasters by Laura Loomis
	Leftovers: Luncheon of Souls (The Saga Continues) by Kevin James Miller

Writing Treat
Sent in by Lisa Jonte: The Everchanging Book of Names

Ack!  I'm going to post the June issue next week.  I'm back from MoCCA, but came back right in the middle of a deadline for a freelance project.  That has priority, but I'll be caught up on it by Monday.  Again, my apologies for the delay!

I'll update the June issue when I get back from MoCCA.  Thanks for your patience -- there's just no way I can get it done before.

	A Game of Cards by Melinda Selmys Food and high stakes poker, all equally apportioned.
	What My Bass Teacher Tried to Tell Me by Daniel C. Smith A simple message, elegantly written. Learn to love grammar - it's not your enemy!
	Natural Order by Laura Bickle Evicting unwanted tenants is always a tricky proposition.

Byzarium is still unable to accept submissions at this time.

My life is full of crazy, but I'm making headway, and there are good things on the horizon.  Yesterday I turned the first chapter of Book 2 of The Faerie Path manga in to my editor at Tokyopop.  I am now gathering together material and getting ready to go to MOCCA, along with my friends Karen Luk and Rachel Nabors in June.  More on that later!  I'm also deeply mired in a personal writing project.  So yes: BUSY. @_@

Your helpful grammar tip for the day:

Whose vs Who's

Whose is the possessive.

Who's is a contraction of 'who has' or 'who has'.

The first batch of Bad-Fic winners are online! I posted the issue on Friday, as promised, but last week was too crazy -- I was too exhausted to deal with it last week. Better late than never though, right?

Just a quick reminder: there were so many great Bad-Fic submissions that I've split the winners up into 2 batches. The second batch will appear in the July issue.

	The Lone Tower - By Val Cunningham.
	Love in the Hovering Garden by Gloria Weber
	The Purple Fairy Squid Teaches Aiethalynne-Bethe a Lesson by Theresa Tschetter
	Red Storm by Patricia E. Canterbury

I'm not even going to attempt to write summaries for these stories -- just read 'em. They're well worth it, especially if you're familiar with speculative fiction cliches.

Thanks to everyone for their wonderful Bad-Fic entries to the first ever annual Byzarium Bad-Fic contest!  We received so many great entries that we've decided to split them up into 2 issues -- the first batch will appear in the April issue (going online this Friday, the 4th), and the second batch will appear in the July issue.  Without further ado, here's the list of winners:

Patricia E. Canterbury - Red Storm

Val Cunningham - The Lone Tower

Gloria Weber - Love in the Hovering Garden

Kevin James Miller - Leftovers: Luncheon of Souls (The Saga Continues)

Laura Loomis - The Stars Like Flying Toasters

Donald B. Edwards - Love in Bloom

Theresa Tschetter - The Purple Fairy Squid Teaches Aiethalynne-Bethe a Lesson

Thanks again to everyone who entered!  I was pleasantly surprised by the amount of entries we received.

This leads in to the next order of business I wanted to discuss. Byzarium is going to have to be run on auto-pilot for the entire summer. I have already selected stories to fill those issues. It's getting to be con season and, between my freelance work, day job, and private creative projects, my life is about to go into over-drive. The summer issues WILL appear online, but we are going to have to remain closed to submissions until at least September.

It's spring-time! Time for asparagus, young onions and lettuces...and more Byzarium stories! In this month's issue we have:

The Sorceress of Avalo
by Therese Arkenberg
Rebirth, time-worn.

The Wolf Maiden
by Megan Arkenberg
Promises, promises.

Enter the Komodo
by Elizabeth Hopkinson
Love transcends all...even species? I dunno about that one...

One Winter Day
by Gloria Weber
Some days it just doesn't pay to get out of bed.

Silent Skies
by Katherine Shaw
It can take a lifetime to discover a civilization's past.

Submissions for the Byzarium Bad-Fiction Contest have CLOSED! There will also be no new Flash Fiction Contest image this month, because Barbara and I will be reading through the Bad-Fic contest subs. Thanks to everyone who submitted! We can't wait to read through all your stories.

The March issue of Byzarium will go online Monday, March 3.

I am still digging through the slush pile!  I apologize for the amount of time it's taking me.  My husband and I were bused to Reno to celebrate his job's 10 year anniversary, and I thought I'd be able to take the kitty and bunny free time to read through the slush.  Well, surprise surprise, the hotel we stayed at charged 10 cents a minute for wiFi, so I didn't get a chance to work on anything.  As soon as we got home on Sunday, I discovered that one of my interior walls needs to be shimmed a bit, so we spent most of the evening moving everything out of that room.  So, in short - ARGH!

Happy New Year, everyone! Welcome to 2008. This marks the beginning of Byzarium's fourth year. We wish everyone an auspicious (and creative!) year.

In this month's issue we have:

The Moon is Shattered
by Silvia Moreno-Garcia
Sometimes the poisoned fruit looks the sweetest.

Under the Apple Tree
by Val Cunningham
Eternal devotion, as advertised.

Too Hot To Handle
by Sandra Panicucci
Not every prisoner's spirit can be broken.

There's also a new Flash Fiction Contest image!

The entries are rolling in! You have until Feb 29th to submit your Bad-Fic Contest entry.

Except for the Flash contest and the Bad-Fic Contest, Byzarium will be closed to submissions for the time being. We've got stories selected through to April, and I'm going through the slush pile. Please hold off on novella submissions, as well, since I'm reading through several as well. We'll let you guys know when we open our submissions back up!