Sybil’s Garage will be opening to submissions from September 8th, 2008 through November 30, 2008 for issue 6. We accept all works of speculative fiction (science fiction, fantasy, horror, slipstream, etc.). We also will accept stories with little or no speculative element, but with speculative tendencies (e.g. weird but not-necessarily supernatural.)

Also, please DO NOT assume, after having read our previous issues, that you know what we like. We are making a concerted attempt to diversify the types of stories we publish. If in doubt, send it to us anyway.

In addition, we are very interested in seeing stories written by and/or including varied ethnicities, social classes, and nationalities. We’d like to see more stories featuring under-utilized cultures and settings as well. Our editors and readers represent a variety of backgrounds and we’re always working to ensure that our publication reflects that as well.

Full guidelines are available here.

Another Sybil’s Garage review was posted yesterday by Mike Allen, editor of Clockwork Phoenix and Mythic Delirium. Among other things, he had to say this:

“I want to correct an injustice. My favorite story in the issue by far was Barbara Krasnoff’s ‘All His Worldly Goods,’ a brilliant short-short piece with a tranquil surface spread just a hair’s-depth over razor-sharp satire.”

He also had this to say:

“The other major highlight was a surprise, something you don’t see often in a ‘genre mag’ — and proof that [editor] Matt is up to something different — Mercurio D. Rivera’s ‘The Best-Dressed Man on the Court,’ a moving real life memoir about paddleball, eccentric acquaintances, the transient nature of friendship and the way a tragedy can unite strangers who otherwise have nothing in common. It’s an excellent piece of writing.”

You can read the full review here.

Elizabeth Vail of Green Man Review recently reviewed Sybil’s Garage No. 5.

“In this fifth issue of Sybil’s Garage, the bi-annual fiction and poetry anthology published by Senses Five Press, magic, consumerism, dead rock stars, and the just plain weird come together in an uneven but mostly well-written hodgepodge of fantasy fiction.”

Well, you can’t please all the folk, all the time.  Of particular note is the sentence:

“Each story is also peppered with illustrations that resemble nineteenth-century clip-art - since none of the stories takes place in nineteenth-century Britain, these images, which only very superficially reflect the events of the narratives, come across as twee and distracting.”

Not everyone has to like the 19th-century art, but without it, Sybil’s Garage is Not Sybil’s Garage, ya know?  That’s what makes us unique.  Anywho…

Here’s a link to the full review.

Sybil’s Garage will be opening to submissions for issue 6 on August 11th.  I will be posting more specific guidelines soon, but as always, the magazine open to all types of speculative fiction, 5000 words or less.  Strong character stories are our weakness, but surprise us!

We don’t see enough science fiction.*

Do not ever think the following:

a) “This  is not a Sybil’s Garage story.”

You are wrong**. Give us a shot!  We are actively trying to diversify both the slush pile and the types of stories we publish.

We welcome stories from non-white and non-Western point-of-views.

We look forward to your submissions!

* Less than 10% of stories we received for issue 5 were science fiction. 

** Maybe.  We can’t promise to like it. 

We were Boing Boinged! Last night, Devin Poore says to me, “I don’t feel any different.”

Cory Doctorow posted a link to Devin’s interview with Lauren McLaughlin. Never mind that he says Senses Five magazine. It should be Sybil’s Garage of course.