Ian Whates Announces Launch of ParSec Magazine

PS Publishing, after failing to acquire Interzone, said in February they will launch their own new online sf magazine called ParSec this year. Yesterday editor Ian Whates announced the ToCs of ParSec’s first two issues.

Issue #1

  • Gunbelt Highway – Dan Abnett
  • Down and Out Under the Tannhauser Gate – David Gullen
  • Nineteen Eighty-Nine – Ken MacLeod
  • The Lichyard – Harrison Varley
  • Time Traveller’s Shoes – Yuliia Vereta
  • Tesla on the Grass Alas – Esther M. Friesner
  • We Have Forever – Redfern Jon Barrett
  • The Power of 3 – Anna Tambour
  • Nova Oobleck Surfs The Second Aether – Paul Di Filippo
  • Interview with Christopher Priest

Issue #2

  • The Summer Husband – Angela Slatter
  • (Title To come) — Aliya Whiteley
  • But Once A Year — Ramsey Campbell
  • Portuguese Essay — George Tom
  • Neighbourhood Watch – Neil Williamson
  • All That’s Red Earth – Mike Carey
  • Five Ways to Accidentally Save the Earth from Alien Conquest – Gareth D Jones
  • The Elektron Mill – Sean McMullen
  • A Bayesian Analysis Of Wishes – Karen Brenchley

Whates also said, “There will be other non-fiction articles and additions, and of course reviews.” 

Digital magazine subscription info is at this link. PS Publishing is also offering this short-term deal  —

[Thanks to JJ for the story.]

PS Publishing Will Launch Its Own Magazine After Losing Interzone

UK firm PS Publishing will launch a new online sf magazine called ParSec later this year. The announcement came in the wake of Interzone’s Andy Cox (TTA Press) reversing his decision to turn the magazine over to them.  

Cox, in yesterday’s blog post “Interzone Does Not Have A New Publisher…” said “The deal we had was a very simple one and they had to commit to just one thing, but as soon as it became obvious they weren’t going to honour it we had no choice but to withdraw the magazine…” Whether existing subscriptions would be fulfilled seems to have been the issue, a concern prompted by PS Publishing’s statement that when Interzone resumed “by way of a goodwill gesture, the first electronic PS IZ (August 2021) will be sent free of charge to all previous subscribers,” which was understood to mean subscriptions would not be carried over by the new firm.

Ian Whates, who was going to step in as editor of Interzone and will still have that role with ParSec,told Facebook readers:

It is with considerable regret I report that I will not be the new editor of ‘Interzone’ as previously announced. On Tuesday afternoon I received an email from Andy Cox at TTA Press informing me that he had changed his mind and would not be passing the magazine over to PS Publishing after all.

I see no point in getting involved in any mud-slinging, and nor does PS, but I will say that after working solidly for three weeks on the project this came as a body blow to me, and I know that Peter [Crowther] and Nicky feel the same. There had been one stickling point regarding the handling of existing subscriptions, but we believed that to have been settled.

Determined that the energy and effort we have invested in this would not go to waste, we are excited to announce that as of this summer, PS Publishing will be launching a new digital genre magazine provisionally called ‘ParSec’ (though that might change), with yours truly as editor. What’s done is done. All of us are fired up about this new venture, and promise something very special; so watch this space!