This time last year

On April 1st, 2007 this ’zine launched with the story: Bat Durston, Space Marshal by G. Richard Bozarth. It was originally published in Asimov’s Magazine of Science Fiction under the editorship of George Scithers.

In March of 2007, before the ’zine had even launched, I attended Lunacon 50. While there, I was on the Space Cowboys panel with Ernest Lilley, Marvin Kaye, and Keith R.A. DeCandido. On April 7th, 2007, this feature became the first audio file published on SpaceWesterns.com, and distributed through our podCast channel.

Ben Jonjak holds the special place on SpaceWesterns.com. His story, Threshold, is the first original piece of fiction that we published.

The first interview appearing on SpaceWesterns.com was an Interview with Keith DeCandido, author of the Serenity novelization, Star Craft: Ghost: Nova, and Star Trek: Tales of the Dominion War, among other stories.

Doug Goodman provided us with Ice Dwarves. It was the second original story the was run on SpaceWesterns.com. How can you beat a story about farm-raised genetically engineered beasties on Pluto?

The first “Space Western” album that I was introduced to was Sundown on Venus by the Jet Black Berries. Sundown on Venus, a Jet Black Berries retrospective by Eric Reanimator was the first non-fiction article by an outside writer that was published on SpaceWesterns.com.

The Preacher was submitted by David Riley, who is also the editor of Science Fiction Trails, an annual magazine of Science Fiction set in the Wild West.

The Green Hills of Earth, performed by X Minus One is based on a story by Robert Heinlein. I’ve been told that it’s a steamer tramp story, but it reminds me much more of Gene Autry vehicle (a saddle tramp in Spaaaaace).

I was thrilled to have been able to republish Catskinner Sweet and the Twirling Teacups of Deadwood City, by James S. Dorr. The story originally appeared on Nuketown, back when it offered free fiction online.

How Beautiful the Herd on the Dark Matter Range was the first story submitted to SpaceWesterns.com by Jens Rushing. He later revised and expanded the story to receive an honorable mention in the Writers of the Future contest.