External links

Links listed below are the ones that I found interesting for some reason or other. They are not in any particular order. Moved here from left bar to reduce clutter on most pages, & also to add some commentary.

1. Clarkesworld: They publish two stories a month; there are some I have reviewed. From about a dozen stories I have seen till date, their stories tend to lean towards contemporary politics rather than sf, though occasionally you get an sf story.
   
2. Strange Horizons: They publish 1 story every Monday. From the ones I have seen, quality is rather mixed - from absolutely outstanding to complete trash. Most of the time, I don't care about their stories - except when they turn out an outstanding one - I think 1 in 6 stories. Science fiction content is rather low - may be 1 on 4 or 5 stories. There are some stories I have reviewed.
   
3. Helix
4. ISFDB: I often refer to it for bibliographical information. Note that information obtained from here needs to be cross checked with other sources; I have seen several instances of inaccurate data. When looking for data about a specific author, I often find it is incomplete. In spite of the flows, it is a very handy resource.
   
5. sfsignal
6. Interpreting awards: Reading a story takes time. How do I choose one that is likely to be good? One of the sources appears to be the popular industry awards like Hugo. My experience with Hugo stories is: hit rate for good stories is not very substantially increased by referring to awards lists - there are just too many substandard stories that win awards. Particularly the longer ones like novels, where winner stands substantial monetary gain through increased sales. This link has some thoughts on the subject.
7. Ultimate Science Fiction Web Guide, their list of stories by category, & the sublist of hard sf stories. At the time of adding this link, I've read only one story from this list - and not a very good one - but list appears promising.
8. Elizabeth Bear's "Congratulations": 15-point advice for artists on how to handle fans & critics. Very readable.
9. Bud Webster's "Past Masters": A very readable introduction to works by H Beam Piper.
10. "2007 Preliminary Nebula Ballot".