Our guest today is Cavan Terrill. He is the editor of Fusion Fragment, a Canadian short fiction magazine. Their first issue is out now, and it comes with a giveaway. For the writerly types, keep your eyes on the submissions page and be sure to follow Fusion Fragment on Twitter. Without further ado, let's get to the interview.
CT:
I started Fusion Fragment back in 2007, shortly after I’d finished university.
I’d started a small publishing company and was interested in having a
short-fiction market to feed into regularly published anthologies. None of
those anthologies ever happened, though, and Fusion Fragment became the focus
of all my editing efforts. At the time it was a very small market that only
paid a token amount, but I was shocked at how often great stories would come my
way. Knowing how many great stories out there never get the visibility they
deserve played a big role in my decision to relaunch the zine.
~~~
Interview with Cavan Terrill
Alexandra Seidel:
Hi, Cavan, and thank you for agreeing to the interview. You’re the editor of
Fusion Fragment, a Canadian Magazine of speculative fiction. Before we get into
that, tell us a bit about yourself.
Cavan Terrill:
By day I work in healthcare IT specializing in patient intake forms, so I’ve
spent the last couple of months helping develop a lot of COVID-19 screening
questionnaires and education forms for patients. Everything before that sort of
feels like a weird dream right now, which I’m sure is the same for a lot of
people. These days I’m mostly staying sane by reading a lot and window-shopping
vacations for whenever we’re allowed to go outside again.
AS:
Wow. I admire the fact that during this crisis, you are still finding the time
to put out a magazine! But Fusion Fragment isn’t new, right? You brought it
back to life. Could you tell us about that and let us know what kind of venue
Fusion Fragment was, is, and what you hope it will be?
CT:
I started Fusion Fragment back in 2007, shortly after I’d finished university.
I’d started a small publishing company and was interested in having a
short-fiction market to feed into regularly published anthologies. None of
those anthologies ever happened, though, and Fusion Fragment became the focus
of all my editing efforts. At the time it was a very small market that only
paid a token amount, but I was shocked at how often great stories would come my
way. Knowing how many great stories out there never get the visibility they
deserve played a big role in my decision to relaunch the zine.
As
for what it is and will be, I’d love to say that I have some grand vision in
mind. The truth is I just love being able to give great fiction a good home. If
someone happens to pick up an issue and finds a story they like or a new author
to follow, that’s all I’m after.
AS:
I think bringing great fiction into the world is a good enough reason, and
oftentimes smaller magazines offer a place for interesting stories that may not
be a good fit for other places. But for the writers out there, can you tell us
a bit about what kind of things you like, what you just can’t get enough of as
an editor?
CT:
I’m generally a lot more interested in characters than I am in concepts, so I
find myself often drawn in by quiet, thoughtful stories that spend a lot of
time developing a strong central character. Cyberpunk, post-apocalyptic and
near-future SF stories are generally the easiest sells for me, but then again
only two of seven stories in the first issue fall into those categories, so it
gives you some idea as to how much weight I give to any specific subgenre.
I
also tend to lean towards longer pieces that take their time in developing the
narrative. There’s lots of great markets out there that focus on shorter-form
pieces, but the sweet spot for me is usually in the 8,000-15,000 word range.
AS:
In terms of genre, what will you consider? Only science fiction, or are you
open to some fantasy as well?
CT:
I expect I’ll stay squarely in the science fiction domain, but I’ve also
learned to never say never. For example, if you’d asked me a couple months ago
if I’d be publishing any vampire fiction, I’d have said no, and yet I’ve got a
vampire piece lined up for the second issue. So, I’d say that fantasy would be
a difficult sell for me, but not necessarily an impossible one.
AS:
Science fiction and fiction in general tends to change with the times. Do you
see anything that has changed in the kinds of stories you received back when
you first started Fusion Fragment and the ones writers sent in for your
relaunch?
CT:
The most significant change that struck me was a tonal one. As a whole, the
submissions I read this year were a lot more optimistic in tone than those from
the zine’s original run. The world’s a lot grimmer than it was ten years ago
and I think a lot of people are writing against that and trying to envision
more positive futures.
AS:
Let’s talk about readers; why should people come and read Fusion Fragment? How
would you pitch the zine?
CT:
My pitch is a straightforward one: Quality character-driven speculative
fiction.
AS:
Cavan, thanks for joining us for this interview!
~~~
Fusion Fragment is a purveyor of fine speculative fiction. Follow Fusions Fragment on Twitter and grab an issue from the store.
