Edited by Johnny Mains and with artwork by David Whitlam, The Burning Circus is an anthology for members of the British Fantasy Society.

Stories include:

Not a member? Sign up now to secure your copy! The Burning Circus will be sent out alongside the next edition of the BFS Journal.

Ramsey Campbell has been the President of the British Fantasy Society for as long as we can remember. His hand has been on the tiller, guiding the BFS through sometimes choppy waters, but always there as the face of the society, and as the final arbiter in times of indecision and conflict.

As one of the most important writers of his genre and generation the BFS has been privileged to have him as president.

Sadly, all good things end, and Ramsey has indicated that for various reasons he feels that now is the right time for him to step down from this position, and it is with great sadness that we are announcing his retirement as president.

The committee hopes you will all join us in wishing Ramsey well for the future, and in thanking him for his tireless work in promoting and representing the British Fantasy Society.

We will be contacting all members again soon, with regard to the appointment of a new president, who will need to be proposed and voted for at the next AGM.

Regards,
The BFS Committee

Andrew Porter reports that British fan-artist Alan Hunter died on 1 August 2012 after a long illness.

Porter published many pieces of Hunter’s artwork in Algol/Starship and Science Fiction Chronicle. The back cover of the final issue of Starship was by him.

Hunter also illustrated many BFS publications including Chills and Dark Horizons. He was Artist Guest of Honour at the 1981 FantasyCon.

Details of his passing and some examples of his artwork can be found HERE

Photo (c) Andrew Porter

If you are a member of the BFS you should by now have received (or shortly be receiving) the latest BFS Journal (Autumn 2012). The Journal contains new fiction and poetry by: Christopher Golden, Gary Fry, Peter Crowther, Allen Ashley, Terry Grimwood and others. This issue also includes interviews with Nina Allan, Rhys Hughes, David A. Sutton and graphic artist Emma Vieceli (who also provides the amazing cover art for this issue of the Journal). Together with regular and one-off features by Mark Morris, Ramsey Campbell, Garry Kilworth (on crafting the short story) and Editorial Director of Gollancz Gillian Redfearn among others, this issue is jam-packed full of interesting content.

All BFS members receive the BFS Journal on a quarterly basis along with their other benefits of membership. If you haven’t yet joined the BFS but would like to do so to secure your copy of The Journal please go to the “join the BFS” page HERE

Shelflings is a BFS members-only ezine compiled by Stephen Theaker from reviews edited by Craig Lockley, Phil Lunt and Jay Eales for the British Fantasy Society website.

Links for downloading issue three will soon be emailed out to members, so make sure we have your current email address on file, especially if you didn’t receive the emails sent out for issues one and two. Send updates to our membership secretary at: secretary [at] britishfantasysociety [dot] org.

Issue three features reviews by Catherine Mann, Chris Limb, David Brzeski, David Rudden, Elloise Hopkins, Glen Mehn, Guy Adams, I. O’Reilly, Jeff Jones, Jim McLeod, Katy O’Dowd, M.P. Ericson, Mario Guslandi, Matthew Johns, Mike Chinn, Patrick Henry Downs, Pauline Morgan, Phil Ambler, Phil Lunt, R.A. Bardy, Sandra Scholes and Steve Dean.

In this issue the BFS team considers the work of Barnaby Edwards, Christopher Nolan, Chuck Wendig, David Moody, Graeme Hurry, Jason A. Wyckoff, Justin Richards, Mark Valentine, Michael Cisco, Nicholas Briggs, P.R. Pope, Philip José Farmer, Rowena Cory Daniells, Shaun Hutson, Simon Guerrier, Stephen King, Tad Williams, Tom Pollock, Tony Lee, and many others.

The deadline has been extended until the end of this week to book your place at the British Fantasy Awards Banquet on the Sunday afternoon, 30 September 2012, at FantasyCon. Always the grand finale of the convention, this is when the British Fantasy Society will announce the winners of this year’s prestigious British Fantasy Awards. Once bookings are closed we cannot take any further reservations.

The Banquet will be held in the Royal Albion Hotel’s Regency Lounge from 1:00pm until around 4:00pm on 30 September, when it will be followed by the traditional Dead Dog Party in the convention bar. There are only a small number of places remaining, and these will be allocated on a first-come basis.

To book your Banquet meal, please go to: http://www.fantasycon2012.org/banquet.php where you will find a full choice of menu and details of how to pay.

Please note that you MUST be a registered attendee of FantasyCon 2012 when you book your Banquet meal, unless you are a British Fantasy Award nominee for this year.

Publishers and individuals who wish to pre-reserve a table should e-mail banquet [at] fantasycon2012.org and supply a list of the ten people that they will have on their table. Each person should have a meal booked and paid for before the table reservation is made.

FantasyCon 2012 is being held at the Royal Albion Hotel in the historic seaside town of Brighton, East Sussex, over the weekend of 27 – 30 September 2012. We now have fewer than 40 memberships remaining, so if you haven’t joined up yet, then please do so now. All you have to do is go to the “How to Join” page on the website (www.fantasycon2012.org/join.php), submit the form with your details and then pay via the PayPal buttons. Alternately, you can print out the form and mail it with a cheque to the address given. A limited number of Saturday-Only memberships are also now available.

FantasyCon 2012 is delighted to announce a special appearance by best-selling author James Herbert on the Saturday only.

James Herbert’s The Rats was published in 1974 with a first printing of 100,000 paperback copies. Within weeks that first printing it was completely sold out, and the book has never been out of print since.

Since then he has reigned as Britain’s undisputed number one author of chiller fiction, with more than twenty best-selling novels to his credit, including The Fog, The Survivor, Fluke, The Spear, Lair, The Dark, The Jonah, Shrine, Domain, Moon, The Magic Cottage, Sepulchre, Creed, Portent, ’48, Others, Once, Nobody True and The Secret of Crickley Hall (set to air as a three-part drama on BBC1 this Hallowe’en).

With world-wide sales of more than fifty million copies, James Herbert is one of the world’s most popular novelists. His books are translated into more than thirty-five languages, including Russian and Chinese.

James Herbert will be signing his latest novel, Ash, from noon until 1:00 pm on Saturday 29 September 2012. Ash is the eagerly awaited third volume in the trilogy featuring psychic investigator David Ash, which began with Haunted and The Ghosts of Sleath.

Also, don’t forget to go to the FantasyCon website HERE and vote for your favourite ghost story of all time. Just fill-out the electronic form and submit it. No novels or novellas please, just short stories. One vote per person, and you cannot nominate your own work (otherwise your choice will not be counted).

We will then tabulate all the votes and the winning short story will be announced during a panel at the convention on the Saturday evening. A carefully selected group of experts will discuss their own favourite ghost stories and what it is that makes a classic spooky tale, before acclaimed author Ramsey Campbell reads the winning entry as the clock strikes the Witching Hour of midnight!

For more information about FantasyCon 2012 visit the website HERE

FantasyCon 2012 is pleased to announce that, as usual, we will be holding a series of Expert Masterclasses on Saturday, September 29. These events will run for approximately one hour each, and cost just £5:00 per person per session.

Among those taking part are Marc Aplin, Mark Gatiss, Will Hill, M.D. Lachlan, Will Francis, Gillian Redfearn and Tony Lee, and the topics covered include how to run a popular blog, how to construct a novel, how to write for TV, how to work with an editor, how to get an agent, how to write successfully for comics, and how to come up with a young adult novel.

Seating is limited to fifteen (15) people per session, so book now to avoid disappointment! All the details can be found on the FantasyCon 2012 website at www.fantasycon2012.org/masterclass.htm.

We will also be presenting a number of Entertainments throughout the convention. These range from the Poetry Event hosted by Allen Ashley, the FantasyCon Quiz with question masters Joe Abercrombie and Sarah Pinborough, and the always-popular Just a Minute chaired by Paul Cornell, to the Fabulous FantasyCon Raffle presided over by the dapper John L. Probert and Guy Adams, and FantasyCon’s Evening Emporium of Entertainment featuring everything from recitations by Reggie Oliver, a short play by Stephen Volk, and the see-it-to-believe-it Burlesque performed by Alessa Dark. And don’t forget that Gollancz will be hosting the FantasyCon Disco on Saturday night with deejays Guy Adams and Rio Youers spinning the hits! For full details of what’s on offer, go to www.fantasycon2012.org/entertainment.htm.

Regarding the Raffle, please remember that we need your help. We would be grateful if you could donate a prize (or, even better, prizes) to support the Fabulous FantasyCon Raffle. All donations – and we really do mean ALL! – are always welcome, and the presenters will do their best to name-check as many people and publishers as possible who have donated prizes in the time available. Please e-mail us on info [at} fantasycon2012 [dot] org if you have something to donate, and go to http://www.fantasycon2012.org/raffle.htm for more information.

And don’t forget that the grand finale of FantasyCon 2012 will be the Awards Banquet on the Sunday afternoon, at which the British Fantasy Society will announce the winners of this year’s prestigious British Fantasy Awards. Banquet tickets are selling fast, and places are extremely limited. All bookings must be received no later than 9 September 2012. All the information can be found at http://www.fantasycon2012.org/banquet.php, and publishers and individuals who wish to pre-reserve a table should e-mail banquet [at] fantasycon2012 [dot] org and supply a list of the ten people that they will have on their table. Each person should have a meal booked and paid for before the table reservation is made.

FantasyCon 2012 is being held at the Royal Albion Hotel in the historic seaside town of Brighton, East Sussex,  from 27 – 30 September 2012. We now have fewer than 60 memberships remaining, so if you haven’t joined up yet, then please do so now. All you have to do is go to the “How to Join” page on the website (www.fantasycon2012.org/join.php), submit the form with your details and then pay via the PayPal buttons. Alternately, you can print out the form and mail it with a cheque to the address given. A limited number of Saturday-Only memberships are also now available.

With Author Guests of Honour Joe R. Lansdale, Muriel Gray and Brent Weeks, Special Editor Guest Mary Danby, Special Media Guests Mark Gatiss and Robin Hardy, along with Master of Ceremonies Tim Lebbon, this is an event not to be missed!

After almost a year in the role, Caroline Callaghan has decided to step down as the British Fantasy Society’s Online News Editor. She says:

“To enable me to concentrate on other things, I’m reluctantly leaving this role having very much enjoyed my time as news editor. I’m delighted to announce that Phil Lunt has agreed to take on the role, and will do so with immediate effect. I will be staying on as an ‘occasional reporter’ and hope to continue to contribute to the BFS website in this way.”

“May I send a huge ‘thank you’ to all the wonderful contacts I’ve made over this year; people who’ve sent in news for the website and who have contributed to making the site as helpful and informative as I feel it is today. Please continue to send your news and events to Phil at the usual address (news@britishfantasysociety.org). I’m confident that with Phil in this role, the website will go from strength to strength.”

With FantasyCon fast approaching there’s no time like the present to book your attendance at the event if you haven’t already done so. FantasyCon will take place from 27 – 30 September 2012 at the Royal Albion Hotel, Brighton, UK. A limited number of Saturday-only memberships are also now available.

Guests at the event will be: Joe R. Lansdale, Muriel Gray, Brent Weeks, Mary Danby, Mark Gatiss and Robin Hardy. Master of Ceremonies is Tim Lebbon.

There will be panel discussions, Q&As, book launches, readings and films, along with the British Fantasy Awards ceremony and the famed FantasyCon banquet and raffle.

Tickets are selling fast so book yours HERE