It hardly seems possible, but this is our third issue of flashquake, and we couldn't be more pleased by your response to our efforts. flashquake has become a living thing, thanks to the wonderful writers and artists who have trusted us with their work, and the readers who keep telling us we're on the right track.

And like any successful organism, we have adapted to our environment. We heard from a number of writers about the things they didn't like about our submission process — the reading fee, the submission form, the issue themes — so we eliminated them.

We were pleasantly surprised by the result. Although it was a lot of work, what a luxury it was to have so many talented writers' work to choose from!

A record number of stories, essays, plays and poems were submitted for this issue, and many of them were truly outstanding. So many, in fact, that two of our editors, Vanitha Sankaran and Dave Lignell, have offered up their stipends to enable us to pay more writers, via our new Editor's Picks section. Our art director, Roger Paris, has offered a stipend for the cover art that graces each issue of flashquake.

So, you see, flashquake is not only a living thing, it's a labor of love for everyone involved. Thanks to all of you — readers, writers, poets, playwrights and artists alike — for making this labor of love worthwhile.

On a more personal note, I'd like to take this opportunity to say goodbye and farewell to one of flashquake's founding editors, Dave Lignell. Despite having a schedule that would wear most of us to a frazzle, we've always been able to count on Dave for his timely and solid submission reviews. Dave is an insightful editor and a talented writer in his own right, and we'll miss him.

Filling in for Dave while we search out a long-term replacement is Paul Fahey. Paul is another great writer and the editor of the college journal Mindprints, A Literary Journal. His work has been seen in a number of publications, most notably Potpourri, The Macguffin, Orchard Press Mysteries, The Paumanok Review and most recently in flashquake, Nefarious 55 Words of Mystery, Thema and Seven Hills Review.

Paul will be working with us on the upcoming Summer and Fall issues.

© 2002 by Debi Orton

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