Letter from the Editor

This—our sixth issue—marks the end of Year Two of Augur Magazine. When we first launched our Kickstarter back in September 2017, we promised to deliver six issues of intersectional dreamy realism and speculative literature over the course of two years. We are so proud to say that with this volume—we’ve done it! 

Over the last two years, we’ve gained over 4000 followers on Twitter, received nearly 5000 submissions, and published a total of 58 short stories, poems, and comics. We’ve incorporated as a not-for-profit and our editors have spoken on panels about speculative literature and the publishing industry at major conventions and festivals. “Lasciare Suonare” by Andrew Wilmot from Issue 1.1 was longlisted for the Sunburst Award for Short Story Fiction, “The Steam-Powered Princess” by Aimee Ogden from Issue 1.2 appeared on the Locus Recommended Reading List, and “Roots and Shoots” by Laura DeHaan from Issue 2.1 appeared on the Nebula Reading List.  

We’re overwhelmed and humbled by the success we’ve had thus far, and we can’t wait to show you what we have in store for the future. Recently, we announced that in fall 2020, we’ll be hosting Augury: A Conference for Canadian Speculative Fiction and Dreamy Realism in Toronto. The conference will be a one-day event full of panels and workshops. We’re grateful to the Toronto Arts Council for providing us with the funding—including an accessibility grant—to make this happen. 

We’ve also announced some changes to Augur Magazine: Going forward, we will publish two issues a year rather than three, and we’ve increased our pay rates to match the current pro rate for short fiction as defined by the SFWA. Canada currently doesn’t have a pro-paying speculative fiction market, and we want to fill that role and provide an even bigger platform for Canadian and Indigenous creators—and creators around the world—to showcase their work. 

There have also been some changes to our editorial team: Kerrie Seljak-Byrne is continuing as Publisher, Alex De Pompa has taken over the role of Editor in Chief, and Lawrence Stewen has stepped into the position of Managing Editor. Since Issue 2.2, we’ve been joined by editors Victoria Liao and Vivian Li. We’re sad to say that Mado Christie, co-founder and Senior Editor of Augur, has decided to step down from their role. We’ll miss Mado’s wit, incisive editorial eye, and unfailing generosity to their authors, but we wish them the best in their future endeavours. 

Many of the pieces that we’ve published in the past have focused on transformation—on how individuals change when they stand up to power and find hope in dire situations. The pieces in this volume take this theme in a new direction: they recognize that change never happens in isolation—that change is always inspired, hampered, or facilitated by our relationships to others. 

In this issue, we see characters navigate failing and broken relationships as they struggle to let go of inaccurate ideas of who they—and their partners—are. They learn that sometimes the walls we build to protect ourselves can instead imprison us, leaving us alone and despondent. 

But we also see movement, connection, and characters discovering second lives—the pieces in this volume show us that we can always start again and find a new home. When we let go of the things that are no longer a part of us, soon enough we’ll find new things to hold onto. There are always new stories to tell. 

Now that we’ve finished what we set out to do with our 2017 Kickstarter and find ourselves on the precipice of a new decade, it’s time for us at Augur to get back to planning the next stage of our evolution. We wouldn’t have made it this far without you—without your support, engagement, and openness. We hope that you’ll continue on this journey with us, because there are still many stories that we have yet to hear. 

Alex De Pompa

Editor in Chief