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SPECTRUM 14 HITS THE STORES!

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Spectrum 14 cover by Andrew Jones

"They're shipping from the distributors," notes Cathy Fenner, "and should start to show up on the shelves pretty quick. For the chains like Borders and Barnes & Noble, copies usually go to their warehouses and are sent out to the individual stores from there. The independent shops and on-line booksellers should be getting their books direct so they may start to appear in those outlets a little sooner."

Spectrum 14 Advertising Gold and Silver Awards feat. James Jean and Donato Giancola

Advertising Gold and Silver Awards pages featuing James Jean (l) and Donato Giancola (r)

Closer to home, we're in the process of packing and mailing books to the artists featured in #14. "They arrived on a semi in the middle of a rainstorm," says Arnie Fenner, "so the driver and I had a lot of fun unloading them." The first batch of books were mailed Oct. 25th and Fenner estimates that all copies will be shipped to the artists by Nov. 10th. "The guys behind the counter at the Post Office hate to see me walk through the door this time of year," he says.

Page from the Spectrum 14 Books category

A page from the Books category...

Spectrum 14 is the biggest book in the series thus far, weighing in at a hefty 248 pages. As with past volumes, it has been released in simultaneous hardcover and softcover editions. "It's not a 50/50 split," Cathy points out. "Only 1/4 of the total press run is in hardcover and any reprints are in softcover, so when the hardbacks are gone, they're gone. We also did something a little bit different this year: the wonderful Andrew Jones cover is featured on both editions, but the art on the back cover is different. Wei Ming's work is featured on the back of the hardcover while Aleksi Briclot is showcased on the reverse of the softback."

Page from the Comics category in Spectrum 14

... and another page from the Comics category...

An international selection of 317 artists with over 400 artworks are included in the book. Also featured is the comprehensive Year In Review column, which seems a little more contentious than it may have been previously. "Well, I'm sure it will rub some people the wrong way," Arnie laughs, "but there were some potholes in Highway 2006 that I wanted to talk about. I always touch on world events just for context and because they affect everyone: I try to do it with a certain amount of humor and in a non-partisan manner, but some fannish-fans get upset annually because they hate for current events to intrude on their escapism.

The Year in Review

A couple of fairly innocuous paragraphs seems to anger them each year – so, of course, they'll get mad about 14's review, too. That's life. Also, quite frankly, nothing ticks ME off more than people who show disrespect for artists and their works. Liking this or disliking that is perfectly fine, but the minute they start to condescend or put people down or deprive artists of their proper credit, I'm perfectly happy to publicly kick the perpetrator in the seat of the pants. I was wearing boots this year."

Page from the Unpublished category from Spectrum 14

... finishing up with a page from the Unpublished category

Click here to view the Spectrum 14 award winners, or click here to view the full artist list of those appearing in the book.

The Call For Entries for Spectrum 15 is now open with posters going out and entry forms currently available on-line.

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Our Mission

To promote the fantastic arts and provide an annual showcase for contemporary artists.

Directors

Cathy Fenner
Arnie Fenner

Advisory Board

Rick Berry
Brom
Mark Chiarello
Leo & Diane Dillon
Harlan Ellison
Irene Gallo
Bud Plant
Don Ivan Punchatz
Tim Underwood
Michael Whelan

Administrator

Arlo Burnett

"...just about every page offers wonder, eye-popping beauty, and masterworks of imagination."

SCI FI magazine

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