This is not a blog entry but a series of notes toward one

Last week, in my notes on volume 1, issue 1 of SCIENCE FICTION AGE, I discussed a story by Barry N. Malzberg and noted how he was one of my favorite all-time writers. Someone, who shall remain nameless, pointed Mr. Malzberg to my comments on his story and last night, as I was waiting for my laundry to dry, I received an email message from Barry Malzberg, thanking me for my comments and pointing out some things about the story that I missed.

How cool is that!

Of course, I wrote him back at once and let him know how much I enjoyed everything he writes and telling him that I only wish he wrote more often. I felt like a little kid. But this morning, I had another note from him. It is all very surreal to me. I mean, how often do you get email from the literary lights that you look up to? I love to write and I love to write science fiction. But I sometimes think that the real reason I want to be a science fiction writer is not to become a published author of note, but instead to get to talk to and hang out with all these cool people who create this magic.