[Transcriber's Note: Extensive research did not uncover anyevidence that the U.S. copyright on this publication was renewed.]
A SAD, SAD STORY
Once upon a time, a year ago last summer, to be more specific, I hadmoney to burn, but rather than burn it, I decided to launch an attackupon the fantasy-loving public in the form of a fan magazine. You'veguessed it—the result was none other than THE FANTASY FAN. I placedenough capital in the venture to start it off. Needless to say, Iwas disappointed with the results, as far as circulation goes—it'salways that way. Inexperience with the publishing game allows forpretty pictures of people just dying to send in their dollars toyour new magazine, but the cold facts certainly throw ice-water onair-castles. Experience shows that a publisher must fight for everysubscription. It is filled with disappointments and hard knocks. Afterall, magazines are luxuries, particularly fiction magazines, and evenmore particularly fan magazines—and people can't afford luxuriesduring times when they can just about secure money enough to live on.Fantastic fiction magazines have never been huge successes with thegeneral public, whose average intelligence is that of a moron. Thelovers of fantasy have a higher type of intellect, and are thereforevery few in number. I doubt that there are 150,000 people in thiscountry of 125,000,000 who can really appreciate the science and weirdfiction that is published in contemporary magazines. They are what youcall 'class' publications. And not one reader in five hundred of thesefantasy magazines is the least bit interested in the "fan" angle—butthose of them that are are loyal to the last. Each of them is worthfifty ordinary readers. They are the only ones that are interestedin the fan magazines, so you can see why the aforementioned fanmagazines will never boast of circulations comparing with Libertyor the Saturday Evening Post or pay $500 for a cover illustration.Therefore, the only way to keep fan magazines is to secure everyavailable active fan, those rare specimens, and keep them together inone big family. Of course, a few more spring up every here and therewhen otherwise normal people discover that there is such a thing asfantasy fiction and fan magazines.
What I started out to say was that I had money to burn when I organizedTHE FANTASY FAN and didn't mind it running in the red for a year. Andso it has. And so it continues. I kept putting money in, and puttingmoney in, never taking a cent out—never regretting the loss (nor doI today, nor consider it loss). I have enjoyed sacrificing hundredsof dollars (and that's not sarcasm) and devoting much of my time togathering and assorting material for each issue.
But—and here's the reason for all this quibbling—domesticcircumstances now prevent from taking any more money from my own pocketto donate to the cause, and the only way that THE FANTASY FAN cancontinue publication is to pay for itself. Of course, the circulationhas gone up way past the mark where it half pays for the issue,certain months—due to advertising in Wonder Stories Science FictionSwap Column under cover and the mention that Farnsworth Wright gaveTHE FANTASY FAN is in the Eyrie in the September 1934 issue of WeirdTales, not to speak of the co-operation of the readers we alreadyhad—but that is not enough. Now, my printer is a very nice fellow andprints THE FANTASY FAN for a very low price that cannot be duplicatedanywhere, and it really does not cost so much to run TFF, when comparedto the more professional magazines. I can guarantee you one thing,though: if every reader we now have w