Uncle Dave Wants You!

... to become a Tangent Online reviewer!

Dave Truesdale at Tangent Online is looking for people interested in helping them review science fiction and fantasy short fiction from magazines, anthologies, and other sources.

What does it mean to be a reviewer for Tangent, you ask? Well, let me tell you:

• There’s no pay. “We review short fiction for love of genre.”

• Reviewers are asked to do one review per month. If you can do more, hey — nobody is going to complain! On the other hand, if you need to take a break Because Life, they understand.

• Reviewers get to choose what they review from a list of around 15-20 magazines and anthologies. Titles including Analog, Asimov’s, and others (yes, including Raconteur Press titles!)

• Deadlines vary - but you get a rough deadline with each listing, so you can figure out if you have the time to do things properly.

How do I sign up?

If you want to join the Tangent Review army, start by reading “Selling Freedom of Expression for Thirty Pieces of Silver Silver”. If the opinions there are not a deal breaker for you, you can get the process rolling by talking to your friendly local recruiter, “Uncle" Dave Truesdale.

How do you do that? Well, you email Dave at tangent.dt1@gmail.com. Tell him that you’re a reader and you’re interested in becoming a reviewer for Tangent.

That’s it! Dave will respond and ask you about yourself. He’s a very friendly, so don’t worry, he won’t bite. Not even so much as a nip. If you’re at LibertyCon this week, you can even verify that by meeting him in person! We guarantee a 100% nibble-free encounter or your money back.

Is that it? Really?

Well… there is a test. It’s a teeny little one, though. Really!

After you chat, Dave will set you up with a PDF or eARC for review. You read the PDF, write up a review, and then send it back to Dave. He might will likely will certainly give you some feedback. If you’re a good reviewer, and can take direction / correction? You’re in.

After this first review, you will be added to an email list. Dave emails his reviewers every month with that month’s list of magazines or anthologies to review, and you can pick as you like. As mentioned, they ask you to do a review a month, but that’s flexible. People can (and do) jump in and out of the review lineup.

What does a good review look like?

There is no style guide, no minimum word count, and no guard rails. It’s learn as you go. Look at the other reviews (like those from Victoria Silverwolf) to get an idea for what makes up a good review.

In general - shoot for friendly but professional; list the stories and the authors; provide a brief summary of each story along with some critical comments.

[Hey, Spearman Burke & Sam Robb, maybe you two could put a primer together on how to do a review… hint-hint.]

So why not take the plunge? Email “Uncle” Dave Truesdale today and tell him you’re interested in being a reviewer!

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