“You’ve edited some critically-acclaimed sci-fi anthologies. (Plus you have fantasy and superhero anthologies forthcoming.) Could you talk a little bit about that particular editorial process? How is editing an anthology different from editing a novel? For you, what makes a good anthology?
Editing an anthology is like editing a mix tape, which is a lost art in the age of iTunes and Shuffle Play and you can’t really understand unless you have made a mix with LPs and cassettes. But it is all about juxtaposition, the rise and fall of tone, the way one story (or song) ends and leaves an image or association or tone hanging in your mind that blends through the silence into the beginning of the next offering. For me, as a reader, a good anthology is any one where I like over 50% of the stories. The whole point of an anthology should be the opportunity of discovery it affords, the ability to take risks beyond your usual reading habits, to try out at the short form something you might not risk investing in for a whole novel. The reader shouldn’t like every single story in the book, or they haven’t been stretched. But they should like most, and of course, the goal is for them to like as near to all as possible. ”
3 out of 5
http://redstonesciencefiction.com/2010/05/interview-lou-anders/3/
