We're pleased to bring you the second installment in our series of personal essays by Strange Horizons authors discussing what the magazine has meant to them. Enjoy!

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Strange Horizons changed how I think about editors.

Every story of mine that Strange Horizons has published has gone through several iterations of their editorial process, each time vastly improving the story. One editor in particular took the time to go through a particular story repeatedly, version after version, each edit strengthening and smoothing the story, all through the weekend leading up to publication. We were both at a convention that weekend – the same convention, in fact.

I came to understand that, as important as the editorial process is to me, it's even more important for them. Their job, after all, is to provide excellent stories each issue, and reassuring a panicky author is only part of that job.

Which brings me to the second way Strange Horizons has made an impact on me as a writer. A good percentage of writing is just reading – especially reading new, diverse, fascinating stories, expanding the world of stories that eventually inform my own. Strange Horizons excels at that, as well as providing thoughtful columns and reviews that shape how I think about science fiction and fantasy.

So to go back to my first sentence, I think it could probably use an edit: Strange Horizons changed how I think.