In honor of their 85th anniversary issue, Weird Tales, edited by Ann VanderMeer, recently asked readers to vote for who they think are the “weirdest” storytellers of the past 85 years. They were looking for “the most influentially strange authors and artists and talespinners of all kinds to work their magic on the world in the 85 years since 1923, when Weird Tales was born. We asked that you not limit your suggestions to just fiction writers, and you responded enthusiastically, naming hordes of filmmakers, songwriters, cartoonists, and more. We took your ideas, added a few of our own, called some top fantasy professionals to put in their two cents, and then dove into the long and arduous process of winnowing the list down to a mere 85 names.”
The 85th anniversary issue of the magazine—which calls itself “The Original Magazine of the Unique, Fantastic, & Bizarre”—introduces each of those storytellers individually, and also features fiction by Michael Moorcock, Sarah Monette, and Tanith Lee, nonfiction by Cherie Priest, and Jeff VanderMeer’s interview with China Míeville. The issue is on sale now, and the list is available on the WT blog.