Editor Leigh Dragoon announces that Byzarium is temporarily closed to submissions. She says “I am going to take this weekend to clear out the slush pile and I will then be taking December off. I have some projects of my own that I need to be able to concentrate on, and I need a break. This past year has been very exciting, but very tiring, as well.” Byzarium is a webzine “dedicated to fantasy, sci-fi and horror fiction,” which offers its content for free.
And in similar news, Publisher Neil Clarke announces that Clarkesworld Magazine will be closed to fiction submissions from 1 December 2008 to 15 January 2009. He says “The slush pile will be cleared before we take our break. Our average response time for the last 30 days has been less than a day, so you should expect a quick reply.”