INTERACTION

As usual, could overseas subscribers please let us know when and in what condition your copy arrives. This is a very useful cross section that allows us to improve service and keep on top of the mailing company, especially important now it's been taken over by DHL

Just received #208 in Maine. It looks great, and I really enjoyed the Neil Gaiman and Susanna Clarke stuff.

I bought issue 208 from a local bookstore in the U.S.--they had five copies--and the issue was in perfect condition. Of course, they'd slapped a sticker over the bar code so they could charge $12 for the issue instead of the usual $7, but not much to be done about that (except to subscribe, which I plan to do).

Jason, I'm absolutely horrified to hear that. In fact it sounds illegal. Please watch this space.

I had a chat this morning with our overseas distribution man and he enlightened me on lots of things. With respect to this $12 charge I'm afraid there's nothing we can do about it, as the price is set by the US distributor, which in this case is Disticor. As much as I'd like Interzone to be competitive in the States, I'm told that a price range of $12-15 for an imported magazine like this is nothing unsual. There's a whole lot of other stuff to factor in which I wouldn't bore you with even if I fully understood it. The exchange rate has a lot to do with it as well, of course. $7 is actually lower than the UK price and would also have to take into account export costs and more commissions.

So, the $7 price put on the cover by us can be ignored by Disticor, and whoever else, because that's not part of the agreement they have with our UK distributor. In fact the $7 is only there because of an agreement we had with somebody else, one that isn't even in place any more. In which case we should remove it forthwith, to avoid confusion.

But I'm still sorry you had to pay $12, Jason. Hopefully a lot of people, like you, will go on to subscribe direct.

Andy, thanks for the information. I wouldn't have spent that much on just any magazine, but Interzone is in a special category for me. And I've now subscribed, so I won't have to go through this again.

IZ 209 arrived in Utrecht a few days ago.

IZ 209 arrived in Auckland NZ today in great condition. Looks good.

209 arrived in Sydney today, in perfect condition.

209 arrived in Brisbane today - a little bent but otherwise in good shape. Sticker says it came via NZ airmail.

SW France: Arrived safely and in good condition yesterday.

Paris, France. Arrived sometime the last week (I only picked up my mail this afternoon, so no idea when exactly it made it into my mailbox). Perfect condition, and gorgeous. Looking forward to reading all those new stories.

#209 arrived today in Cambridge, MA in great shape.

Out of curiosity, what proportion of IZ sales are overseas?

_________________
http://www.colin-harvey.com

Novels:
Winter Song -- US launch May 2010
Damage Time -- UK launch May 2010
-- US launch June 2010

I got it in perfect condition today, March 29th, though it might have taken a day or two to work its way through the campus mail sorting system.