From Grant’s blog comes this announcement:

“Hope is a new multi-part fanzine raising money for bushfire relief in the Australian state of Victoria. Issue #1 is now available in a PDF edition in return for donations. How much you donate is up to you – I personally think a minimum of AUS$5.00 is reasonable. {I says: $5?? Are you kidding? That’s a steal!}

If you wish to subscribe to the entire series (I suspect at this stage it’s five issues long, not four as I’d previously told some people), then I’d recommend a donation of at least AUS$20.00.

Hope #1 contains contributions from Mo Ali, Sophie Ambrose, R.J. Astruc, Lyn Battersby, K.K. Bishop, Matthew Chrulew, Stephen Dedman, Mark S. Deniz, d.n.l, Paul Haines, Simon Haynes, Kathleen Jennings, Ju Landeesse, Damian Magee, David A. McIntee, Simon Petrie, Andrew Phillips, Gillian Polack, Robert Shearman and Daniel Smith. The cover is by Rebecca Handcock. {I says: having read some stuff by a few of these people, JUST BUY IT. The Shearman itself makes it worth the money.}

Hope #1 contains 46 pages of fiction, non-fiction, artwork, and even a comic book script excerpt!

You can make a donation to the project via Paypal by clicking here:

Once you’ve made a donation, please confirm it by e-mailing me at fanboy@gmail.com, and letting me know whether you were after just the one issue or the whole series as it’s released.

Limited print copies are available, if dead trees are your thing. If it’s a print copy you’re after, let me know in your e-mail along with your address. I’ll handle the postage. (Obviously I’d prefer you went for the PDF, but the option is there.)”

Did I mention that this is a primarily Western Australian thing? There are contributors from all over, but Grant’s a Perth boy and so are some of the others. There’s been this whole “Swan Aid” thing happening, lots of it through the spec fic community. Very cool.

Go buy the thing!