So, I just got into the office, switched on my computer, and have been summarily bowled over by the ABSOLUTELY AWFUL news that Ann VanderMeer is not going to be editing Weird Tales anymore!
I’m finding it hard to articulate how sad this makes me. Really. Wow. Words cannot express…
In the past five years, Ann has revitalised this prestigious magazine with her brilliant editorial work. And I’m not the only one to think so, considering Weird Tales has won one Hugo and been nominated for three more under Ann’s leadership. The stories Ann has chosen for publication have been so exciting, varied, new and (most importantly) beautifully weird, that it’s hard to understand why or how she can no longer be steering Weird Tales into the future.
I also want to point out, from a personal perspective, how important Ann has been for emerging writers like myself. In every email she sends, in every story she chooses, in every bit of advice Ann gives, it is abundantly clear that she cares about speculative fiction. About sharing it with the world. About encouraging writers to continue making the magical stories we all love so much. And about sharing the absolute best of these stories in the pages of Weird Tales.
It’s hard to face the end of an era when, to all intents and purposes, the era was at its peak…
Lisa L. Hannett 
She’s not dead. I am sure that we will see her brilliance again. As for the way it seems to have been handled – total foot-bulleting.
Oh, I have no doubt we will! It will take a lot more than this to dampen Ann’s star 🙂 But as you say, it’s the way things have been handled that are so disappointing…