Analog

Title:	Analog Science Fiction and Fact
Publisher:	William Clayton/Publisher's Fiscal Corporation/Clayton Magazines (1930-33); Street & Smith (1933-1960s); Condé Nast (1960s-1980); Davis Publications (1980-1992); Dell Magazines (1992-1996); Crosstown Publications (1996-ongoing)
Editor:	Harry Bates (1930-33); F. Orlin Tremaine (1933-38); John W. Campbell (1937-1971); Ben Bova (1972-1978); Stanley Schmidt (1978-2012); Trevor Quachri (2012-present).
Type:	combination Fiction and Non-Fiction
Date(s):	1930-present
Medium:	print and online
Fandom:	science fiction fandom
Language:	English
External Links:	Analog Homepage; at Wikipedia
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Analog is a very long-running and influential for-profit science fiction magazine of fiction, essays, letters, and articles. It was originally called Astounding Stories of Super-Science (shortened to Astounding Stories in 1931), and was renamed in 1937 to Astounding Science-Fiction and again in 1960 to Analog Science Fiction and Fact Magazine by editor at the time John W. Campbell. By 1965, the magazine was known as "Analog" and remains so to the current day.

History

Astounding Stories was created as competition to the first known science-fiction magazine, Amazing Stories, which was founded in 1926 by Hugo Gernsback. It quickly became popular, paying more for stories than Amazing and attracting many of the better-known pulp authors, although the editor, Harry Bates, was conservative in his story choices and stuck to established formulaic plots.

When the Great Depression bankrupted the original publisher, it was acquired by Street and Smith (publishers of Doc Savage and The Shadow) and edited by F.Orlin Tremaine. Under this ownership Astounding Stories had double the readership of its competition magazines, Amazing Stories and Wonder Stories and Tremaine became known for widening the market for more unusual SF stories, including works by H. P. Lovecraft, E. E. Smith and others. In 1937, a new assistant editor (who had been published in the magazine for both fiction and non-fiction) began working with Tremaine: John W. Campbell. He became full editor in 1938.

John W. Campbell

John W. Campbell was a controversial editor of this zine between 1937 and 1971. Campbell published many stories, including Isaac Asimov's Foundation series. The period beginning with Campbell's editorship is often referred to as the Golden Age of Science Fiction.

The pages of Astounding/Analog have been home to many of science fiction’s foremost writers and stories. Isaac Asimov, Poul Anderson, Greg Bear, Ben Bova, David Brin, Lois McMaster Bujold, Michael F. Flynn, Robert A. Heinlein, Geoffrey Landis, George R.R. Martin, Spider Robinson, Robert J. Sawyer, Charles Sheffield, Michael Swanwick, Harry Turtledove, and Timothy Zahn are just a few of the prominent names that have appeared in our pages, and we have a long tradition of discovering and cultivating new talent. Our stories have also won many Hugo and Nebula Awards, and such classics as Asimov’s Foundation, Orson Scott Card’s Ender’s Game, Frank Herbert’s Dune, and Anne McCaffrey’s Dragonflight first appeared in Analog.

Fans often commented up on Campbell's comments in various venues, including "Analog's" editorials. An example from Trumpet #4 in 1966:

In short, he marks the cards, stacks the deck, deals seconds, and claims the pot without facing his hand.

Nor is this editorial an exceptional one. Campbell-baiting is an old sport in fandom, and easy finger exercise whenever a writer is hard up for a topic. So much so that I suspect many readers have agreed with everything I've said but are asking, "So what?"

Campbell is what's up front in every issue of "Analog," the world's best science-fiction magazine according to the verdict at the Loncon. We used to complain about cheap and tasteless covers on SF magazines; now that those magazines are gone and SF covers usually depict nothing at all recognizable, we are stuck with stupid and galling editorials.

[...]

Finally, there's that hypothetical Radcliff co-ed and all the people like her. If John Campbell really wants their respect he can ear it, simply by devoting his huge enthusiams to honest science fiction for a change. About all that the rest of us can do is to stop buying his magazine.

From Ruth Berman in 1970, commenting on an essay by Ron Solaff called The Negro And Science Fiction:

if Stoloff insists on suggestions for attacking the large problem of bigotry through one of its symptoms — the whiteness of SF - he can stop buying "Analog" (I have myself, but because I find Campbell's ideas in general repugnant, not on account of this one), and write letters to the publishers and editors when books and other magazines print good and multi-racial stories. Praising junk gets one nowhere. There's no particular point to writing Campbell judging by his editorials and his comments in the letter column (back in the days when I was getting the magazine), he has a closed mind. Not buying his magazine is the only "pressure" available. Which is no pressure at all while the problem of bigotry remains important in society.

1971-onwards

John W. Campbell died suddenly in 1971 and after some months science-fiction writer Ben Bova was appointed as editor, winning five consecutive Hugo Awards from 1973-1977. He also published the first works of a number of now well-known authors: Spider Robinson, George R.R. Martin and Orson Scott Card; as well as other authors who had been rejected as unsuitable by Campbell: Frederik Pohl, Gene Wolfe, Roger Zelazny, and Harlan Ellison. When his vision for a new magazine clashed with the publishers, Condé Nast (who had acquired Street and Smith in 1961), he resigned and long-running editor Stanley Schmidt (1978-2012) replaced him. Analog continued to be one of the most popular mainstream publishers of science fiction stories of the era, and many writers became regular contributors, including Arlan Andrews, Catherine Asaro, Maya Kaathryn Bohnhoff, Michael Flynn, Geoffrey A. Landis, Paul Levinson, Robert J. Sawyer, Charles Sheffield and Harry Turtledove.

When Schmidt retired in 2012, current editor Trevor Quachri was hired. Under his tenure, the magazine is now published bi-monthly.

Analog and Fandom

As a long-running fiction magazine, Analog has had and impact on science fiction fandom and vice versa. The magazine was the first professional publisher for many a fanwriter and the skills learned in publishing fanzines transferred over to pro-zines. It wasn't all job opportunities, either - the magazine supported a number of fan conventions, as well as the editors attending as Guests of Honour. John W. Campbell in particular supported early science fiction fandom, writing articles and letters of comment for zines like Ad Astra, The Vorpal Sword and Imagination!

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