Zeor Forum

Zine
Title:	Zeor Forum
Publisher:
Editor(s):	Jacqueline Lichtenberg
Type:	letterzine
Date(s):	1980 – 1987
Frequency:
Medium:	print
Size:
Fandom:	Sime~Gen
Language:	English
External Links:	online
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Zeor Forum is a Sime~Gen letterzine. In 1979, the editor of "Zeor Forum" was Katie Filipowicz. From the publisher: "Zeor Forum was a zine for fans of Jacqueline Lichtenberg's Sime~Gen(tm) universe back in the early 1980's. It included fan fiction, out-takes from the novels, material from Jean Lorrah, and round robin discussions on burning issues in the universe."

Comparing and Contrasting "Zeor Forum" and "A Companion in Zeor"

A fan explains the differences between "Zeor Forum" and its sister zine, A Companion in Zeor:

I might also note that I get the impression that CZ and ZF have very different tones and should serve different functions. Karen wants CZ to be a light zine. This doesn't mean that ZF should never be light, but that you should be aware that ZF has a responsibility to be something that CZ isn't—to fill a role that has to be filled. I don't imagine that the kind of discussions that are held in ZF's pages will ever be all that popular, but they are necessary. In fannish terminology ZF is "sercon" and CZ tends to be more "faanish." I want to see both tendencies continue to flourish in Sime-Gen fandom. (For those who don't know, "sercon" stands for serious-constructive and "faanish" implies fun for the hell of it.) [The continuing evolution of the Sime zines is fun to watch. The character of ZF will be different in the next couple of issues--give everybody a rest from stuff like "Empathy" thisish! Why? (1) A bunch of good round robins I sent out all got lost and I haven't had the ooomph to send out more; (2) There's quite a backlog of Sime fan fiction built up—not that we don't want more!!! I have those 2 20-pagers, plus a HO-page manuscript that will make its own issue. (3) And, since AZ has a new editor and is also printing fan fiction, ZF and to some extent CZ are picking up printing parts of Jean's and Jacqueline's early drafts of published novels. But basically each fanzine reflects the character of its editor.

Sometime in the future we'd like to publish an "adult" Sime zine, perhaps as a one-shot. It would include through stories, articles, and letters discussions of such things as sexuality in the Sime-Gen universe that we no longer discuss in the first 3 zines. Would anyone care to contribute/edit this thing?]

The Zine As a Writing Workshop: Disclaimers and Permissions, and the Round Robin Letters

From the second issue and onwards:

All letters received by Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Jean Lorrah, and Catherine Filipowicz will be considered publishable material, unless the writer states otherwise. Publication in FORUM does not constitute endorsement by the staff of this magazine. All fiction in FORUM occurs in alternate Sime universes.

According to our agreement with JL, certain material that we publish in the Sime/Gen zines must be copyrighted in her name, in order to protect her financial and professional interest in the Sime series for herself and her heirs. This material includes such things as stories, poems, songs, and some speculative articles set in the Sime/Gen universe.

Jean Lorrah and Lichtenberg also used their at least two of their fanzines, A Companion in Zeor and this one as a place to gather fan opinion, to brainstorm, to investigate their literary and psychological ideas on the "open stage" before incorporating things in their pro books. They stated that this was a form of a treat for fans, and that people looking back on the formation of these books' place in literary history would be grateful for the glimpses into formation.

"Zeor Forum" was a zine heavy with philosophical discussion:

As one of the perpetrators of "heavy stuff" around here, I thought 1 was a member of a minority and wondered how many others could be interested in the "heavy" topics that fascinate me. i do hope that ZF isn't losing its audience. There are so few places where I can discuss ideas without someone asking me to shovj a string of degrees. It appears to be generally accepted that no one reads or educates

themselves outside of an academic context. Forgive the vulgarism, but this pisses me off. Shen Ancient stupidity!

Not everyone was a fan of Lorrah and Lichtenberg's writing workshop idea, or the heavy discussion:

I'm a minority of one here I'd be willing to bet. It's been interesting and I'm glad I had a chance to express an opinion. But! Too much of this heavy stuff can get — well, boring. I apologize for getting negative about this, and I was looking forward to seeing what I other people have to say about it. I'm not really understanding all of it and there is nothing that can get more tiring than something you don't understand. One more issue and it will still be interesting, mind-stretching too. New ideas. I just get dismayed when I picture it going on and on.

((No, you're not a minority of one: It does get heavy, obtuse, and boring, but this is the work of being an SF writer.

I thought these discussions between Jean and me should be printed because they are going to lead (someday) to a book or a series of books. Then you will look back on this stuff and say "I see where they got this idea!"

Also—this is the foundational creation work of building the series. By publishing this work, and by turning it into a round robin among fen who have areas of knowledge we lack, we can let you participate in the creation of the series in such a way that you will get what you want to read.

Third: since this is collaborative work, it all comes out on paper, so it is a unique and precious opportunity to see demonstrated externally the kind of work that goes on inside a writer's mind.

Fourth: Jean and I would be carrying on these discussions with each other and with fans anyway. After a while, the fans we were corresponding with would come to be know as some sort of private "inner circle." And I don't want that unless the private "inner circle" includes each and every one of you who wants to be included. So I've asked Katie to let you ALL sit around my kitchen table and participate.

But you don't have to participate in every single subject. If linguistics bores you, wait a while and we'll get around to another topic, JL))

Both writers also shared rough drafts and "out-takes" of fiction as well as alternate versions of their work with fans in these zines. Some fans disliked the "sneak preview" of possible upcoming books:

...this [is] aimed at Jacqueline Lichtenberg—PLEASE stop leaking the plot of the HoZ sequel [...]

((Current ideas for an unwritten book are not necessarily related to the published book. Compare SS to Unto. -- Jacqueline Lichtenberg))

Some fans enjoyed the peek into the world of writing:

All these tantalizing glimpses of Jacqueline's and Jean's future books are driving me crazy. I want, I need those books! it's also fascinating to have a sort of 'window' into a writer's mind. All of the creative arts seem to be magic to me, but I think writing is especially so.

Issue 1

cover of issue #1

Zeor Forum 1 was published in January 1980 and contains 68 pages.

On the cover: "Transfer for Ancients."

The art is by Virginia Lee Smith, Pat Munson. Other illos were "adapted from Pollack, Pam, comp. Humor, Wit & Fantasy. Hart, 1976."

This issue contains two reviews (one by Linda Frankel and one by Barbara Tennison) of Diane Duane's "The Door Into Fire." Both reviews were detailed in their criticism but also in their praise. These reviews were sent to Duane by Linda Frankel who wrote in issue #2: "I hope you don't mind." Duane responded with a long, long reply (mostly centered on Frankel's dismissal of David Gerrold's introduction to the book). At the end of Duane's letter, the editor added her apology to any "hurt" the review had caused. This exchange is one example of who reviews are for, the reader or the author? Did it cross a line to send fans' comments to Duane without their permission? Did this have a chilling effect on future opinion? Was "Zeor Forum" considered a public forum and fair game for response, or was it meant to be a more private conversation among fans?

• Give Grace, fiction by Deborah J. Laymon (2)
• How I Met... by Leslie Warstler ("I don't know about you, but I'm getting a little tired of all these "how I met Jacqueline"stories. I mean, enough is enough! (I even did it myself — see CZ4) I propose a change. Have we all forgotten the Sectuib's beloved gofer and Companion, not to mention editor of this zlne? Here then is my tale of how I met... KATIE FILIPOWICZ!! I'll certainly never forget the first time I met Katie. It was in January of '79, at a con In Columbus, Ohio. I had just been asked by JLs if I wanted to read the manuscript of First Channel (also see CZ #4). As you can well imagine, I jumped at the chance! Once in Jacqueline's room, I noticed a rather short blonde girl with glasses puttering about in the background. After seeing me settled in, JL left. I'll always remember, and cherish, the words Katie spoke to me then: "You can't smoke in here." And that, gentle reader, is how I met Katie Filipowicz") (5)
• Distect vs. Tecton, part II (continuation of the discussion begun in A Companion in Zeor #4; there are many letters - this is an excerpt by Jean Lorrah: "The round robin question is how did the Distect and the Tecton get that way? Hee hee hee — I'm going to play Jacqueline! Mostly, I'm going to tell you that your perfectly valid assumptions are wrong, because I have knowledge you don't have yet. However, the one point that everyone seemed to miss — and one that should have been obvious to regular readewof A2, CZ, and all the stuff that gets xeroxed to chose who show enough interest to get pulled into a rr — is that the Tecton and the Distect are not really outgrowths of two groups or committees or governments. They ultimately stem from two different individual personalities: Klyd Farris and Hugh Valleroy. A Sime and a Gen, a Farris and a non-Farris.") (6)
• What is the House of Zeor? by Katie Filipowicz (17)
• Changeover, fiction by Mary Frances Zambreno (continuation of a story by Zambreno that was printed in A Companion in Zeor #4) (18)
• What to Do Until Klyd Farris Grows Back, poem by Jill Stone (32)
• What Do You Mean, Gens Can’t Learn Simelan by Jean Lorrah, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, C.J. Cherryh (32)
• Dragons and Dorsai, article by Terry Madden (comparisons between the writing of Gordon Dickson and Jacqueline Lichtenberg) (45)
• Conventions by Lynn Gibbs; Jean Airey (con report of Westercon 32 by Gibbs, con report of T'Con by Airey) (46)
• Are You Sime or Gen? (50)
• Reviews by Stella Nemeth, Linda Frankel, Anne Golar, Leslie Warstler, Charlotte Dickens, Barbara T, Mary M. Schmidt of Arthur C. Clarke's "The Fountains of Paradise," Marshak and Culbreath's The Fate of the Phoenix (see that page), Jacqueline Susann's "Yargo," two reviews of Diane Duane's "The Door Into Fire," Tim Power's "Drawing of the Dark," Jane Gaskell's "King's Daughter," Linda E. Bushyager's "Master of Hawks") (52)
• Reading the Ambient (59)
• News and Notes (67)

• 

  from issue #1, Virgina Lee Smith

• 

  from issue #1

• 

  from issue #1

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 1

I don't know where to begin, after reading Zeor Forum. Thank you for the copy, by the way, I enjoyed every bit, although it was almost more than I could take seeing my own words there where everyone could read them. I am terribly shy. This is out of character for me to do this sort of thing. Oh well. We all change. After reading the discussion on Gens learning Simelan, and the many various opinions, I couldn't help wondering, even though I can understand both sides of the issue, what's the difference. Everyone perceives things in their own ways, and it's a wonder we can communicate at all. But I really enjoyed the discussion, it made me stop and think about a side of the stories I hadn't thought of before. I particularly enjoy the piece by Mary Frances Zambreno, a continuation of her story in Companion #4. As a Gen I welcome these sort of stories about the Sime pathology, never having been through any of these difficulties. And the boy was the same age as my own, so I could relate pretty closely to the family also. The story by Deborah J. Laymon and her portrayal of brave Karashcha was very nicely done, although resorting to that kind of violence is beyond me. Altogether, I enjoyed the opportunity to learn more about the background for Jacqueline's books.

FORUM #1 contained two pieces of bad news for me: Muryin and Hugh. I think JL is finally going to get some negative criticism from me. Jacqueline, how could you! Tear down the buildings of Zeor? Muryin was wrong. Just because she was a Farris doesn't mean she was always right. True, the spirit of Zeor can't be confined. It exists in the "overworld" of the Sime universe. Witness, it even found Digen in Rior. A household was special because so many different types of people lived together as a family. (Families don't always agree; sometimes they don't even like each other, but there's always that sense of family.) The houses could have served as a focus for keeping that sense of family and community. where was Muryin's sense of continuity? If Muryin was right, why was the Tecton in trouble just 47 years later? There are other ways of combating "insularity and in-group image" than by throwing the baby out with the bath water. Well, it's done, I'll have to accept it. But I still think she was wrong. (By the way, now I know why that Zeor meeting in Sime Surgeon", AZ 9, felt like a business meeting. Not a household family. The Tecton has almost succeeded in homogenizing the households to its own level.) I know a central house could not and should not provide living space for all the hundreds (thousands?) of members of a householding. That would take a small city. But there are other ways a central House could be used, at least four I can think of. But one is special: a summer camp for children of members, where they could live the household ways, not merely learn about it. Out-T children too could be invited. It might even change their attitude toward Simes, as they grow.

[...]

Now about the stories. "Changeover" did indeed answer all my questions. "Changeover" seems to be better written, more together than "Home Thoughts". But the two together make a good story. I like both. "Give Grace"; I never thought I'd be glad to see a Sime killed. Quick death, however, is better than slow death. This story is well-written, a very clear story. Although I would like to know more about the people and the household, it seems somehow complete.

Now we come to page 32, Gens and Simelan. I have just a few comments, mostly because at least half of this was over my head. It probably is true that no Gen can ever master Simelan. But does ho need to to understand it? I agree with Jean about this. If he can communicate in it and think in it, on an adult level, then he's not talking baby talk. what language was Im'ran thinking and talking in — was it Simelan? He seemed to be communicating very well with Digen.

I don't know if my comments are at all clear or even relevant to this article, because as I said, I didn't completely understand it. But I think I know why. Jean is thinking and writing in English but JL is thinking and writing in Simelan. In this case I am proud to even halfway understand it. Page 52, JL's comment there about give and take in transfer. I did not under stand it at all. And for two days (while composing this in my head) I thought about it. I didn't have FORUM with me one day, and all I could remember was: Simes use. Gens produce. I took that one word produce. Now what do you do when you produce something? First, you take what you need. You then have excess you must get rid of. You can do 3 things with it: give, sell, or trade it. Trade? Now wait a minute. That would mean transfer was a two-way street. An exchange. Both profit from it. Maybe that was what she meant.

Leslie Warstler's letter (p. 59). For a minute it made me wonder if I was reading the wrong zine. She sure has a vivid imagination. "A Night in Zeor" sounds interesting.

How would I describe FORUM? Mind-stretching, entertaining, sometimes puzzling. always interesting.

I sent xeroxes of the reviews of DOOR INTO FIRE to Diane Duane. I hope you don't mind. I also just wrote to Deborah Laymon commenting about "Give Grace" among other things.

[...]

I cried over "Changeover". Reverend Ross is a very unusual man. He could do a great deal of good if he attempted to educate his congregation. He doesn't have to teach anything technical—just brotherly love. I wonder if there are any Quakers left? ((Probably. JL)) Ross seems to believe in "inner light."

[...]

My parents don't perceive the universe the way I do. They really don't understand me when I speak and it's not just because I use words like loc and zine. They don't comprehend my basic assumptions. They are like out-T Gens. Some of my mundane friends have the same problem. I have arrived at the point where I can use some occult background, but I don't think I'd understand JL's references any more than my mundane friends and relatives would.

In reply to Jean Airey on K/S [in Airey's con report for T'Con], I must say that for anyone to imagine such a possibility, there must be a basis for it — unless you are claiming that K/S fans are psychotic. Therefore K/S does exist as a potential in aired Trek. I am not saying that it was intended to exist, GR didn't intend that Kraith, NTM, or any of the fannish speculations could or would exist.

No one person could have invented fandom. It just grew like Topsy from the variant perceptions of individuals. Some of us looked at Trek and saw K/S. Some of us can't see it. Others can't see Kraith or NTM and consider these utterly alien to their concept of what Trek is really about. The glory of ST is that when you ask what it's about you get so many answers. GR's footnote on K/S in the movie novelization is sad because it's an attempt to get the genie back in the bottle after it had already escaped to perform its magic. The magic is dangerous in Paramount's eyes. If they wanted only safe magic they should never have allowed Trek on the air. It's too late now. Some of us fans are just incorrigible. We sing dangerous songs, think dangerous thoughts and weave dangerous spells.

Trek-Darkover fan Sally Syrjala tells me that no one should mistake the man called Kirk in the movie for Kirk in aired Trek. Anne Golar can't see the Trek characters in the Phoenix novels, and I can't see them in nearly all the other pro novels. This is a definite case of varying perceptions. You see, I think Kirk in the movie is the very essence of Kirk. I also think that the Kirk/Spock relationship in the Phoenix novels is the closest to the way I see it than any pro Trek writer has managed. (Well, there's Claire Gabriel and Shirley Maiewski in NV 1.) What is the function of the second Kirk? There are several: 1.) narrative - one Kirk stays with the main plot of the struggle with Omne while the other shows us that rare glimpse of Romulan culture 2.) metaphysical — since the second Kirk has different experiences isn't he someone entirely different from the original? What does this mean? 3.) ethical — is life created by machine on the same ethical level as life created naturally? Does one have priority over the other? Does a machine double have a right to survive?

I admit that it's easier for someone with a background in Objectivism (Ayn Rand's philosophy) to understand the under lying themes and premises of the Phoenix novels. Maybe they shouldn't be, in Hall's terms, so high context, but they aren't hack work. A hack is a competent writer who espouses a dichotomy between good work and (popular) successful work. The hack then chooses the latter. Hack novels are characterized by formula plots and lack of imagination. Marshak and Culbreath don't have this problem. In order to write a formula plot one must be familiar with basic elements that are usually called "craftsmanship. They either aren't aware of these elements or don't think it necessary to use them. This is a mistake. I freely admit that the Marshak/Culbreath team still have a long way to go in learning how to plot. I do see an improvement in the second novel, however. Once they learn story-telling they should be terrific because they do have the imagination and ambition which places them above the hacks.

I've just read your review of The Fate of the Phoenix in Zeor Forum. I don't understand why you refer to this book as "hack writing." I do have some problems with it myself — such as objecting to holes the size of sequels left at the ends of novels. And I know what you mean about the darkness of the book's underlying mood (at least, that's what I assume you mean by "heaviness"). I had to read it twice before making up my mind whether I really liked it or not. . But then, I bothered to read it twice — something I wouldn't do with any other pro Trek I've ever seen. Except for the Phoenix books, I wouldn't care if they made a big pile out of all the pro Star Trek novels and torched it. You are right, of course, when you say that Marshak and Culbreath have gone off on their own tangent. However, it seems to me that they've done so on purpose. The characters in their short stories in New Voyages II seem pretty true to the aired ones. If some of the experiences these characters have been put through in the Phoenix books were to happen to me, I have no doubt that I would be changed pretty extensively also. Chaos is exactly the point of the Phoenix books, as far as I can see. Omne himself is essentially a chaotic power. The thing is, that doesn't make him any less believable, rather the reverse. It seems to me that our real universe is not always just, simple, or aesthetically pleasing. It contains evil, or it couldn't be in the shape it is. I hate books where the good guys win automatically, without losing anything — I can't relate to that. The Phoenix books seem much more realistic, and therefore more interesting, because in fact things can go wrong. Life and growth are not the goal of everyone, and you have to cope with those whose values are exactly the opposite, and you can lose. Kirk II was emphatically not created by a man interested in "evolving the nature of the universe". He was created as a tool, a weapon, an experiment, and an object for a love/hate obsession. None of this was his fault, but now he, and the others on his side, have to cope with it. The only thing you said in your review which made me really angry was, "Why is a second Kirk's continued existence essential?" No one's continued existence is essential! We could solve the problem of James (or the problem of you or me for that matter) with a nice, clean, simple phaser shot. Or alternatively I rather think Omne would take him off, our hands, if we asked nicely.

About the cartoon in the ZEOR FORUM ad; I always knew they watched Star Trek in the Territories. Where else could Hugh have gotten one of the names he calls Klyd during Klyd's disorientation ("Don't 'naztehr' me, you fugitive from a freak show!") but from "This Side of Paradise"? A Sime/Gen crew would be great on a starship anyway; those tentacles must come in handy. I wonder if a Sime's directional sense would work in hyperspace? The only problem would be finding enough channels who don't mind being shut up in a spaceship. (Or just finding enough channels, period; an Enterprise-class starship has about the same population as Zeor in Klyd's time, and none of them would be selyn-neutral children.

[[[Diane Duane]] is the author of this letter]: A friend was kind enough to drop a copy of the FORUM on me so that I could see the reviews of THE DOOR INTO FIRE, I'm delighted and flattered that people are taking their time to discuss the book. But during the discussion, a subject I dreaded hearing about suddenly came up — namely, David Gerrold's introduction to the book. I guess I'm going to have to tell the truth about it, finally....

That introduction. Oh brother. Too well I remember that awful day back in March of '78, when David came bouncing out of his office, chuckling wickedly and holding a roll of computer printout in front of him as if it were alive. "Here," he said, offering the paper to me, and something in his eyes made me want to shrink away -- but I took the printout anyway, and read it. It was an introduction to FIRE. And it was horrible. He had described me perfectly, with frightful accuracy, even the part about my cooking. He had come out and said he liked me, right there in print, in front of God and everybody. He had praised my technique. He had even improved the two pieces of porn I had written for him (which I had thought so awful as to be unimprovable): they were dirtier than they had been. Agonized, I reeled back against the refrigerator (and was assaulted by the dogs, who thought I was going to open it). "No! No!" I cried. "This disgustingly complimentary thing will never go in front of my book! It tells the truth about how we met! It's positive! It’s warm! It makes you sound like you enjoyed what you read! Everybody knows you hate everything but your own work! No way!" I flung it back at him and fled the house. When I got home, I called my editor instantly. "Instantly," I said, "he's got this, this thing, it’s informal, and noisy, and happy, and weird, sort of like I am, and my book is Terribly Serious, I mean, it talks about love, doesn’t it, and death, it has to be Serious, and if that introduction goes in there, some people might get the idea that, that a writer doesn’t necessarily sound or act like what she writes — Oh don’t let him do it!" "Don’t worry about it," my editor said.

But little did he, or any of us, know to what vile lengths David would go to infiltrate his flashy, sickening prose into the precious bodily fluids of my work. Even as my editor reassured me, David was driving up to Vandenberg AFB, where he stole a refueling F-105 ThunderChief, eluded NORAD fighter pursuit in a bravura display of immelmans, double salkows and inverted flat spins, and went hurtling off into the approaching night. He snuck undetected under the New York-Newark TCA umbrella, and at about 3 AM local time put the ThunderChief down at Bader Field outside Atlantic City. There he stole a Jetstar chopper and flew straight to CompuType, the plant where FIRE was in typeset. Overpowering one hapless security guard by reading McKuen to him (the man’s depravity obviously knows no bounds!) and rendering a night-shift programmer unconscious by reciting filthy limericks composed in FORTRAN, David broke into the main computer room, retrieved the tapes on which FIRE had been stored, and inserted his introduction, afterwards carefully covering all traces of his tampering. The guard and the programmer, having suffered traumas too terrible to retain without losing their sanity, both blocked the experience and forgot it entirely. David made good his escape, vanishing into the night. And you may imagine the stark horror of writer, editor, and Dell upper management alike when the introduction turned up in the finished book. And the fan mail for the introduction started arriving....

It feels so good to get the truth off my chest at last. Now I can sleep nights.

And now that I have your attention... Seeing that one opinion concerning the intro has recently been expressed in the FORUM, I'm hoping you'll provide equal time for a responsible (and marginally involved) person to express a contrasting viewpoint. In hard evidence, I can introduce only the mail I get from readers. So far, of those who mentioned the intro, fifty-three said they liked it, and eighteen that they didn't: of the fifty-three, thirty-nine said specifically that the introduction was the reason they bought the book. Some of the letters were from professional writers, and the pros—let me get my calculator, my nails are in a bad way from the last time I tried to do decimals on my fingers—the pros divided 68%/yes, 32%/no. That7s the hard data. Opinion, now: I like the introduction. I asked David to do it: I was there while it was written: I contributed those two pieces from the alleged DOOR INTO TUPPERWARE, with full knowledge where they were going: and when the introduction was finished, I approved it and sent it on. So did my editor. And there it is, my friend's gift to me. One more opinion: I'd like to suggest that it is dangerous to analyze the motives or intent of a person that one doesn't know, especially from a distance, or working from hearsay evidence. At best, one's likely to make a complete fool of oneself. At worst, someone can get hurt —a nd when the hurt is so easily preventable, there's no excuse for that.

Enough, I wanted to say "thanks" to Barbara Tennison and Linda Frankel for their very kind words about FIRE, It was interesting to see the parallel drawn between Bradley's work and mine. I had never read any Bradley until after I finished FIRE, when I happened to pick up a copy of FORBIDDEN TOWER, and went through it in about an hour, delighted with likenesses and differences to/from what I'd been doing.

As regards Tennison's view, one comment: if the map is "murky", it's probably because when I was drawing it I ran out of the plastic film with the forest-symbols on it — you know, all those little trees — and had to use the kind that means "mangrove swamp" instead. That won't happen again. And one comment on the Frankel: I haven't translated from the Coptic, are you kidding, have you tried that language? It's insane, I've used the roots in names and such: I pilfer them from the OED and other such sources. Greek gives me enough trouble. Coptic! Aaaaaaagh!! No thank you.

[inserted at the end by the editor of this zine: "I apologize to Diane Duane and David Gerrold for any pain that may have come from my publishing the review in question"

Enclosed is a check for $2, hopefully covering the cost of ZF #2. I hope my #1 holds together: living in the dorm while in pursuit of MLS has exposed my collection to a new horde of hands and tentacles. Every time I turn around, particularly at the post office, somebody clutches me, hissing, "Anything NEW?" Frustrated beings roar into my room shrieking, "What are they talking about? Where can I find THIS story? Who's this Jean Lorrah, MZB, etc.?" I think the Gens among them must all be Distect, because they are absolutely fearless when it is their turn to read UZF, and a stubborn Sime is insisting, "—but I NEED—" By far the greatest outcry is over what can be pieced together about Muryin and good ol' Oliver Tigue. I protest vainly that I am innocent: I'm as deprived as anybody, and have been longer but it doesn't do any good. I have to bribe them with another zine or book and they leave, muttering, "Just you wait!"

Issue 2

cover issue #2, Janet Trautvetter

Zeor Forum 2 was published in May 1980 and contains 65 pages.

It has art by Lori Tartaglio, June Huxtable, Janet Trautvetter, Virginia Lee Smith, and Barbara Tennison.

From the editorial:

Heavens, this issue looks like it'll be out on time, almost on schedule for a quarterly. Problem: the next issue WON'T be out on time unless I get something

to put in it. People have asked if I'm de-emphasizing fiction, if this is meant to be a letterzine. Nope, I'm just not getting stories, poems, articles — and neither are. the other two zines. Also, book reviews; I have a large collection of new review books for loan to anyone who'll report on them. Any takers? We (all 3 Sime zines) also need artwork in all sizes, black on white line drawings.

• Reader's Digen, the "Simelan Edition" perpetrated by Mary Frances Zambreno and Joyce Corrine Peterson (satire) (i)
• Molt Brother by Jacqueline Lichtenberg ("This is the first section of a series proposal presented to Playboy Press in May 1978. After the first draft of the book was finished last summer, this was changed, somewhat to use as publicity material to give to English publishers during Jacqueline's trip over there. You'll see in the published, version (early 1981) that some emphases have changed from what you read here, the 1979 version") (1)
• The Case of the One-Armed Donor by Jean Lorrah ("Where do you get those crazy ideas?" By now, all of you have certainly heard Jacqueline or me reply, "You have to beat them off with a stick!" A writer's problem is never the original idea, but how to develop it." It also contains comments on the origins of Savage Empire and other publications.) (5)
• Two—As One, a Zeor Children's Bedtime Story for Jacqueline Lichtenberg and Katie Filipowicz, translated from Simelan by T'Pat (7)
• Complications, poem by Leigh Motooka (13)
• What Do You Mean, Gens Can't Learn Sinelan? (1979 letters by many fans (with interjections by Lichtenberg) about language, perception, and culture, also several letters that are conversations between Lorrah and Lichtenberg) (14)
• Two Unusual Fantasies by Joyce Corrine Peterson (reviews of "The God Beneath the Sun" and "The Golden Shadow" by Garfield and Blishen, three books by Peter Dickinson: "The Devil's Children," "Heartsense," and "The Weathermonger") (24)
• Conventions by Kerry Schaefer (con report for Future Party) (26)
• Imil's Spring Catalogue by Janet Trautvetter (29)
• Haiku by Carrie Brennan (30)
• The Interview by Rayna Daughtry (fictional interview with Rydel) (31)
• Householding List (three short descriptions of tiny fan clubs/groups) (32)
• Distect vs. Tecton, part IV (continuing discussion among fans via a round robin letter exchange) (33)
• Reviews by Terry Jo Madden, Susan M. Shwartz, Linda Frankel, Judith Z. Segal, P. W. Duncan (Gordon Dickson's "Home from the Shore," and "The Space Swimmers," Fletcher Pratt's "The Well of the Unicorn," Marion Zimmer Bradley's "Falcons of Narabedla," Fred Saberhagen's "Holmes-Dracula File," Loren D. Estleman's "Sherlock Holmes vs. Dracula," Joe Haldeman's "Infinite Dreams," Richard C. Meredith's "At the Narrow Passage," and Philip Jose Faremer's "The Image of the Beast" and "Blown") (44)
• Reading the Ambient. general letters of comment (50)

• 

  from issue #2, Reader's Digen, the "Simelan Edition"

• 

  from issue #2, June Huxtable

• 

  from issue #2, unknown

• 

  from issue #2, Virginia Lee Smith

• 

  from issue #2, Janet Trautvetter

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 2

Thank you for sending me Zeor Forum 2 with "Two - As One" in it. I did find one typo which changes the meaning. In the third paragraph on page 12, "At least there was something tangible, something effective, that she could do to help Allida." It should have been "At last . . ."a small difference, perhaps, but a difference nonetheless. I do thank you for printing the story, though, and for finding a good illustrator who reads before creating. Would that the artists for some of the

professionally published books did so.

Just a quick note to tell you how much I enjoyed "Two As One." I remembered that quote in SS and was curious about the story from which it came. I was particularly interested in the almost-blind Sime girl, since I write about an extremely-nearsighted channel in my stories. There aren't all that many good fan-written stories in the zines, so please, please, write another if the inspiration hits you. All my friends who read Forum commented on your tale also. One of them said she was almost in tears.

[T'Pat]: Thanks for the kind words on "Two As One." The story has met with some criticism, in that some readers insist that an untrained Companion

couldn't successfully serve first need. I disagree, and point out to them that she was a natural donor and , after all, they were twins with the special rapport that twins often have. In addition, of course, this is a fable with the old, old tbeme of the triumph of love over fear. A few readers have expressed surprise that a Vulcan's translation of the old story does pick up the emotional impact. I believe their surprise is due to the common belief that Vulcans have no emotions. This is incorrect. It is not that Vulcans have no emotions, it is that they display no emotions inappropriately. As to what constitutes appropriate or inappropriate display of emotions, that varies

with one's cultural upbringing, the culture in which one lives, and one's own judgement. -

I like the pink covers. Now when I pile all my zines together, I can use the ZFs to separate my CZs from my AZs! The small illos scattered throughout are nice touches; the cover art has been great. —COMMENTS ON FICTION— "Give Grace" was excellent! short-shorts are the hardest of all story forms to pull off, but Deborah Laymon succeeded admirably. "Changeover" by Mary Zambreno was really good. I especially liked the way she captured the flavor of a small community coming to grips with progress (i.e. Sime Centers). David Ross (senior) is an exceptional person—open-minded, open- hearted. He'd make a great Donor, I'll bet! "Two—as One" by T'Pat was absolutely enchanting! It was simply packed with all the wonderful fairy-tale elements that made me love the Orange, Green, Red, etc. series of fairy books when I was younger. I even cried a little! Perfectly perfect!

I did not like "The Interview." Sending a poor renSime back in time, apparently stranding him then having him suicide? No, thank you.

Jean's comment that the "male-bonding thing" (Hugh/Klyd, Digen/lm) attracts readers set off a whole train of thoughts; has anyone else noticed that the uni- yeises which draw the most intense fans have this element? There's our oxm S/G (examples mentioned above) , S^ Tr^ (Kirk/Spock—and I mean that in a non-sexual way), and even Starsky & Hutch. (Yes, they have fanzines, too.) Probably because, in our society, a man (i.e. masculine man) does NOT touch, or feel deeply for another man. There's an element of forbidden pleasure involved in our enjoyment of such relationships. Also, we all wish ^ had such a close friend, and if we don't we can enjoy the experience vicariously through these characters. Another thought; I imagine most of you know by now that the enormous (and intense) popularity of the show Dallas is due almost solely to Larry Kagman's portrayal of the Machiavellian J. R,—the man you love to hate. He's not just nasty, bad, and wicked; he enjoys being that way. I think I'm really looking forward to

meeting Oliver Tigue.

"Two—As One" was charming, and answered a question for me (would a blind Sime be truly blind when they re not hypoconscious after transfer?) The "Reader's Digen" should've been called "Punsters' Monthly" if it publishes articles like The English Channel—Techniques from Abroad" and "Why Gennie can't read Nagers." Perpetrated is the only way to describe having created that article.

C. R. Maclamore has no complaints about inconsistency in the Marshak-Culbreath stories in NV 2? Well, "The Procrustean Petard" was bad genetics and worse feminism, but I can't say the characters were too dreadfully off considering the situation. It did inspire me to write about Mara whatever its faults.

Pg, 31. Now we come to "The Interview," It might have meant to be funny, but I'd say it was a rather painful story. But all kinds of stories are needed. And it's good. Tell Rayna to do it again. Another story that is. Now what would happen if an Ancient, like Jacobs, was projected up to Sime times?

I can see those Phoenix novels are going to be around a long time, It7s interesting that some people dislike them for the same reason others like them. Kirk 1 and Kirk 2, I don't like either book. In fact, I dislike them so much I won't have them in my room, I will say one thing. The second book was better written than the first one. It still doesn't make me like it any better. We have all the published Trek novels. My sister Janet bought them; I read most of them. Only one or 2 held my interest and I'm glad I didn’t spend my money on them.

Thanks for the letter from Diane Duane, It makes her so much more real.

I'm a minority of one here I'd be willing to bet. ((Nope - Jacqueline Lichtenberg) It's been interesting and I'm glad I had a chance to express an opinion. But! Too much of this heavy stuff can get — well, boring. I apologize for getting negative about this, and I was looking forward to seeing what I other people have to say about it. I'm not really understanding all of it and there is nothing that can get more tiring than something you don't understand. One more issue and it will still be interesting, mind-stretching too. New ideas. I just get dismayed when I picture it going on and on.

((No, you're not a minority of one: It does get heavy, obtuse, and boring, but this is the work of being an SF writer.

I thought these discussions between Jean and me should be printed because they are going to lead (someday) to a book or a series of books. Then you will look back on this stuff and say "I see where they got this idea!"

Also—this is the foundational creation work of building the series. By publishing this work, and by turning it into a round robin among fen who have areas of knowledge we lack, we can let you participate in the creation of the series in such a way that you will get what you want to read.

Third: since this is collaborative work, it all comes out on paper, so it is a unique and precious opportunity to see demonstrated externally the kind of work that goes on inside a writer's mind.

Fourth: Jean and I would be carrying on these discussions with each other and with fans anyway. After a while, the fans we were corresponding with would come to be know as some sort of private "inner circle." And I don't want that unless the private "inner circle" includes each and every one of you who wants to be included. So I've asked Katie to let you ALL sit around my kitchen table and participate.

But you don't have to participate in every single subject. If linguistics bores you, wait a while and we'll get around to another topic, JL))

Issue 3

cover of issue #3, Janet Trautvetter

Zeor Forum 3 was published in November 1980 and is 59 pages long.

The art is by Janet Trautvetter, Rayna Daughtry, Jean Lorran, and Barbara Tennison.

This issue includes the discussion question: "How do you think the tectonic would react to a homosexual channel?" Fans' replies are in the next issue. One of those replies was part of the 1985 fanwork Post-Syndrome: Considerations on Sexuality in the Sime/Gen Universe, specifically The Great Gay Channel Controversy.

• Grant Kendikot vs. The Tecton, a Play in One Act by Linda Frankel (2)
• Of Wer-Gens and Red Killer Whales by Jean Lorrah (19)
• An Ancient's Pledge to Zeor, poem by Edna Chavez (21)
• Chronology of the Sime/Gen Universe by Katie Filipowicz (22)
• On Writing, Fan and Pro (a series of round robin letters among fans: Ellen Blair, Leslie Fish, Jacqueline Lichtenberg, Kerry Schaefer, Mary Frances Sambreno, Deborah Laymon) (25)
• Householdings (31)
• From the Tecton Board of Governors by Jacqueline Lichtenberg (32)
• Order of Reading the Sime Series (fan letters and opinions) (33)
• To an Ancient Enemy, Victorious, poem by Michelle Barney (35)
• The Controller's Obfuscation, logic puzzle by Katie Filipowicz (36)
• So Where Did Simelan Come From? (round robin fan letters about Simes: where did they, and their language, come from?) (37)
• Conventions by Lynn Gibbs (con report for Fantasy Worlds Festival, had a substantial Darkover component) (43)
• Reviews by Linda Frankel, Roberta Mendelson (Alex Comfort's "Tetrarch," Marion Zimmer Bradley's "House Between the Worlds," Chelsea Quinn Yarbro's "False Dawn") (44)
• Aspects of Vampirism, article by Linda Frankel ("Simess are/aren't vampires. Choose one proposition and debate. Well, are they? It depends what you mean by "vampire." Recent reading has led me to believe that Dracula movies are only one version of this very complex phenomenon.") (47)
• Reading the Ambient, general letters of comment (49)

• 

  from issue #3, Janet Trautvetter

• 

  from issue #3

• 

  from issue #3

• 

  from issue #3, the timeline, one page of four

• 

  from issue #3, Jean Lorrah

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 3

I got Forum 3 several months ago, and have been meaning to write you ever since. I really like Forum, especially the way your editorial presence Is an intrinsic part, but not obtrusive, of the general style of the zine.

I thought "Grant Kendicott vs. the Tecton" was interesting. Some of the dialog seems a mite awkward, but I expect that's the result of translation. I still don't understand why the Tecton (or Ancients) should care if a channel is homosexual. I can see why a homosexual Gen could cause problems for an individual heterosexual channel, but unless there is some sort of problem between individuals, I don't see why the Tecton should get upset. All these tantalizing glimpses of Jacqueline's and Jean's future books are driving me crazy. I want, I need those books! it's also fascinating to have a sort of 'window" into a writer's mind. All of the creative arts seem to be magic to me, but I think writing is especially so. I'm sorry that Doubleday and Playboy are cutting the lengths of future books. I usually like more of a good thing. I would think most people are willing to pay for quality in quantity. I am!

I really like the Simelan discussions, and find them absolutely fascinating. I'd like to see more, although I think much of it sails right over my head. Sometimes I get a little confused in my thoughts, for instance when Jacqueline says that Simelan appeared fully formed, I think, "That's ridiculous, look how English- Germanic ft looks!" Then I realize that I've gotten the abstract crossed with the concrete. I tend to agree with Jean. I don't see why the Simes would need or want a whole new language. True, their perceptions of the world and people around them would change, but why wouldn't they use already existing words? They would probably change the meanings a little of many words, as well as add other new words for their new abilities and sensations. After all they still have all the old senses of Ancients, why use new words? Until I'd read the first Simelan article in Forum, I thought it just started out as a dialect of English and other languages, and later developed into a language. I thought "Simelan" came from "Sime language" [Jean: Yes--it is the English word for it, as "German" in the English word for "Deutsch."], and nager from "anger" [no]. I thought Zeor was derived from "Zero" [no] which always symbolized mathematical perfection to me. I love Jean Lorrah's theory about the Basques. I can't wait to tell a Basque friend of mine about some of his relatives!

Zeor Forum 3 is great--you did a smashing job as usual. It was nice to see Ashar so well represented, I must admit to a bit of button-popping on my part as well..

[...]

I would like to comment on Linda Frankel's play—I loved it! It is well written and handled gracefully. You know there are many things in life that are real and cause problems because some of us fail to understand the diversity of ourselves. Still we need to discuss and explore all areas of life whether Joyful, mundane, or painful. Linda took one of the areas and let us see how it feels to be "different." She also gave us the opportunity to explore ourselves and see how we measure up as humans. I for one am afraid I did not measure up to the high standards I would have liked. But change is in the wind.

Now about ZF #3 and "Grant Kendicot vs. the Tecton," I never met a story or play that made my cry (twice!) during it, and still leave me uncertain as to whether liked it or not. [Eventually, Julie decided she didn't like it.] I do know I felt very indignant at the way Grant was treated.

On your first question, How would the real Tecton react to a homosexual channel? For one thing, JL says there can't be a "gay" channel, and if there were, he/ she probably wouldn't survive long. So the circumstances might never arise. But i should think they might restrict him/her to channel's transfer for the rest of his/her life. Unless he already had a permanent partner. And forbid him to channel.

I just received ZF #3. I can see most of "Grant Kendikot vs. the Tecton" happening in the "real" Tecton, especially the courtroom where everyone is trying to drag everyone else through the muck and mire. (It seems that channels just can't shake free of the "pervert" label...first the juncts call them perverts, then, after Sime society no longer considers them perverted, the Distect takes up the cry. Now even the other channels are calling Grant "pervert," although at least it isn't his transfer practices that they disapprove of this time.

[...]

"The Controller's Obfuscation" was, well... puzzling. (The Controller's remote ancestor must have been the person who designed the 10^0 form and tax booklet.) Leaving Joseph Ross out of the list in the question didn't help any.

On Jean Lorrah's two cartoons: "Your Tax Dollars At Work" was funny, but "Return your empties--we recycle" on a pen door? That's getting slightly ghoulish.

Issue 4

cover of issue #4, Contessa

Zeor Forum 4 was published in June 1982 and contains 63 pages. On the cover, "Give to Medical Research... Help Prevent Birth Defects."

It contains no interior art.

From the editorial:

There are many reasons why it's been 1½ years between issues--and why I've held the money of so many of you for so long. I've been more or less retired from fandom, not writing letters to anybody, not doing fanzine work. And I'm very sorry. This has been a difficult year on the job--and a tough year for JL, too.

But, sine has finally been able to finish a draft of RENSIME (her third attempt),so 1 guess it's time i got busy, too. Thank you all for being so patient.

• Counterpoint, fiction by Mary Frances Zambreno (2)
• Universal Intrusions by Lynn Gibbs (22)
• Empathy, a round robin (the topic: Do Gens have perceptions that Ancients - and Simes -- don't?) (23)
• A Matter of Communication, fiction by Andrea I. Alton (28)
• Conventions by Kerry Schaefer, Lynn Gibbs (con reports for Noreascon II, Octocon III) (31)
• What to Serve When a Sime Comes to Dinner by Jacqueline Lichtenberg (recipe involving fresh rhubarb, tofu, sugar -- all thickened by cornstarch and poured into a mold) (37)
• Ercy Throws a Wing-Ding by Jacqueline Lichtenberg ("This is an excerpt from the first draft of "Mahogany Twinrose" which never reached the final draft. To find where it fits in the printed version, locate the end of Chapter 6--p. 64 of the hardcover. The excerpt replaces the last two paragraphs of that chapter.") (38)
• Down the Trinrose Path, a round robin, the topic is "Does the prologue of "Mahogany Trinrose" fit the book?") (42)
• Reviews by Linda Frankel, Roberta Mendelson (Suzy McKee Charnas' "The Vampire Tapestry," three books by Mary Stewart, Stephen Donaldson's "The Wounded Land") (46)
• The Starred-Cross by Jean Lorrah (a chapter that was cut from the original draft of "First Channel") (49)
• Notes from the Pen of Patricia Demetri (55)
• Reading the Ambient, general letters of comment (56)

Reactions and Reviews: Issue 4

Thanks to Edna Chavez for her tribute. I ought to explain to Julia that my interpretation of Jacqueline's contention that there are no gay channels is that the Tecton doesn't recognize their right to exist any more than the Church of the Purity recognizes the right of any Simes to exist. [JL: Tecton has nothing to do with it. If they exist they die 3 months after changeover, maybe a year at the

most.] It is based on the logic of homophobia that what you fear will go away if you ignore it or if that's impossible you use severe enough tactics so that the feared minority will live in fear. Oh, it works very well. You can see how effectively it destroyed Grant, Sart and even the bisexual Dev. I wanted to show the consequences of denying fundamental needs uh requirements. (I have to watch my terminology here.) [JL: It doesn't, so you do.] If the mainline Tecton doesn't adhere to this strategy, I have yet to understand Jacqueline's reasoning about her universe.

[Because the discussion of homosexuality in the Sime/Gen universe has bothered some fans, we have decided to continue it only in a special zine Kerry Schaefer hopes to put out that will deal with all aspects of sexuality in the books and in the universe. If you have any interest in these matters, write Kerry Schaefer...]

I have found out what ida/pingala currents are. Colin Wilson explained them in MYSTERIES. From what I can see, they are essentially a sexist way of categorizing auras, but that is only my theory. [JL: No, it is a psychic perception of something that seems to be real. If it is real, we as scientists must adjust our theories to account for it. That is what SF is for.] If ida/pingala currents do truly exist [JL: they do in the S/G universe], then everything I have ever learned about human psychology is false. [JL: Could be.] I can't believe that masculinity and femininity are a dichotomy and that examining these currents would never show an admixture between the two. If ida/pingala currents are JL's basis for her ideas about homosexuality [JL: No, channels came first, then the search for the real-world science they're based on. The currents are the basis of the ESP function which is the ultimate use of channels.], then my worst fears are confirmed. (Well, not all of them. Simes haven't yet turned into Kraith Vulcans.)

I would like to comment on Linda Frankel's letter portion that mentions Companion In Zeor and ZF [ZF ffk, p.62] CZ is not necessarily "fannish" in its approach. If we go by what was said in the original "GENerally Speaking" editorial, CZ's purpose was clearly stated as one that would give serious discussions and fun aspects. No one publication can ever satisfy all the interests and needs of the people it serves, yet I would also like items of "sercon" nature. If someone wishes to submit a serious topic or some criticism to us to use in a discussion format, or just for generally "running up the flagpole, to see who salutes it"—to see what people say about this topic, or possibly a piece written in a serious vein, I will be happy to publish it. I'm always open to comment and criticism from CZ's readership... and Sime fen in general.

Jacqueline adds that she would love to "see CZ continue to emphasize the humorous aspects of the S/G universe because NOBODY else is doing this, and it seems nobody but Karen seems to have the right touch and talent to do it without hurting people who are very deeply committed to the serious concepts underlying the fiction."

ZF#4 was great! Definitely worth waiting 1½ years.

I really loved "Counterpoint." I think it's the best of Mary Frances' stories yet.

[...]

The ZF rr remains endlessly fascinating, as usual, i do wish JL could explain clearly why Gens need Simes. It's rather like the question of why women need men. I mean, the idea of a world without men is chilling to me, but a story like, say, Joanna Russ' "When It Changed" makes it seem almost natural. Oh, well--! guess the Simes-are-the-tools-of-Gens explanation will have to do, for now.

Foum 4 was well worth waiting for. Mary Frances' "Counterpoint" was everything I hoped it would be. The descriptions of conditions in David's town were so realistic. Mary Frances is a real artist with a story. I like it. Pg. 38, "Ercy Throws a Wingding". I thought it was very interesting, if it had been included in the original book it would have given Ercy a needed dimension. On remembering the book without rereading, Ercy comes across as so calm and grown up most of the time. But reading it now it doesn't seem to fit.

Reading the Ambient: I must agree with Linda F. about the channels. I like them too. At least the Tecton does permit them to operate. And I like the “heavy stuff“ in Forum. And the lighter side in CZ. I may, only sometimes, be temporarily bored with something when I don't understand it. That usually passes however (the Simelan discussion). But where do I find myself when I pick up Forum again? RIGHT. That same Simelan discussion! Give the winner a candy cane! It's only now that I'm beginning to appreciate it. Well, I always did have to study hard in school. Also, I approve of an adult Sime zine. I don't think I'd know how to edit anything, but if I can help, I'd certainly try.

"A Matter of Communication" by Andrea Alton. I'm on Andrea's side in one thing: I too think that two Simes would use emotions to modify, change, or amplify spoken words. It just wouldn't make sense not to if you did have empathy. As a matter of fact, I don't think you could keep from doing it most of the time. Steven's communicating with emotion is an intriguing idea. After all, if you were born without vocal chords wouldn't you try? When you knew Simes could receive emotions? However, I must reluctantly agree with Andrea's second thoughts. I don't think such communication would be possible in such detai1. They might however learn to get across concepts.

Issue 5

cover of issue #5, Lolita Toussaint

Zeor Forum 5 was published in May 1984 and contains 101 pages.

The art is by Michaela Duncan, Lolita Toussaint, and Beth Ann Wempe.

From the editorial:

Well, here it is, two years after ZF #4. I've avoided putting this issue out more than I ever have before - don't ask me why.

[...]

This pretty much exhausts the non-fiction files of the zine -- so send contributions of all types, folks. I'm not going to predict when the next issue will come out -- but, as Jacqueline says, if I print it sooner, I can make it shorter! Send a SASE for #6, if you haven't already.

"Opening Doors" is the first in a series of stories by Andrea Alton about these characters. The main character, Merri, turns into quite a thorn in the side of the Tecton when she grows up. "Dream-Tower" is the only story I've ever attempted to write for (fan) publication; Barbara and Jacqueline keep after me to write more, but at the moment I have nothing I want to write about. While I tried to stick as close as possible to the mainline S/G universe, it turns out I was wrong in my timing (I think!): "Faith Day" takes place some years after my story. But I still feel it was incidents like these that caused Hugh Valleroy to make Rior Sime Territory and take in Simes.

This issue's round robin is on "What is a Sectuib?" if you're interested in the subject, read this before you read Jacqueline's "House-Binding." Jean's AMBROV KEON (due possibly late 1985 from DAW) also deals with this subject, as will JL's THE FARRIS CHANNEL (we may print the outline for this one of these days).

"Zelerod's Doom" is the Jean Lorrah piece for this issue. Since Jacqueline wrote the original lengthy ramblings from which Jean culled and greatly rewrote this segment, she gets first billing in the by-line. But the words in this zine are as they emerged from Adam, Jean's word processor, untouched by Chasdo, Jacqueline's word processor. You can always tell who did the first draft on anything the two co-author: she whose name comes first in the by-line.

From a letter of comment:

I just finished reading MOLT BROTHER, and am now recommending it to all my friends. This is the first time in a looong time that I felt this much for people in a book. When Sudeen died, I cried, when Zref finally discovered the truth , about the Scream, I cried again--for joy. When Arshel was using her talent, I kept feeling a tingle of excitement, the way I do when I'm reading Tarot card's or my crystals. The characters in your book are much more than that--they are real people to me. I feel I've met them, sometimes I even feel I am one of them (Arshel). I thank you for this book.

When I went with my fiance to Darkover Grand Council Meeting IV, I attended a talk on Tarot cards that you and Jean Lorrah held. While I was there I think I saw your aura--it was Gold, which is how I usually perceive power. Tell me, does the bead string work for those of Wiccan teaching, as well as Hautri? You see, I have no one to show me how to fashion the string for the beads.

Enclosed with this is a picture of my Kren personality, Shefra. She is Arshel's daughter by Khelin, and is a dark green priest at Mautri. She, like her mother, took a human bhirhir--an orphan named Alex (short for Alexandra). (I hope this doesn't conflict too much with things you are planning/writing in the second and third books.)

Anyway, I sent you the picture because I'd like to thank you for helping me decide what career to follow. Finally I've decided to major in biology as I

planned since 9th grade, and while going for my Masters, take archeology courses-- since I have wanted to be an archeologist since 4th grade. MOLT BROTHER finally helped me make that decision.

The art is by Michaela Duncan, Lolita Toussaint, and Beth Ann Wempe.

• Opening Doors, fiction by Andrea I. Alton (2)
• Camiat Comments, letters about "Molt Brother," Lichtenberg's new book (19)
• Herbal Trin Tea, recipe by Cheryl P. Gloger (mix in Tupperware container: Darjeeling tea, peppermint tea, chamomile tea, star anise, orange peel, rose hips, honey) (26)
• Dream-Tower, fiction by Katie Filipowicz (27)
• Reviews by Susan D. Ross, Jacqueline Lichtenberg (Barbara Hambly's "The Time of the Dark," "Walls of Air," and "Armies of Daylight," also short recommendations from Lichtenberg about some books including Mists of Avalon - "Don't miss it, even if you are not into Arthuran legend -- it's about everything MZB ever writers about.") (51)
• What Is A Sectuib? a round robin ("Since HOUSE OF ZEOR first came out in 1974, a number of fans have been so entranced by the Sime/Gen universe concept that they have wanted to "pledge" to Jacqueline as their "Sectuib," This has always disturbed her since she is not a Sectuib and does not wish to be one. We thought a discussion of what a Sectuib really is would be appropriate and sent out a round robin. Note that except for Edna's letter, these were written in 1980 — the writers' personal philosophies may have changed since then. The questions: What is a Sectuib? Would you like to be one? Why would anyone want to be one? Why would a person— Sime, Gen or Ancient — pledge to one? Would you?") (53)
• House-Binding Jacqueline Lichtenberg (It is a "selection from the never-finished first draft of 'RenSime!.' The events and personalities are very different from those you'll see in the published version." (Note: the online version is slightly different from what was published in the zine) (57)
• Conventions by Andrea I. Alton (con report for Denvention 11) (an excerpt: "I went to JL & JL's pro-discussion group where Jean read a letter she'd written to a fan who was complaining that the mental abilities of her Savage Empire were only so much cultism. She replied that one man's cultism sooner or later becomes another man's science. One young man who took an active part in the discussion was wearing a black uniform with silver piping across the chest. The uniform seemed vaguely familiar, but I couldn't place it. It wasn't until I was in line to see STAR WARS and I saw him dressed in the armor of an Imperial Storm Trooper that I realized he was wearing the underdress of an IST.") (78)
• Im' Balance, vignette by Susan D. Ross (83)
• Zelerod's Doom by Jacqueline Lichtenberg and Jean Lorrah (An outline for proposed book: "Jacqueline originally wrote 23 pages of ramblings that included material to fill three books. What you see here is what Jean Lorrah plucked from that, rounded out, and made into a novel outline. ZELEROD'S DOOM (working title) is under contract to DAW, and should be written this spring and summer, it's due to be published after Jean's AMBROV KEON, possibly as early as Dec. 1986. Changes have already been made from this outline--a character added, for instance--but it should give you an idea of what was going on in Sime/Gen history roughly 10-12 years after HoZ. All comments are welcomed. This is the third book in a tetralogy consisting of AMBROV KEON, HOUSE OF ZEOR, ZELEROD'S DOOM, and SHEN THE TECTON.") (85)
• Reading the Ambient, letters of comment (89)

• 

  from issue #5, Beth Ann Wempe

• 

  from issue #5, Beth Ann Wempe

• 

  from issue #5, Lolita Toussaint

• 

  from issue #5, Lolita Toussaint

Issue 6

cover of issue #6

Zeor Forum 6 was published in Fall of 1987.

• From The New Editor . . . Chandra Lea Morgan
• Book Reviews Katie Filipowicz
• Registry Of Householdings
• "It Is Later Than You Think!" Maria Elena Cardena
• Letters
• "Hope" Debbie Young
• "Absolution" Lolita Toussaint
• A Review Of Selected Works of Ms. Ann Maxwell Octavene Epps
• Letters
• Book Review: Caught In
• Spider’s Web Terry Jo Madden
• Round Robin: Sime/Gen
• Weapons & Tactics
• Letters