Deathrealm
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Deathrealm was a small-press magazine of horror fiction that ran from 1987 through 1997, edited by Stephen Mark Rainey. In its ten-year history, Deathrealm featured hundreds of stories by writers ranging from talented first-timers to the best-known professionals in the horror field. Some of the authors whose work appeared in the magazine include Gary Braunbeck, Fred Chappell, Douglas Clegg, Mary Elizabeth Counselman, Charlee Jacob, Joe R. Lansdale, Elizabeth Massie, Rex Miller, William F. Nolan, Jeffrey Osier, Tom Piccirilli, Jessica Amanda Salmonson, William R. Trotter, Manly Wade Wellman, J. N. Williamson, David Niall Wilson, and many others.
Deathrealm was best known for its high-quality fiction and stunning artwork. One cover illustration by artist Ian McDowell (issue 27; see below), which featured an Adobe Photoshop-altered image of the artist as a baby, was considered too controversial by Canadian censors, who banned the sale of that issue. The final issue (#31, Summer 1997) featured a cover by renowned artist Richard Corben.
Though Rainey edited the magazine for its entire run, Deathrealm had the following three publishers: issues 1 through 17 -- Stephen Mark Rainey (independent publisher); issues 18 through 22 -- Tal Publications; issues 23 through 31 -- Malicious Press (a partnership of screenwriter Terry Rossio and novelist Lawrence Watt-Evans). The first 14 issues of Deathrealm were digest-sized (5.5" x 8.5"), but as of issue 15, the editor opted to change the format to full magazine size (8.5" x 11") to increase newsstand circulation. It continued in this format until the end of its run.
Deathrealm won several awards, including the Small Press Writers and Artists Organization's Best Magazine/Editor Award of 1990, the Small Press Genre Association's Best Magazine/Editor Award of 1994, and the International Horror Critics Guild Award for Best Publication of 1995. Numerous stories from the magazine were selected for DAW Books' Year's Best Horror anthology, edited by Karl Edward Wagner, and St. Martin's Press' Year's Best Fantasy and Horror edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling.
In 2004, Rainey compiled an anthology of stories from the magazine, titled Deathrealms, which was published as a signed and limited edition hardcover by Delirium Books.
