Those of us who can’t get enough Oz fiction, look forward to Oziana, the Club’s annual magazine of creative writing written and illustrated by Club members. First introduced in 1971, Oziana often includes work of first-time Oz writers and artists.
Our Patron and Wizard’s Circle level members receive an exclusive hardback copy as a thank-you gift for their financial support of the Club, but anyone can order a softcover copy. Editor Marcus Mebes makes it available on Lulu.com. This year’s issue is available now. If you search Oziana you can find past issues, going back to 2009, available for order, too.
Marcus tells me the 2019 issue of Oziana brings together Oz Club members as writers and artists from around the world. It includes four stories and one poem. Here is how he describes the 2019 contributions:
- “An Odd Transformation” by Sara Philips, relates what happens when uniqueness comes into question, and an adventure brings about some revelations about feelings and self-esteem.
- “Bitsy, the Patchwork Cat of Oz” by Jane Albright, (me!) is an adorable tale about Scraps’ carelessness and how a clever Ozian turns treasure out of mishap.
- “The Epiphany of Miss Gulch” by Paul Dana shows that even the coldest of personalities can melt with the right kind of love.
- “The Giant Weasel of Oz” by Nathan DeHoff finds Dorothy, Betsy, Button-Bright, Trot and the Wizard of Oz mean to find out what’s happening to all the eggs in and around Oz.
- “At the End of the Road.” by E.J. Hagadorn is a sweeping poem about life’s journey
- Profusely illustrated with glorious color covers, this issue will delight fans of Oz for years to come.
My own copy arrived recently and I’m eager to read it. I had such fun writing the story I contributed. It’d been years since I’d had an idea for one I thought was good enough to write, and I was awfully happy that my friend Steve Smith offered to illustrate it. (If you read it and figure out who Bert is, let me know.)
I’m sure every contributor shares that sense of satisfaction when this lovely annual publication arrives–and hope that readers will enjoy our work.
If you write or illustrate original Oz stories, consider submitting material to Oziana! Marcus receives all the submissions we receive for our annual creative contests, but he accepts direct submissions, too.
