Blofeld: They told me you were assassinated in Hong Kong.
James Bond: Yes, this is my second life.
Blofeld: You only live twice, Mr. Bond.
– You Only Live Twice

Sad news (again) for authors and fans of short SF: Realms of Fantasy is defuncted again after a brief, 18-month revival.

According to Warren Lapine it was the economy that did RoF in again:

“Ultimately, I believe Realms failed because of a terrible economic climate. When I purchased the magazine I did not believe that the worst economy since the Great Depression would actually get worse; that was a mistake.”

But, things have been shaky at RoF again for a while. Earlier this year, Lapine sent around a letter urging people to buy submissions or else the magazine would fold again.

Guess they didn’t get enough…

I had a story under consideration at RoF, a story I’m really proud of and which had made it past the slush reader. I was waiting, hoping expectantly, that Shawna McCarthy might buy it and thus give me my first magazine sale.

Alas.

Now it’s time to send my brave little story off to another market. The way things have been going lately, let’s hope there are some left to buy it…

You can read the farewells of RoF editors Shawna McCarthy and Douglas Cohen here and here, respectively.

– S.