August has always felt like an in-between month to me. When I was in school, I always felt in limbo in August. I knew the new school year was right around the corner, and I was excited to go back and get school supplies and new clothes. But school hadn’t started yet. At the same time, it was still summer, but I was all too aware that those carefree days were coming to a close. I was neither here nor there, but somewhere in between.

So, it seems wholly appropriate to me that we’re launching the latest volume of Fiction River, Universe Between, in August.

Edited by the master of universes, Dean Wesley Smith, the eighth volume of Fiction River presents fourteen universes, all different, all powerful. From a planetary survey ship moored in an alien ocean to a comic book convention near a strange Louisiana town, each of these universes go somewhere familiar and strange at the same time.

If you’re new to this unique anthology series, now’s the time to come visit the universe of Fiction River, which Adventures Fantastic says is “one of the best and most exciting publications in the field today.”

Universe Between features original stories by Lee Allred, Darcy Pattison, Phaedra Weldon, Steven Mohan, Jr., Scott William Carter, Kristine Kathryn Rusch, Dean himself, as well as some other new names and returning favorites.

We’re a third of the way through Year Two of Fiction River at this point, and we have an exciting year coming up. In fact, our next volume, Fantastic Detectives, comes out in September, and we’ll be launching a subscription drive via Kickstarter on Sept. 3, so please stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks.

For more information about the Fiction River series, or to subscribe, click here.

In the meantime, take this opportunity to embrace that in-between feeling with Universe Between. I hope you enjoy the trip.

Allyson Longueira is publisher of WMG Publishing. She is an award-winning writer, editor and designer.