Introductory thoughts

[alexxkay]

As I have often mentioned, much of my for-pleasure reading these days is various "best of" Science Fiction anthologies. I've lately been working my way through _The Hugo Winners, volume 4_, edited by Isaac Asimov. It reminds me, by contrast, how much I dislike the introductions in the Dozois and Hartwell anthologies (much as I like their selections). Dozois and Hartwell have a very similar, and very standardized introduction structure: about half a page on author bio, then a paragraph about the particular story. Sadly, that paragraph almost always contains spoilers, sometimes serious ones. They are still worth reading, as they sometimes provide insights I had missed, but I always wait until after I've actually read the story to read one of their intros. Isaac, by contrast, almost never talks abot the particular story he introduces, and when he does, he carefully avoids spoilers. Instead, he spends his space on little anecdotes about the author in a funny, conversational tone. They're as much about Asimov himself as they are about the author in question, but they're enjoyable to read, and they don't make you flip back and forth to avoid spoilers.