GATOR CROSSING
Carrie Berry

Many of our readers have expressed an interest in how Gator Springs Gazette came to be. A few of you know the scoop, so you can sit there with smug looks on your faces while we expose some of the mystery in this very special issue.

During the presidential elections of 2000, a few drunken novella writers posting in a popular writers' forum created a cast of characters living in a fictional north Florida locale they dubbed Novellas County. We're still trying to forget about the results of that election, but we couldn't seem to forget about that unusual little spot.

In May of 2001 Jeff Rose created an online newspaper for the small group of participants in that novellas discussion group and gave it the very original name of Novellas County. He spent the next few months trying to get someone to take over the franchise. I eventually accepted the challenge and on 14 August 2001 (with the help of some of the aforementioned fictional characters as staff) published the first issue of Novellas County Gazette, consisting of two articles on writing and a discussion of the top three novellas and reviewers for that period, along with this sidebar from Electra Hemingray:

BLINKING ZOETROPE OR SWAMP GAS? by Electra Hemingray When Novellas County Gazette's Editor in Chief, Ernie Hemingway Junior, was found babbling incoherently about aliens and gin rummy last Thursday, no one paid him any mind. In fact, no one has paid him any mind since 1983 and the paper has run much more smoothly as a result. 1983 was the year of the alleged zoetrope sighting over the swamp behind Double-Wide Heaven, the trailer park built on the landfill next to the Novellas County Swamp. A much younger Ernie had just shared a six pack, a funny cigarette and a few sweaty maneuvers on a confederate flag beach towel with trailer park resident Martha Tucks, well known for her views on, well, known for her views, Ernie's favorite being her deliciously expansive bottom. None of us here at the Gazette put much store in Ernie's account, but Martha had a reputation for honesty as big as her backside. "I watched it hover in the sky for nearly 45 minutes after Ernie passed out—a big red and orange blinking thing, spinning like a giant roulette wheel. When it moved, there seemed to be images floating around the outside like a picture show. I could have sworn it was playing reruns of Rocky and Bullwinkle." Martha's story reminded me of similar lights I'd seen playing with Spencer and Ernie down by the swamp when we were kids. We ran down to get a closer look and found rotten logs all glowing with yellow gunk. It gave off an eerie light when the wind blew across. Ernie used to put some of the junk on his nose and run after us shrieking. Come to think of it, his nose still glows most of the time. Spencer called a Colonel Wanamaker at the Air Base who, after interviewing Miss Tucks at some length, chalked up the phenomenon to swamp gas. He did promise to look in on her now and again and has been faithful to his word to this day.

Novellas County Gazette was hawked every couple of weeks thereafter by scruffy little newspersons with big hats on the main street of the county seat, Gator Springs. NCG was a meager rag with a handful of readers looking for local gossip and encouragement in the pursuit of their writing craft. An article, maybe a story or two and a few newsworthy sidebars, gained a limited but faithful following.

The slowly growing circulation, however, was scarcely enough to keep the County from shutting down the offices due to non-payment of taxes, so on December 8th, notice was published by the fictional editor in chief, Ernie "Junior" Hemingway, of a change in name and venue.

The Novellas County Gazette ceased to exist in that closed forum, but the first issue of Gator Springs Gazette, a patchwork quilt interface with links to 18 works of fiction, poetry and art with holiday themes, was published two weeks later on the web.

From January 2002 through December 2003, Gator Springs Gazette was published monthly online, including two more Christmas Quilts. Each issue centered on a theme, most of which evolved through natural synergy in much the same way as we are doing today. As the quirky little zine gained momentum, I began to see its potential as a print venue and experimented with a couple of issues before I realized that the fictional staff members just couldn't provide the resources needed. From our talented body of contributors I recruited a live editorial staff that seemed to embody the spirit of GSG. We grew together, producing monthly issues through August of 2004 when we agreed that a bi-monthly edition with more pages would provide readers with a higher quality product. In May of 2005, we made the move to a quarterly schedule and increased the number of pages still further.

This issue marks the 4th anniversary of the Gazette and, coincidentally, the 10th anniversary of Fandango Virtual. To celebrate these milestones, we have a few special features for you, including our first graphic flash, THE DAWN OF SOMETHING, a map of Gator Springs and our first installment of Classic Gator, sharing highlights from some of our pre-print collections. The Classic Gator segments will be presented in Comic Sans MS font as were all of the early online offerings. And (as if this were not enough) we also bring you a generous selection of new short stories, flash and poetry.

© Carrie Berry

Gator Springs photo © Sue O'Neill

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