As previously mentioned on this blog, Asimov's and Analog are undergoing their first major redesign in years. Their new size is called an L trim and is 5 and 7/8 inches by 8 and 5/8 inches, with the per issue page count reduced from 144 to 112 pages. But since the new pages are larger than the old pages, the amount of words lost each year will be minimal.
But it's one thing to know logically what the new magazine size will look like; it's quite another to actually pick up a copy and read the stories inside. Today the December 2008 issue of Analog arrived. (SHAMELESS PLUG: Be sure to read my short story "Where Away You Fall" in the December Analog. END OF PLUG.) The magazine looks really good in the new format. Not only does it feels more modern and "streamlined," as John Thiel said over on the Analog forum, I also think the thin cover stock the magazines use go better with this size than with their previous digest dimensions. So overall, an excellent redesign which should also help the bottom line of both magazines.
