Bud Webster, July 27, 1952 – February 14, 2016
It’s never easy to write obituaries. It’s especially difficult when they’re members of the Black Gate staff.
I was already a fan of Bud Webster’s Past Masters column, thoughtful biographical pieces on the enduring impact of our finest writers, when I first approached him to become a Contributing Editor. His first article for us, a marvelous discussion of Tom Reamy, and a continuation of his Who? series on neglected genre authors, appeared in Black Gate 15.
Bud didn’t waste my time with a superficial survey of Reamy’s fiction — anyone could have done that. Instead, he delivered an impeccably researched, 3,400-word piece that dove into Reamy’s history and early influences. It was the kind of piece that triggered an outpouring of discussion and gratitude from BG‘s readers (Keith West even drove to Breckenridge, Texas so he could send Bud a photo of the empty lot where Reamy’s house once stood).
It was the beginning of a long and fruitful partnership with Bud. He was briefly our poetry editor, before the death of the print magazine made that title superfluous. He became a prolific early blogger for us, contributing a dozen posts, mostly on his favorite subjects — the pros and cons of selling vintage books, his role as an stfnal historian, and the magical books that first lured him into the hobby.
Bud wrote extensively on the hobby he loved so much. His first book was Anthopology 101 (2010), an affectionate look back at the classic SF anthologies that helped define the genre. It was quickly followed by The Joy of Booking (2011) and Past Masters, & Other Bookish Natterings (2013). All three were collections of his earlier columns.
