The World SF News Blog, began in February this year to offer news and links relating to the international SF field, has announced it is expanding into offering original content.

Initially set up by Lavie Tidhar to promote the Apex Book of World SF, an anthology of international speculative fiction coming out this November from Apex Books, the blog has since grown into an entity of its own, covering a range of topics such as Arab science fiction, Malaysian horror, African fiction, Indian comics and much more.

A significant part of the site reboot will include featuring original content alongside news and links.

"It was a question of, do we stay where we are, or do we take the next step?" said blog editor Lavie Tidhar. "And we thought it was time to move forward. There's a lot of talent out there and, I think, a lot of interest today in what's happening in speculative fiction around the world."

Joining Tidhar is blogger Charles Tan, who will be in charge of original content and co-ordinating a team of guest bloggers and columnists from around the world.

"Charles has been instrumental in getting this blog going," Tidhar said, "not to mention an indefatigable promoter of international SF in his own right, and I'm delighted he's agreed to take a more formal position with the site."

The World SF News Blog intends to offer original content in the form of interviews, round table discussions, reviews, regular columns and more. Columnists have so far been confirmed from Portugal, Israel and Romania, with more forthcoming. Tidhar and Tan are both nominated in the International Activism category of this year's inaugural Last Drink Bird Head Award, set up by Ann and Jeff VanderMeer to celebrate "those in the genre community who enrich us with their time, energy, and words, often for causes greater than themselves."

More over at http://worldsf.wordpress.com