[Spotlight Post] Jo Peshek – Rest In Peace

It’s with a sad and heavy heart that I write today’s spotlight. A good friend to me and to the science fiction literary community passed away yesterday. Jo Peshek lost her battle with metastatic melanoma, I understand from the announcement by Zane Melder that it was in her sleep. My thoughts, prayers, and condolences go out her family and close friends as they deal with this loss. It’s a loss to our entire community.

I didn’t grow up in the SF community. I didn’t even know there were fan conventions (or professional ones, for that matter) until well into adulthood. My friend, Nicole, introduced to me to a small convention in Florida (can’t even tell you the name right now) in 1997. That started the ball rolling. I did some conventions – like AggieCon – with her in 1999, which led me to going to visit Nicole in Philadelphia for the 2000 WorldCon. That’s where, I believe, I may have met Jo and Zane – because it’s where I was introduced to Selina Rosen and Yard Dog Press.
I remember the first time I met Lou Anders, I admit I didn’t know who he was. I was talking with John Picacio and he was there. I ran to EDGE Books and asked Jo (because she knew EVERYBODY) who Lou was. She point at him, to which I replied, “I know WHERE he is, WHO is he?” And she sold me the Live Without A Net Anthology – to this day I don’t get Cyberpunk.

Jo was also there to keep my knees from buckling toward the end of World Fantasy in 2006 in Austin when I ended up in a fantastic conversation with Gordon van Gelder at the corner of EDGE’s booth and the one next to it. He said he recognized my name. My witty response? “That’s because you’ve rejected me often.” I was giddy when that was over. She sent me to sit down before I fell down (yes, I do fan girl – and Jo looked out for us all).

Jo was always one of the first people I greeted going into a dealer’s room. And if EDGE Books wasn’t THERE, it was empty (except for Yard Dog). And when EDGE was at a convention that Yard Dog was NOT, they were (and are) our book home base. Jo and Zane were (and are) hugely supportive of the writers, of the presses (large and small) and a staple in our community. Jo will be sorely, sorely missed. Goodbye, my friend, may you have all eternity now to READ ALL THE BOOKS.

Tags: EDGE Books, gordon van gelder, Jo Pesheck, John Picacio, Lou Anders, Yard Dog Press