Word has been circulating through the science-fiction community over the last 24 hours that Jim Baen, the founding editor of science fiction house Baen Books, suffered a stroke earlier this week and is currently comatose in an ICU unit in North Carolina. According to a message posted on the Baen Books online bulletin board by editor Toni Weisskopf, "His condition is serious, but it's too early for any prognosis as to how he'll fare from here on in." A request has been made that flowers and cards not be sent, though all kind thoughts and prayers are greatly appreciated.

Science fiction fans of a certain generation (namely mine) will recognize Baen's name instantly, as anybody who read space opera inevitably picked up one of his paperbacks at some point. More recently, Baen had been successfully experimenting with offering free online access to backlist titles—and earlier this month launched Baen's Universe, a new sci-fi magazine featuring original stories by Alan Dean Foster, Gregory Benford, and Elizabeth Bear.