if you choose a focus far enough in advance, I or potentially others could write articles that focus on that strand of literature. Personally i quite like the idea of having a core set of inspiration writers but doing issues focused on others. I've read the first half the moon pool, and some Lovecraft, and two of the Lankmar stories of Leiber. 

I don't mind those author spotlights at all. The core four authors influence the magazine as a whole, allowing a focus for the types of articles you are looking for. The other authors are all very similar to those standards as they influenced, were contemporary, or were influenced by REH, HPL, CAS and Vance.

Yes, with several months advance notice you might get a ton of submissions!

I think you're doing a fantastic job, scaly!
 

The good thing about focus is that it tells something to the reader about the issue immediately. The downside is that, though an initial focus determines readership and place in the market, so to speak, it excludes more and more readers the narrower it becomes.

Likewise with submissions to the magazine, since you basically rely on people's good will to submit stuff in order to put an issue together.

So unless you are crawling under sales and submissions for the magazine, I'd be careful about making each issue too narrowly focused. 

this is a good point. I have quite a few bits close to ready to submit to various zines. But the question is whom to submit them too. If you go with a theme for the next issue I will probably edit something i've got, into that theme, or perhaps just write something new.

A slightly safer option might be to run an author feature with each issue. Have two articles focusing on an individual writer, one about he writer him or herself, bio, commentary on their works etc, and a second gaming article that is strongly influenced by their work. You have quite a bit of this material in anyway.

Thanks, Scott!  I'm working up an alchemist class for AS&SH that I would like to submit.  Once it looks decent, I'll shoot it to you.
Also, can't wait for 1-4 to come back in print; finally got the money and you ran out.