Category Archives: Robert E. Howard

Musings on Robert E. Howard

Robert E. Howard was born on January 22, 1906. I’ve been reading through the Conan stories for the series at Black Gate. (The latest post is here.)

I realize a lot of people have favorite Howard characters other than Conan. Conan was the first Howard I read. Call it imprinting, but Conan is still my mental template for what a sword and sorcery character is like. I see more and more things each time I reread one of those stories.

I’m also not into the pastiches very much. I’m open to reading some, especially some of the ones that will be published this year in the new comics, but to my mind they will never be canonical. No offense intended to anyone writing them. I feel the same way about the James Bond books. Continue reading →

Imagining the Horrible with Fritz Leiber

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Horrible Imaginings
Fritz Leiber
Originally published by Midnight House in a limited edition hardcover of 520 copies, of which 500 were offered for sale
Currently available in ebook from Open Road Media, $4.99

I originally intended to read and review only one or two stories from this collection, but I ended up reading them all. Once I got started, I couldn’t stop.

This book is a mix of early and late horror stories from Leiber’s career. Midnight House published four collections of Leiber’s work before shutting its doors. The Open Road edition contains the original introduction where Pelan mentions his plans to publish an alternate version of “Adept’s Gambit” as a Lovecraftian tale, one that (AFAIK still) has never seen print. Continue reading →

Arguments Discussions on the Best Conan Story to Begin at Black Gate

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I mentioned a little while back that I was participating in a series of posts at Black Gate on which Conan story is the best. Bob Byrne, who is heading up this project, announced the launch date (Monday, January 7). Bob also posted a list of the authors who are contributing to the series. I’ll not reproduce it here because I don’t want to steal his thunder. I’ll just say that I’m honored and humbled to be allowed to participate with this group of writers.

I’d also like to think Bob for this opportunity.

Black Friday, Adventures Fantastic Style

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Here in the States, the day after Thanksgiving has come to be known as Black Friday. I’m not sure why it’s called Black Friday. The term in the US was originally used to describe the days two different stock market crashes occurred in the 1800s. In more modern times, it started out as the official kickoff to the Christmas shopping season and has since mutated into something that is taking over the whole season. It’s when women get up before God (or never go to bed) and drag their husbands to mob scenes where they save $128 by spending $583. Or something like that.

The whole thing is enough to make one want to run up the Jolly Roger and start lopping off heads.

So here at Adventures Fantastic, we’re going to provide an antidote to all that insanity by observing Black Friday our way. Robert E. Howard wrote a number of stories involving the concept of “black”. We’re going to look at some of them. The following list is by no means complete; it’s just the ones I’ve read in the last few days. Feel free to add others in the comments. Also, a number of other authors could be included in this post. I’ll save them for next year, but feel free to add suggestions in the comments. Continue reading →

A Forgotten Pulpster: H. Warner Munn

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H. Warner Munn was born on this date, November 5, in 1903. Munn passed away in 1981. He is largely forgotten today, but he wrote for Weird Tales. Near the end of his life, he returned to writing.

Munn is best known for writing a series known as the Merlin saga. The first two installments, King of the World’s Edge and The Ship From Atlantis were first published Merlin’s Ring was to have been published in the Ballantine Adult Fantasy series, but the imprint was canceled. Ballantine still published the book along with its sequel, Merlin’s Godson. The latter book combined King of the World’s Edge and The Ship From Atlantis.

Neither of these books (Merlin’s Ring and Merlin’s Godson) are currently available in electronic format in English. My understanding is that there were other books planned in this series, but Munn died before he could write them. King of the World’s Edge was favorably compared to the works of Robert E. Howard when it was serialized in Weird Tales.

Munn’s other series involved werewolves. It was also started in Weird Tales. When he returned to writing, Munn was convinced by Robert Weinberg to write more stories, which Weinberg published. These are available in electronic format.

I have to confess I’ve not read much of Munn’s work. I need to correct that.

Of Editorial Greatness

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Earlier today I was reading a post on a site I don’t normally read these days (I was lured by the temptation of a free ebook). The post made the argument that John Campbell was the greatest editor the science fiction and fantasy fields have seen.

That got me to thinking, which usually gets me in trouble. I began wondering who would be the greatest editor, greater being defined as having the most impact over time. The original post didn’t include fantasy other than a passing reference to Unknown. So I thought I’d throw the question open to anyone who wanted to voice an opinion. Below is a list I compiled off the top of my head. I didn’t include any living editors. If I had, Ellen Datlow would be on it. My rationale is that the impact of living editors on the can’t be accurately assessed because they are still having an influence and their greatest influences may still be to come.

So in alphabetical order are ten editors. I’ll provide a brief explanation as to why they have been included. Some will be quickly eliminated. Others, not so much. Continue reading →

I’m on the Cromcast

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First, I need to apologize to Josh, Jon, and Luke for failing to mention in my report on Howard Days 2018 that they had interviewed me. I plead fatigue and lack of sleep. Age had nothing to do with it, really.

I’d also like to thank them for having me on the show. It was great to visit with them in front of a microphone. The episode went live the day I left on an extended trip, which is why I’m just not mentioning it. Again, apologies for the delay in promoting it, guys.

For those of you who don’t know, the Cromcast is a podcast focusing on weird fiction. It’s one you’ll want to listen to.

Over the weekend, the Cromcasters discussed amongst themselves how they thought Howard Days was going and interviewed a number of people. In addition to me, they also talked with David J. West, Ty Johnston, Jason Waltz, Mark Finn, Indy Cavalier, Jeff Shanks, and Rusty Burke, just to name a few. This episode is two hours long. I come in at 11:18. But don’t check it out just to hear me. All of the guests, along with the hosts, have something interesting to say.

Listen to it here. You’ll be glad you did.

Report on Robert E. Howard Days 2018

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This past weekend, Howardians made their annual pilgrimage to Cross Plains. The emphasis this year was on Howard’s fans.

I was afraid the weather was going to be horrendous. The temperatures were forecast to be around 105F. Fortunately, things didn’t get that bad, although on Saturday they got close. The thunderstorms that rolled in Thursday night helped to cool things off.

(l.to r.) Ty Johnston, Jason M. Waltz, your intrepid blogger, David J. West

The highlight of the weekend for me was meeting some folks I’ve been friends with online but not met in person. I knew David J. West was going to be there, but I hadn’t know Jason M. Waltz and Ty Johnston would be attending. Jason is the editor and publisher of Rogue Blades Entertainment. He’s recently retired and plans to reinvigorate RBE. Ty is an author who has written some terrific fantasy (start here). They all had a great time and want to come back. These are some great guys who fit right in. (Jason moved to Texas earlier this year, so I expect out paths will cross again soon.)

Indy Cavalier giving his GoH speech.

Friday was the usual day for postal cancellations, hot dog lunch, and panels. The banquet Friday night was held in the gymnasium of First Baptist Church. We’d outgrown the Community Center. The Staghorn Cafe catered the chicken fried steak dinner. As usual, it was delicious. I only spent $15 dollars at the silent auction this year. For the last few years I’ve been spending less money, probably because I’ve either gotten everything I want or I can’t afford it. Bill “Indy” Cavalier was the GoH. His speech was entitled “Robert E. Howard Saved My Life”, and was about the impact REH had on his life during some rocky times.

One of the big items of interest this year was the excavation of the cellar. Jeff Shanks is an archaeologist with the National Park Service. The Howard House in on the National Register of Historic Places, which places it under National Park jurisdiction. The cellar was excavated earlier this spring.

Jeff Shanks (far center) discusses the excavation of the cellar.

Jeff gave a tour of the cellar, meaning he stood outside the tape along with everyone else and discussed the process of the excavation. The plan as I understand it is to preserve the cellar and try to figure out a way to keep it visible for future visitors. Until that happens, it will be covered back up. Volunteers filled in the cellar Sunday. You could see where the pressure from the dirt was causing the walls to begin to curve inward.

The photo on the right shows some of the items recovered from the cellar. The helmet is a baseball helmet. The jar in the front left still has its content intact. A number of jars were recovered that survived being buried. Jeff was asking us what we thought. The most popular response was pinto beans. I thought it looked more like some type of vegetable soup. There were some things in the jar that looked to me like corn. Jeff said they also had jars with peach pits, so he knew whoever had stored the jars had been canning peaches. The contents of the cellar will be discussed in a report for the Parks Service. Jeff joked that it will probably be the most read archaeological report from the Service.

Bobby Derie makes a point to Dierk Gunther during the Solomon Kane panel.

This year marked the 90th anniversary of Solomon Kane. I was eating lunch at the Stag Horn on Friday and missed the birthday cake. But I had a great time with friends old and new and wouldn’t trade it for the cake. (I didn’t need the sugar anyway.)

(l. to r.) Scott Cupp, James Reasoner, David Hardy, Jason Carney, and Mark Finn discuss what it takes to go From Fan to Pro

The panels, both the fan oriented and the academic papers were good. I missed part of the Foundation Awards. I stepped out of the room for a few minutes to return a call from my wife. Congratulations to the winners.

The barbeque on the grounds of the Howard House was excellent as always. It was followed by the poetry reading. People said goodnight and in many cases goodbye. The usual informal breakfast was Sunday and the 2018 Howard Days came to a close. From what I understand, it was a success, with a higher than usual attendance.

I’m looking forward to next year.

The Rogue Blades gang displays their invisible blades.

Robert Bloch at 101

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Today, April 5, is Robert Bloch’s birthday. He was born in 1917. For those of you who are poor at math, not sure what day/year it is, or didn’t read the title of the post, that would make him 101 today if he were still alive.

Bloch was one of the most influential writers of horror, crime, and science fiction of the last century. He wrote a number of novels, the most famous being Psycho. And while the Hitchcock film is deservedly considered a classic, you should give the book a try if you haven’t read it. There are some differences. Bloch’s written sequels have nothing to do with the film sequels.

In my mind, though, Bloch was better as a short story writer. The reason I think that may be in part because I’ve a fondness for short fiction. He started writing for Weird Tales when he was just 17, IIRC. While is early stuff is pretty rough around the edges, it was no worse that what Farnsworth Wright was buying at the time, and soon became better than much of the stuff by authors long forgotten. Bloch was an earlier correspondent of Lovecraft. Much of his early work was lovecraftian pastiche. He soon developed his own voice and went on to write some great horror and dark fantasy fiction, such as “Yours Truly, Jack the Ripper”, “The Man Who Collected Poe”, and the Hugo Award winning “The Hell-Bound Train”. If Bloch had any faults, it was that he couldn’t stand Robert E. Howard’s Conan. (That’s a pretty big fault, if you ask me, but Bloch’s body of work is sufficiently good that I’m willing to overlook it.)

Over the last few years I’ve gotten into the habit of blogging about an author’s work on their birthday. At the moment, I’m swamped with the day job and slowly going under. That’s why it’s been like a ghost town around here lately. I’ve either not had the time to write (blog posts or fiction) or not had the energy when I had the time. So, no, I’m not dead. (Sorry to disappoint some of you.) I’ve just been dealing with Real Life.

I’m hoping to read something short this evening. If so, I’ll try to post about it here once I get this mountain of exams graded. I hope to do that, but I may not be able to pull it off.

But don’t let that stop you from raising a glass is Robert Bloch’s memory and celebrating his work by reading a short story or two.

C. L. Moore Channels Brackett and Howard

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“There Shall Be Darkness”
Miracle in Three Dimensions
Isle Press
Trade Paper, $16.95
Original publication, Astounding, February 1942

I meant to have this review posted a few days ago, but Real Life got in the way. (I am legally prohibited from discussing the situation; its a personnel matter.) I just finished reading the story a little while ago.

It’s definitely a blend of Brackett setting and Howardian themes. James Douglas, AKA Jamie, is the commander of the Earth forces on the planet Venus. There’s some indication this may taken place in the future of the Northwest Smith series. In the first scene, Jamie comes in and asks for segir whiskey, the preferred drink of Northwest Smith. If it is the same future, it’s much later along the timeline.

You can’t blame him for wanting a drink. He’s in a bad situation. He’s just received his orders to evacuate Venus. The Empire of Earth is falling. Barbarians, the less developed races in the solar system in this instance, have conquered Mars and are in the process of invading Earth. There are overtones of ancient Rome in this setup. Jamie’s Venusian lover, Quanna, begs him to take her to Earth. He refuses, so she takes matters into her own hands.

Jamie is dealing with an outlaw chieftain, Vastari, who is the only person who can unite the squabbling Venusian tribes into a single unit. Vastari sees himself as a freedom fighter, a soldier struggling to throw off the yoke of tyranny. He’s also Quanna’s brother. Jamie thinks she’s a loyal lover. Vastari thinks she’s a loyal spy. Quanna is only loyal to herself. Continue reading →