The Fantasy Fan, April 1934<br />The Fan's Own Magazine by Various (best memoirs of all time .txt) đź“•
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- Author: Various
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Such is the tale; flat, stilted, and altogether devoid of the true cosmic horror which makes weird literature. Yet such was the thirst of the age for those touches of strangeness and spectral antiquity it reflects, that it was seriously received by the soundest readers and raised in spite of its intrinsic ineptness to a pedestal of lofty importance in literary history. What it did above all else was to create a novel type of scene, puppet-characters, and incidents; which, handled to better advantage by writers more naturally adapted to weird creation, stimulated the growth of an imitative Gothic school which in turn inspired the real weavers of cosmic terror—the line of actual[Pg 31] artists beginning with Poe. This novel dramatic paraphernalia consisted first of all of the Gothic castle, with its awesome antiquity, vast distances and ramblings, deserted or ruined wings, damp corridors, unwholesome hidden catacombs, and a galaxy of ghosts and appalling legends, as a nucleus of suspense and daemoniac fright. In addition, it included the tyrannical and malevolent nobleman as villain; the saintly, long-persecuted, and generally insipid heroine who undergoes the major terrors and serves as a point of view and focus for the reader's sympathies; the valorous and immaculate hero, always of high birth but often in humble disguise; the convention of high-sounding foreign names; mostly Italian, for the characters; and the infinite array of stage properties which includes strange lights, damp trapdoors, extinguished lamps, mouldy hidden manuscripts, creaking hinges, shaking arras, and the like. All this paraphernalia reappears with amusing sameness, yet sometimes with tremendous effect, throughout the history of the Gothic novel; and is by no means extinct even today, though subtler technique now forces it to assume a less naive and obvious form. An harmonious milieu for a new school had been found, and the writing world was not slow to grasp the opportunity.
German romance at once responded to the Walpole influence, and soon became a byword for the weird and ghastly. In England, one of the first imitators was the celebrated Mr. Barbauld, then Miss Aiken, who in 1773 published an unfinished fragment called Sir Bertrand, in which the strings[Pg 32] of genuine terror were truly touched with no clumsy hand. A nobleman on a dark and lonely moor, attracted by a tolling bell and distant light, enters a strange and ancient turreted castle whose doors open and close and whose bluish will-o'-the-wisps lead up mysterious staircases toward dead hands and animated black statues. A coffin with a dead lady, whom Sir Bertrand kisses, is finally reached; and upon the kiss, the scene dissolves to give place to a splendid apartment where the lady, restored to life, holds a banquet in honour of her rescuer. Walpole admired this tale, though he accorded less respect to an even more prominent off-spring of his Otranto—The Old English Baron, by Clara Reeve, published in 1777. Truly enough, this tale lacks the real vibration to the note of outer darkness and mystery which distinguishes Mrs. Barbauld's fragment and though less crude than Walpole's novel, and more artistically economical of horror in its possession of only one spectral figure, it is nevertheless too definitely insipid for greatness. Here again we have the virtuous heir to the castle disguised as a peasant and restored to his heritage through the ghost of his father; and here again we have a case of wide popularity leading to many editions, dramatizations, and ultimate translation into French. Miss Reeve wrote another weird novel, unfortunately unpublished and lost.
[Pg 33]
YOUR VIEWS"I should venture that the fascination of the weird is through a vaguely masochistic pleasure that derives delight from frightening one's self! I believe the simile is ancient that our gaze will often return to the ugliest person in a room rather than the most handsome. Perhaps it is that constant saccharine palls. I claim it is untrue that 'the beautiful, the good, is the aim of every true artist.'"
—R. H. Barlow
"The element of horror in a tale often makes the story; it gives you that weird, creepy sensation and cold chills. Thus, the greater those feelings affect us after, or during, the reading of the yarn, the greater we say the story is. Of course, if the horror part is of too intense a nature in that it causes a continued after-effect producing nervousness in the reader, then the virtue of the use of horror may be questioned. However, strong horror can be read by strong minds, or by uncomprehending minds, without damage. It would appear, then, that it depends equally upon the reader and the quality of horror used. Horror has a certain fascination to everyone; it is a thing that seems inborn in us—perhaps it is because we try to understand subconsciously, something mysterious, just beyond the conscious cognizance of the things that are known."
—Kenneth B. Pritchard
"In the horror story, one can find true beauty—beauty that is glorified from tossing seas of blackness—shining beauty that comes with cosmic fear, lurid silence, frightful death—all[Pg 27] this and more fascinates one's appreciation of true art. 'When people read these and say that they are distasteful to the well and normal mind' then these certain people should not read them. No one is compelling them to do such. And why do we wish to read a sinister tale of evil or monstrosities? Listen, readers! Those of us who know life and have grown tired of its futile strivings, its worries, its hard realities, (and most of us have by now) are able to forget it all by steeping ourselves with the nameless terrors and evil spawns of that 'darkness visible'."
—Robert Nelson
"As to the virtue of horror stories, one might ask what virtue there is in any yarn? What are we looking for in a story?—mental relaxation, thrills, morals, spine chills, or what have you. Certainly, they are different from the usual run of blood and thunder, hero stuff. They are also something to think about after reading. We read them again to feel the effect of the words once more. I dare say that the average story one reads is enjoyed while being absorbed, then forgotten. I am probably wrong, but pass over it. The point is, we read horror tales because we like them."
—Duane W. Rimel
"Aren't most tales that are weird and fantastic a bit horrifying? Consider the strange beings around which the tale is woven—incomprehensible monsters, neither animal nor reptile; strange man-things bearing only a resemblance in bodily structure, but too warped to be human. I can see no virtue in them, except that when I finish the story and come back to the normal world, I'm glad that I am what I am. It takes real intelligence to write something that is not known to the general populace. I read weird tales for variety. I get a bit tired of the general run of stories found in sensible magazines."
—Gertrude Hemken
"Just what is a normal mind? This pertains, I think, to the commonly accepted norms in vogue at any specified time in history. Even in different communities, what is considered normal in one is sometimes abnormal in others. This must be constantly kept in mind. On the other hand, how many people are what you might call 'normal'? Not many, I imagine. The ones that are probably the most utterly boring, stupid, lifeless creatures that roam this planet are the normal ones. Also, please remember that when a person dislikes something he (or she) usually says it's distasteful to a 'normal' mind."
—Lester Anderson
Now, fans, write this department immediately and tell us who your favorite author is and what quality in his work puts him at the head of your list. Material received by us before April 22nd will be used in our May issue. Make your contributions brief and to the point—but be sure to send in your entry!
[Pg 34]
ADVERTISEMENTSRates: one cent per word
Minimum Charge, 25 cents
SEABURY QUINN—An extraordinary collection of his stories, 5 and 10 cents each. Postcard for prices on your favorite de Grandin tales, or stamp for list of all exploits available. In fairness to fans, limit four stories per person.
Forrest J. Ackerman, 530 Staples Ave. San Francisco, Calif.
CLARK ASHTON SMITH presents THE DOUBLE SHADOW AND OTHER FANTASIES—a booklet containing a half-dozen imaginative and atmospheric tales—stories of exotic beauty, glamor, terror, strangeness, irony and satire. Price: 25 cents each (coin or stamps). Also a small remainder of EBONY AND CRYSTAL—a book of prose-poems published at $2.00, reduced to $1.00 per copy. Everything sent postpaid, Clark Ashton Smith, Auburn, California.
Back Numbers of The Fantasy Fan: September, 20 cents (only a few left); October, November, December, January, February, March, 10 cents each.
I Will Pay Cash for old numbers of Weird Tales in perfect condition. $1. for any number dated between March, 1923 and February, 1924, inclusive. $.75 for any between October, 1924, and September, 1925, inclusive, and December, 1925. $.50 for any of the following numbers: July, September, 1926; May, December, 1927. Please communicate with the editor if you have any of these issues that you would like to part with at these prices.
Wonder Stories presents the cream of science fiction. Why do thousands of of fans call it "the old standby"—because it is owned by Hugo Gernsback, the founder of science fiction as a popular art. Join the Science Fiction League, operated by Wonder Stories. We now present an occasional scientific-weird story for lovers of weird fiction.
[Pg 35]
BOOKS, Magazines, bought, sold. Lists 3 cts. Swanson-ff, Washburn, N. D.
Wanted—copies of Strange Tales; first edition of "Three Go Back" and American edition of Verne's "Earth to the Moon" for sale or trade. Bob Tucker, Box 260, Bloomington, Ill.
Wouldn't you like to know more about your favorite author?
FANTASY MAGAZINE
presents biographies of foremost science and weird fiction writers in each issue
the may issue features an interview with donald wandrei by schwartz and weisinger
also h. p. lovecraft's powerful poem "the outpost"
and "the girl from venus" by rae winters
and many other features
$1.00 a year
Science Fiction Digest Company
87-36 162nd Street
Jamaica, New York
Minor corrections have been made to punctuation, otherwise the text is as in the original.
The "Your Views" section was split across "Supernatural Horror". The two sections have been joined.
End of the Project Gutenberg EBook of The Fantasy Fan April 1934, by Various
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