With that in mind, I’ve been thinking about doing something similar in January. Two of the other great figures associated with Weird Tales, Robert E. Howard and Clark Ashton Smith, were both born in that month. Each is, in his own way, a towering influence on fantasy, horror, and roleplaying games. Consequently, I would very much like to give one of them the same kind of month-long attention I gave to Lovecraft in August.
Notice I said one. For practical reasons, I can only manage one such project right at a time, however much I'd like to do both. That leaves me with a choice and, rather than make it myself, I thought it would be more fitting (and fun) to put it to you, the readers.
I’ve come up with titles that mirror the spirit of The Shadow over August and capture something of each author’s tone:
- For Robert E. Howard: The Savage Sword of January
- For Clark Ashton Smith: The Ensorcellment of January
Both possibilities appeal to me for different reasons and I would enjoy devoting a month to either writer. So, I’m asking for your help in deciding which one I should pursue. If you have a preference – Howard or Smith – please let me know in the comments. I’ll tally the responses and announce the outcome before the end of the year, as I can begin preparing for whichever choice wins out. It's a difficult choice, to be sure, and I don't think there's a wrong option. Plus, I can always devote January 2027 to whichever of the two isn't chosen for 2026.
Shadow Over August was a smash success.
ReplyDeleteLooking forward to The Savage Sword of January!!
A proposed alternative for your consideration:
A January Undreamed Of
Hrm - I have read pretty much every available published Howard work (at least that is what the Random House Worlds would have me think) and virtually nothing of Smith's. So one would serve as an enjoyable review of paths I have walked, and the other would point out new roads to travel.
ReplyDeleteI think for this venue, I would choose the review over the preview.
I vote Howard.
I adored your Lovecraft month, and Howard is another one of my favorites. I'd love a Howard month.
ReplyDeleteI'd be excited for either one. It's great to hear your continued enthusiasm about the blog!
ReplyDeleteMy enthusiasm waxes and wanes, but I am always buoyed by knowing people read and enjoy what I have written.
DeleteI'll be happy to get either one, but my vote is for Smith. He's my favorite of the pulp writers and I would love to see a month-long feature of him in the way you did Lovecraft.
ReplyDeleteThe Frost Giant's Daughter gives Howard a stronger claim to January than CAS, who also deserves similar coverage, but perhaps in a summer month.
ReplyDeleteI would be interested in both, but for different reasons.
ReplyDeleteI would like REH because I am most familiar with his work on Conan (and really like Sword & Sorcery in general). And even though I own the original stories in paperback I have never gotten around to actually read them, but I have read the Dark Horse published comics adaptations of his work (presented in the fictional chronical timeline, according to one of the widely accepted scholars who have attempted to put the works in a chronical order if I understand correctly).
I would like CAS because I am mostly unfamiliar with his works, but would like to know more.
Yes, I am fully aware that this response does not help you out here, not even in the slightest manner.
CAS, please.
ReplyDeleteClark Ashton Smith as I feel he doesn't get as much attention as REH usually does.
ReplyDeleteLooking forwards to savage sword of january!
ReplyDeleteCAS
ReplyDeleteI vote for REH (but would be happy with either).
ReplyDeleteI would give a small edge to Mr. Howard.
ReplyDeleteSo… at first glance I thought the pic was Al Capone. Which immediately got me thinking about Gangbusters and running a factional campaign.
ReplyDeleteObviously totally unrelated to REH.
CAS
ReplyDeleteClark Ashton Smith please.
ReplyDeleteI'd be happy with either one but I vote for CAS because I know less about his life.
ReplyDeleteCAS please - I love both, but like others have pointed out I feel CAS gets less love more generally than REH, though Savage Sword of January has a better ring to it!
ReplyDeleteCAS
ReplyDeleteHoward
ReplyDeleteREH
ReplyDeleteThanks for these great deep dives. While Howard would feel natural and much more distinct after Lovecraft, I vote CAS who's much less discussed and covered than the two pulp giants.
ReplyDeleteCAS, because I don't know much about him beyond Zothique and Hyperborea
ReplyDeleteHmmmmm. Tough choice.
ReplyDeleteI would be interested in hearing your thoughts on Howard's works.
But, as other people have said, Smith seems to get less attention.
For me, I've read both personally, so I would mainly be interested in your specific takes on either rather than a general unfamiliarity with either of them...
In the end, if I *had* to chose one to vote for I'd give it to CAS by a slim margin.
I vote Smith as I know his work much less than Howard, and I’d like to hear your impressions.
ReplyDeleteA vote for Howard from me!
ReplyDeleteClark Ashton Smith.
ReplyDeleteHoward in 2026, Smith in 2027 :-)
ReplyDeleteI'm for CAS -- no slight intended to Howard whatsoever.
ReplyDelete...while i have more personal interest in CAS, i think REH's legacy looms larger over our hobby and would offer a stronger complemetary note to HPL month by virtue of thematic diversity; besides i'd enjoy the surprise of learning something new and unexpected!..
ReplyDeleteMy vote is for Howard, a far better writer than he is often given credit for.
ReplyDeleteI know less about Clark Ashton Smith and would enjoy an opportunity to learn more about him. He’s oft-overlooked.
ReplyDeleteHoward
ReplyDeleteCAS, please.
ReplyDeleteREH
ReplyDeleteMaybe look at where they referenced each other? Or at least where Howard referenced Smith.
ReplyDeleteBecause almost every CAS story I have read ends with a twist exposing “the futility of it all” I find Two Gun Bob to be the superior writer, especially since he went into other genres of westerns, boxing tales, and even romance. So to paraquote HPL for my vote:
“Who else … besides Robert E. Howard?”
Howard, due to his famous short story, “The Treasures of January” ;-)
ReplyDeleteC.L.Moore. When you get done with her own work have fun figuring out what parts of her many collaborations with Kuttner were her work and which were his.
ReplyDeleteNice to have chance to vote indie without worrying about which of the viable candidates I'm unwillingly helping win by supporting a worthy alternative who's doomed to lose. Haven't been able to do that for a long time now.
CAS
ReplyDeleteI love Howard, but I'm leaning strongly toward CAS. Why? Because there's already so much material about Howard out there, not nearly as much as there is about Smith.
ReplyDeleteI have no preference, but please add Fritz Leiber to the list of future projects
ReplyDeleteok, maybe not true. I like howard more, but I know much less of Klark Ash-tonn
Savage Sword of January is such an excellent title it demands attention and respect, but I think CAS should get the nod. I'd venture that folks know less about him, it would give you a chance to do a deep dive - not just a restrospective - on X2 Château d'Amberville and the nine CAS tales that are specifically (some extremely tenuously) reproduced in that module: "The Enchantress of Sylaire," "The Colossus of Ylourgne" (a favorite!), "The Beast of Averoigne," "The Holiness of Azedarc," "The Mandrakes," "The End of the Story," "A Rendezvous in Averoigne" (first CAS story I ever read), "The Maker of Gargoyles," and "Mother of Toads." Come on, that's a pre-made, game-oriented writing outline just sitting there!
ReplyDeleteDoing CAS might also give the peanut gallery a break from RACISM! (HPL) and RACISM! SUICIDE! (REH). Hardly reasons to avoid those writers, of course - tragically, REH is in perpetual need of rescuing from the "that guy who wrote the Arnold Schwarzenegger movie and killed himself over his mom" slander.
I'd prefer CAS as I think REH gets more coverage in general.
ReplyDeleteI vote REH. (Of course, I would also read a series on CAS with delight.)
ReplyDeleteHope I'm not too late to vote. I live both but prefer Clark Ashton Smith. And the here's a Zothique RPG on Kickstarter!
ReplyDelete