Return of the Sword

Return of the Sword is now available for pre-order at the awesome price of only $14 with free shipping! This looks to be an amazing anthology of swords and sorcery fiction.

Give yourself a break from the suburban angst and inexplicable semi-weirdness of today's big name genre magazines with a good dose of classic style adventure fantasy. Like Glen Cook, Stephen Erickson or George RR Martin? I guarantee you these stories will be closer to those writers than anything you will find in Realms of Fantasy or F&SF. Wonder where all the warriors and wizards have gone in fiction? Here's your treasure chest. You may not know these authors by name, but this is your chance to get a dose of the adventure you crave, without having to wait 3 years and wade through 250,000 words to get to a battle.

I've ordered my copy. Help us prove that swords and sorcery is alive and well. Order yours today!

Your Fantasy is in my Horror!

The continued discussion on the SF Reader site is very interesting. The outcome so far has supported my general sentiment that horror and fantasy can work very well together. The upshot is that the characters need to be rooted enough in everyday human concerns that the reader will care about and identify with them. Seems like a no brainer, but it helps alot in facing the issue of non-contemporary horror. This will help with both Cauldron of Shadows, set in a medieval Italianate realm and ON the Black Wings of Night, set in a post-apocalyptic California.

Why not just write contemporary horror? I love Swords and Sorcery, that's why. I like China Mieville's statement:

I'm a genre writer and deeply proud of that. I love the tradition. And I can't sustain interest in writing unless it has a fantastic element.

And, while a professional attitude toward the market is important, I also feel kinship with this statement from Jim Melvin:

I've always been of the mindset -- for better or worse -- that you have to write from the heart and then let the chips fall where they may.

Some further recommendations from Peadar:

The Throne of Bones by Brian McNaughton.

Also, since you have William Hope Hodgeson on your list, you should definitely read this amazing, amazing online novella set in his world, "The Night Land". No previous experience necessary!

Other writers to add to the reading list:
Steven Savile
Douglass Klegg?
Jim Melvin - The Death Wizard
Janrae Frank

Fantasy and Horror

I stepped out of lurking on the SFReader and nanowrimo blogs to ask around about fantasy stories with strong horror elements. So far these are the results of my inquiries.

The main person who gets mentioned most is Michael Moorcock. I will admit that I had a hard time with the Elric stories when I was younger because basically I was too immature to understand the point of Tragedy. I did enjoy the Corum books. I think that is the right name. It's the one with the necromantic hand and eye. As a teenager I wanted everything to have a happy ending. Now that I am much older, the happy ending is still good, but I realize there is much more to life than happy endings, and sometimes Tragedy is Truth.

So, I need to check out Elric again.

Other authors mentioned:
China Mieville - I picked up The Scar and I'm enjoying it already. Need more.
Steven Erikson - I bought Gardens of the Moon and I am looking forward to it. Bauchelain and Korbal Broach books were also mentioned, about some Necromancers.
Tim Lebbon's novels Dusk and Dawn sound like they are exactly what I am looking for, but I have to order them.
Tanith Lee and her books on Paradys?
James Barclay' Raven novels
David Gemmel, of course
Christopher Golden
R. Scott Bakker
Heroes Die, by Matthew Woodring Stover
THE NIGHT LAND by William Hope Hodgson

Someday that list will include Cauldron of Shadows by Bryan Lee Hitchcock!