The Literary Influences of Robert E. Howard: James Branch Cabell by Todd B. Vick

Now that I have a bit more time to blog, I’ve decided to do a series about certain writers Robert E. Howard encountered in his life. Each post will cover one author whose work had some kind of influence on Howard’s life (as a reader) and/or his own work (as a writer). To inaugurate this series, I’ve chosen James Branch Cabell.

James Branch Cabell

Cabell was born April 14, 1879 in Richmond, Virginia, to an affluent family of medical doctors and politically connected Virginia ancestors. Because of this, Cabell was raised in what many believed to be an aureate environment. At fifteen, Cabell was enrolled in the prestigious College of William and Mary. He graduated four years later at age nineteen. Even then, Cabell was a master wordsmith and linguist, with a strong command of several languages. So much so, he taught French and Greek courses as a nineteen-year-old. He later became a journalist and began writing short stories and essays for Harper’s and the Saturday Evening Post. The latter being the most likely place Howard first encountered Cabell’s work. Cabell would eventually write novels, of which Jurgen: A Comedy Of Justice (1919) would be one of his most popular.

Cabell’s work has ebbed and flowed in popularity over the past century. When Cabell was alive and writing, H. L. Menken and Sinclair Lewis held the esteemed writer in high regard. Predominantly popular with the reading public of the 1920s and 1930s, Cabell wrote fantasy fiction, fictional satire, and was a master writer of essays written primarily for their aesthetic effect.; the latter likely being the main reason Menken enjoyed Cabell. Simply stated, Cabell was a wordsmith of the highest order. To be such and reach the masses required a near perfect balance between the common and highly sophisticated, a balance not easily reached by too many writers in literary history. This is also probably the reason Robert E. Howard enjoyed Cabell’s work, though the two writers are diametrically opposite in their styles and interests. Cabell’s sophisticated humorous sexual innuendos are what Howard most likely enjoyed.

             Cabell had little influence over Howard as a writer. Howard's humorous fiction was never as elaborate or as sophisticated as Cabell's, but much more low-brow and jocular; a slapstick style like the vaudevillian performances. The only time Howard ever emulated Cabell’s style was when he wrote his so-called book review of Cabell’s Something About Eve for The Junto. Besides the Junto, other places Howard’s review can be found is Amra volume 2, number 47 (August 1968), The Conan Grimoire (Baltimore: Mirage Press, 1972), and The Spell of Conan (New York: Ace Books, 1980).  In the Junto review, Howard assumes that the other Junto participants may have not heard of James Branch Cabell. He wrongly assumes this because he thinks that Cabell is not widely read. That might have been the case in the central Texas area of Cross Plains, but it was certainly not the case among  the broader population of readers in the United States and around the world. Cabell was, in fact, a quite popular author at the time Howard wrote his review of Something About Eve.

1927 edition, illustrated by
Frank C. Papé

In his review, Howard calls Cabell the ablest writer of the present age. Along with many other readers back then, Howard was seized by Cabell’s command of the English language. Something About Eve is Cabell at his finest. But Howard is especially attracted to Cabell’s cynicism, something to which Howard could relate. Cabell pokes fun at his own art, his readers, and the world in general. In Something About Eve, his sardonic humor is communicated through a nineteenth century romance gone awry that bores the protagonist so much he quickly acquiesces to the devil’s invitation of a wild promiscuous adventure elsewhere. In his Junto review, Howard’s focus is not on the plot or events of the Cabell’s novel so much as on the sexual innuendos, the way women are presented in the story, and Cabell’s linguistic prowess. In his review of Something About Eve, Howard attempts to emulate Cabell’s linguistic style. As far as I’ve been able to determine, this is the only place Howard does this. It’s uncertain which edition Howard reviewed. If it was the Robert M. McBride & Company 1929 edition, illustrated by Frank C. Papé, Howard would have delighted in the illustrations and likely mentioned those in his reviews. But he did not, so there’s no telling which edition he read.

In reading Howard’s collected letters, there are two letters where Cabell is mentioned. The first, is a humorous poem (“A Fable for Critics”) Howard sent to his Brownwood friend, Tevis Clyde Smith (CL 1:272). In it, several writers are mentioned in a comical way. Cabell is mentioned, knees knocking, embarrassed at the modern school (of writers) who drank and whored. On a second occasion, in a February 14, 1936 letter (Valentine’s Day) to Novalyne Price, Howard responds to Price’s struggle with a Cabell book she was reading. Howard indicates that he has not read that particular work by Cabell, but asks her to wait a few days until he can visit and go through the book with her. (CL 3:420). The title of Cabell’s book Price is struggling with is not mentioned. But it is interesting that Howard is confident that he can help her understand its contents. This would imply that he believed he had read enough of Cabell’s work to communicate confidently his ability to understand its contents.

 In late 1934 or early 1935, Howard was still buying Cabell’s work. In fact, on a date with Novalyne Price, they drove to Brownwood to visit Dublin’s Bookstore. Howard had his eye on a different edition of Omar Khayyam's The Rubáiyát. Being one of his favorite stories, he already had one copy, but this edition offered something the other, perhaps, did not. In addition, Price indicated that Howard also had his eye on a book by Cabell (OWWA, 92). She does not indicate the title of Cabell’s book, but this tells us that Howard was still actively buying and reading Cabell. Price was introduced to Cabell’s work through Howard and, on one occasion, she was apparently arguing with her cousin Mary Enid Gwathmey, likely about the sordid content of a Cabell book, which was interrupted by Gwathmey’s realization that Price was ill and had no business teaching that day. (OWWA, 123) Nothing else is said about Cabell, but this indicates that Price, probably because of Howard, was reading Cabell’s work.

1927 illustration by Frank C. Papé for "Something About Eve."

I have not been able to ascertain any indication that Howard was so influenced by Cabell that his own writing style and sentence structure changed in any of his own stories. Even so, Cabell did play an important role in Howard’s passion for literature, at least of a certain kind. The strongest indication of this is clearly seen in his review of Something About Eve. After Howard’s death, Cabell’s popularity slowly waned, especially once the second world war began. However, by the late 1960s and early 1970s, with the advent of The Ballantine Adult Fantasy series, spearheaded by Lin Carter, James Branch Cabell made a brief but relatively strong resurgence in popularity. The Cabell titles chosen by Carter for The Ballantine Adult Fantasy series included: The Silver Stallion (August 1969), Figures of Earth (November 1969), The High Place (February 1970), Something About Eve (March 1971), The Cream of the Jest (September 1971), Domnei: A Comedy of Woman-Worship (March 1972). Though there are likely other titles by Cabell that Howard read, the titles we know he read include: Something About Eve and The Cream of the Jest. The latter book was part of the Howard Payne University holdings, books from Robert’s personal collection given to the college by Dr. Howard after his son’s death.

I can’t help but wonder if Howard, despite his claims that he wrote for a paycheck, and the restrictive markets he was (in a sense) chained to, secretly desired to write on a level equivalent to Cabell. Among other authors, Howard pays Cabell some of his highest praise. And though Howard, likely to save face for some silly argument, disagreed with H.P. Lovecraft's opinion that writing could be considered a form of art, Cabell was probably the one writer who might have changed Howard’s mind on that opinion.

Works Cited
CL                The Collected Letters of Robert E. Howard
OWWA         One Who Walked Alone

A 2018 Howard Days Highlight: Books, Books, Books! by Todd B. Vick

Every year at Howard Days, someone (or several someones) has a table set up for you to buy books, collectible magazines, fanzines, pulps, etc. This year was no exception. Even so, there were several books at several tables that set this year's wares apart from previous years.

First, Bobby Derie (who also presented on several panels) set up a table and gave away (yes, gave away . . . you know, for free!) three books that he put together (one that Howard boxing scholar, Chris Gruber, helped with). The first of these three is titled, Essays on Robert E. Howard & Others. Even if there were nothing between the covers of this book, the cover alone would be worth having. The cover (front and back) consists of a bunch of pictures of various pulp writers place together to form an over-all image of Robert E. Howard. Very cool! This book is a collection of essays that Derie had published between 2015 to 2017 at Damon Sasser's now defunct blog Two-Gun Raconteur, here at On An Underwood No. 5, Messages from Crom blog, and in print in the Lovecraft Annual. To have all these in one collected volume was a great idea. The second book is titled A Robert E. Howard Sampler. This is a collection of Howard's works edited by Chris Gruber & Bobby Derie. Gruber has an introductory essay and Derie wrote brief essays to introduce each section. The sections consist of sword & sorcery, weird fiction, boxing, western, poetry, detective, historical adventure, fantasy, science fiction, and H.P. Lovecraft's In Memoriam: Robert E. Howard essay. The third book is an index to One Who Walked Alone by Novalyne Price Ellis, and Day of the Stranger by Rusty Burke & Novalyne Price Ellis. This small book is a nice edition to any researcher's library, especially for quick reference to these two works.

Second, Skelos Press had a table and this year they were selling Patrice Louinet's (another presenter on this year's panels) anticipated book titled The Robert E. Howard Guide. It was originally published in France several years ago, and Louinet recently translated it into English and published it through Skelos Press. It is an excellent intro to Robert E. Howard, and a must read for Howard beginners. The book deals with a history of common misconceptions that have arisen and developed over the decades. These misconceptions have sometimes been somewhat damaging to Howard's reputation, sometimes they've distorted his works, and too often they've confused readers and fans about the writer, his works, and his life. Louinet does a first-rate job of clearing up those misconceptions. The misconception section is followed by a brief biographical section about Howard, his up-bringing, life in Texas in the early 20th century, etc. Then there are two chapters of recommended stories to read from Howard. The first of these two chapters cover "must-read" stories, each has a small bit of publishing history and summation of the tale itself. This is followed by another chapter that details twenty more stories you "should" read, with the same format of information, for a total of forty Howard stories.

Louinet then turns his attention to Howard's most famous character, Conan the Cimmerian. He discusses the barbarian's history, how he has been used (and abused) in pastiches, film, comic books, video games, board games, etc. This chapter is followed by various adaptations of Robert E. Howard's stories in motion pictures (e.g. Conan the Barbarian, Solomon Kane, etc.), as well as television adaptations such as Boris Karloff's early 1960s adaptation of "Pigeons from Hell."

Other nice features of this book include Howard's correspondence with Lovecraft, current places to read about Robert E. Howard, and things such as collecting Howard ephemera, and such.

As far as a basic book to introduce anyone interested in the works and life of Robert E. Howard, this is now the go-to book. It does have some editorial issues throughout (I'm not sure whether Skelos Press proof-read and/or edited the text, they should have if they did not), and there is one somewhat big blunder in the book that, once again should have been caught by the editors at Skelos Press. The blunder is that Louinet attributes the creation of Weird Tales magazine to William Sprenger (who was actually the business manager of the magazine) and not J. C. Henneberger (and J. M. Lansinger), who actually created and established the magazine. Otherwise, this is an excellent book and well worth investing your money ($14.95 price tag) and your time. Hopefully, Patrice Louinet will publish more works here in the U.S. since he is considered by many to be one of the foremost scholars on Robert E. Howard's life and works.

Third, The Robert E. Howard Foundation, as usual, had their table set up and were selling the much anticipated volume titled, Pictures in the Fire: Remaining Weird Tales and Esoterica, edited by Paul Herman. From the inside flap: This volume is mostly comprised of weird and horror stories, along with a bit of juvenilia, fragments, poetry, and assorted odds and ends. The front and back cover art is drawn by Bill "Indy" Cavalier (who was the guest of honor at this year's Howard Days, and a long-time fan of Robert E. Howard). If you do not already have a copy of this book, you better hurry and get one, it is likely to sell out fairly fast.

The Robert E. Howard Foundation has announced a new book available now for Pre-Order . . .

Pre-ordering information is here: http://www.rehfoundation.org/2016/07/13/the-adventures-of-breckinridge-elkins/

Untrodden Fields: Robert E. Howard’s Sex Library; Part 3 by Bobby Derie

Intro From Part One:

[Some considerable work has been done by Howard scholars Dr. Charlotte Laughlin, Glenn Lord, L. Sprague de Camp, Steve Eng, and Rusty Burke to identify the books that comprised Robert E. Howard’s personal library, based primarily on the holograph list of books that Dr. I. M. Howard donated to form the Robert E. Howard Memorial Collection after his son’s death, as well as Robert E. Howard’s surviving letters and papers. Among these books are a number of works of erotica or curiosa which, while not pornographic to contemporary tastes, were nevertheless concerned with some aspect of sexuality (usually from a scholarly or pseudo-scholarly perspective) and were often treated as such. It is interesting to see, based on these books, what light if any they can shed on Howard’s life and work.]

__________________

The Merry Order of St. Bridget (1868) by Margaret Anson (James Glass Bertram) is a flagellation novel by the author of A History of the Rod, with most of the whipping occurring between women. The Misfortunes of Colette (1930), published for subscribers only, may have been a Gargoyle Press title; a translation of a 1914 French erotic novel about a couple that works to keep Colette in servitude via various tortures. Closely related is Presented in Leather: A Cheerful End to a Tearful Diary (1931) by Claire Willows, where a girl named Flora is imprisoned and tortured by her aunt, waiting for rescue. It is not impossible that one of these works helped inspire Howard’s idea of “lesbianism” being expressed in such a violent fashion.

Painful Pleasures (1931) is an anthology of flagellation anecdotes culled from French sources, translated by W. J. Meusal and published by Gargoyle Press, which specialized in flagellation literature, advertised in the pulp magazines, and sold by mail. (Gertzman 76) Another Gargoyle Press title on Howard’s list is The Strap Returns: New Notes on Flagellation (1933) by Anonymous (Samuel Julian Wegman and Sydney Frank), which consists of a number of accounts of corporal punishment ostensibly taken from American and European newspapers.

Nell in Bridewell: The System of Corporal Punishment in the Female Prisons of South Germany Up to the Year 1848, A Contribution to the History of Manners (Burke notes the 1900 first edition, but the 1934 reprint seems more likely) by Wilhelm Reinhard is another quasi-historical work of corporal punishment, translated from the German.

Tracts of Flagellation (1930) is a privately printed collection of flagellation works reputedly taken from the library of English antiquarian Henry Thomas Buckle (hence Howard’s note): 1. Sublime of Flagellation; 2. A Treatise of the Use of Flogging in Venereal Affairs; 3. Madame Birchini's Dance; 4. Fashionable Lectures; 5. Lady Bumtickler's Revels; 6. Exhibition of Female Flagellants in the Modest and Incontinent World; 7. Part the Second of the Exhibition of Female Flagellants. The assertion “by George Colman” may be due to some editions of Tracts including the epic erotic poem The Rodiad (1871), which was falsely attributed to George Colman the Younger in, among other places, Curiosa of Flagellants. Howard’s entry for The Rodiad directly below Tracts likely suggests he was either unaware of this, or else the catalogue or advertisement he was referring to did not make it plain.

Untrodden Fields: Robert E. Howard’s Sex Library, Part 1 by Bobby Derie

Some considerable work has been done by Howard scholars Dr. Charlotte Laughlin, Glenn Lord, L. Sprague de Camp, Steve Eng, and Rusty Burke to identify the books that comprised Robert E. Howard’s personal library, based primarily on the holograph list of books that Dr. I. M. Howard donated to form the Robert E. Howard Memorial Collection after his son’s death, as well as Robert E. Howard’s surviving letters and papers. Among these books are a number of works of erotica or curiosa which, while not pornographic to contemporary tastes, were nevertheless concerned with some aspect of sexuality (usually from a scholarly or pseudo-scholarly perspective) and were often treated as such. It is interesting to see, based on these books, what light if any they can shed on Howard’s life and work.

William J. Robinson

Birth Control, or, The Limitation of Offspring by the Prevention of Conception by William J. Robinson was originally published as Fewer and Better Babies in 1915 by Robinson’s Critic and Guide company, later reprinted in many editions. Dr. Robinson was the author of numerous sexological tracts, serious and devoid of commercialized smut, aimed at educating the public about contraceptive devices. (Gertzman 186) The bulk of this book deals more with the moral and philosophical questions of birth control than the practical matters of condoms, diaphragms, and spermicides, which were actually eliminated by censors (and otherwise technically illegal under Comstock laws). For Howard, his interest in the subject may or may not have been due to speculative encounters with prostitutes; given the period it is not surprising that the subject does not come up in his published fiction. The only mention of abortion I have yet found in his writings is a reference in his play “Song of Bastards” in a letter to Tevis Clyde Smith (CL1.344). The subject seems to have formed at least an occasional subject of conversation with Howard’s intimate friends, as in the copy of The Leather Pushers that Truett Vinson gifted to Robert E. Howard, Vinson inscribed to his friend:

Also don’t
forget our opinions on
other subjects ranging
from prize-fighting to
birth control!
(Burke)

Support The REH Foundation, Project Pride and Cross Plains, TX

 Fists of Iron, Round 2 just came today in the post. I'm a bit behind on ordering the boxing collection, but I'll eventually catch up. I noticed a particular sticker on the box when it was delivered. "Mailed from Cross Plains Texas, home of REH." There was another sticker that declared that the contents were packaged by Project Pride and the return address label indicated that the book was sold through The Robert E. Howard Foundation. 

All these people and organizations at work just to get me my book. It takes an army, and this army needs some support. Whenever anyone buys a book from the Robert E. Howard Foundation, several things happen. First, the person making the purchase gets a high quality work/volume (or volumes) to add to their library. They also get hours of reading enjoyment because we all know how awesome Howard's work is, right? Second, the Foundation gets much needed support which helps them to be able to publish more works in the future. And those of us REH fans always love to see additional material from or about Robert E. Howard.

Next, Project Pride and Cross Plains, TX is supported because they actually send out the material when it's ordered. I have heard that the Cross Plains post office has benefited greatly from all the orders that have been made through the Foundation. This certainly helps keep their small Post Office open with money coming in from all the book orders. So in the end, everyone benefits.

The Robert E. Howard Foundation has a solid selection of material at their website, from Howard's fiction, to non fiction works written by various scholars about Howard and his life. With new research being performed daily, new material being discovered, supporting the Foundation will actually enable them to publish more material in the future. And this support trickles down to Project Pride and the town of Cross Plains.

Besides ordering material, there is another way to help support the Foundation—become a supporting member. There are three levels of membership in the Foundation:

$20 – as a Supporting Member you will receive a 10% discount on REHF and REH Foundation Press (REHFP) books and merchandise.

$50 – as a Friend of REH you will receive the member discount above as well as the REHF newsletter, and your name posted (if wanted) on the website.

$100 – Legacy Circle members will receive all the above, along with invitations to special events, plus a yearly REHF pin. Legacy Circle members might also get other additional benefits during the year.

No matter the level, the support is always gladly needed. I've been a Legacy Circle Member for four years now and over those four years I've received the quarterly newsletter which has actually released REH material, fragments, and other items of interest that you can get nowhere else. I've also had early voting privileges for the Foundation Awards given each year at REH Days. Plus, I've received my REH pins (all really cool pics of REH) and taken advantage of the discount to buy material. Here are some of the books I've bought from the Foundation over the years:

Robert E. Howard's
Western Tales

Blood & Thunder
by Mark Finn

The Western Tales, Blood & Thunder, The Letters of Dr. Isaac Howard, School Days in the Post Oaks, The Three Volume REH Letters, Sentiment: An Olio of Rarer Works, So Far the Poet, The Collected Letters: Index and Addenda, and now I'm working on getting all the boxing volumes. All of these books are a very high quality bound book whether they are hardback or paperback. Morever, and I probably do not need to stress this point, every volume is well worth the money. So if you are able, please support the Foundation, Project Pride, and the town of Cross Plains, TX simply by purchasing the works of Robert E. Howard or REH Scholars. You'll be glad you did.

The Collected Letters of Doctor
Isaac M. Howard

New Aquisitions

Over the last 4 or 5 months I have collected a few new REH items of interest.

From the top left . . .

From the Memories of Men by Tevis Clyde Smith (autographed)
This book is a self-published book from Smith, the book is about Brown and other Central Texas Counties, from the frontier days to the time of publication.. It also deals a bit with the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic people who built that part of the country (according to Smith).

Frontier's Generation by Tevis Clyde Smith. This book is, as the subtitle suggests, The Pioneer History of Brown County with Sidelights on the Surrounding Territory. There is a nice section in the back devoted solely to Robert E. Howard. This work is a very detailed history of the Brown County area with some excellent pictures.

The top right . . .

The Cimmerian Vol. 5 Nos. 1-6
It's unfortunate that this journal is no longer being published. There are some great articles/essays from both Howard fans and scholars alike.

Bottom left . . .

The Collected Letters of Robert E. Howard: Index and Addenda edited by Bobbie Derie. If you own the Three Volume set of the Collected Letters of Robert E. Howard, then you will not want to be without this added volume. It is a fairly exhaustive subject index to those letters with new letters added. This book was a godsend for my research in the collected letters. It certainly made finding things way easier!

Bottom right . . .

So Far the Poet & Other Writings By Tevis Clyde Smith (edited by Rob Roehm) According to the REH Foundation, "This collection contains all of the known pieces that Smith wrote about Howard, contributed to Howard fan publications, or co-authored with Howard. It also contains many of the pieces Smith wrote while Howard was still alive, items from The Tattler, Daniel Baker Collegian, The Junto, Dallas Morning News (one including a reference to Howard), contributions to Truett Vinson’s Lone Scout publication, The Toreador, and the few surviving letters from Smith to Howard, several presented here for the first time. Snippets from Howard’s correspondence and quotes from Post Oaks and Sand Roughs, Howard’s semi-autobiographical novel,are provided to give context."

Most of these items were purchased over the last 5 or 6 months of research I've been doing for an upcoming article for REHupa. All these items are well worth tracking down if you are a Robert E. Howard reader or fan.

Argosy

For the last three months I've been doing a tremendous amount of research on Billy the Kid and Robert E. Howard. Some of this research involves where REH possibly obtained a particular book. While pouring through the The Collected Letters of Robert E. Howard, I discovered that REH would frequently order books from a bookstore in New York City called Argosy. (Pictured above)

As it turns out, that bookstore is still in business today. According to a brief history from their website, 

"Argosy Book Store, founded in 1925, is now in its third generation of family ownership. Our enormous stock of antiquarian and out-of-print items fills a six-floor building in midtown Manhattan and a large warehouse in Brooklyn. We specialize in Americana, modern first editions, autographs, art, antique maps & prints, and the history of science & medicine. We also have thousands of books in all other fields of interest. We are founding members of the Antiquarian Booksellers Association of America, and we belong to the International League of Antiquarian Booksellers and the Appraisers Association of America."

My guess is that REH began ordering from their catalog around mid to late 1928, or early 1929. Howard mentions the bookstore in a letter to his friend Tevis Clyde Smith. In the letter Howard is a bit disgruntled at Argosy for not sending him their latest catalog. He talks about them as if he has been doing regular business with them for some time. 

"I don't suppose you've seen anything of the Junto. I haven't. The Argosy pipple [sic - intentional as REH is playfully joking through this entire letter] enrage me highly by their damned discriminating attitude. I haven't gotten their latest catalogue no more as nothing. They always send their other customers theirs before they send me one." (The Collected Letters, Vol. 2, 30)

This weekend kicks off World Book Day, which technically begins today and lasts until March 6th, I thought it quite appropriate to mention Argosy, an independent bookstore that has survived for over 90 years, and other independent bookstores across the U.S. and in the world. Considering that Howard was located in the middle of "nowhere, TX" having access to a New York bookstore through mail order was huge in his day. 

It's nice to know that there is a bookstore that Robert E. Howard shopped at via snail mail that still exists today.

The Del Rey Collection

If you are new to reading Robert E. Howard, consider yourself blessed because you are now able to read his works in their closest originally written form. When I first started reading Howard, the options were slim - Ace Books had the L. Sprague de Camp editions of Conan. These included Lin Carter's and de Camps' pastiche chapters/additions, so you really did not get all of Howard's original work. Glenn Lord published a nice paperback series through Berkley Medallion Books in the late 70s, but by the early to mid-80s these were somewhat tough to find.

Today, Del Rey has published a series of all of Howard's original works. And, it should be pointed out that these books are a must-read/must-have collection. Each volume has a nice introduction written by various Howard scholars (e.g. Rusty Burke, Patrice Louinet, etc.), several of the volumes contain Rusty Burke's Short Biography of Robert E. Howard, each volume has illustrations by various excellent artists (e.g. Gary Gianni), and Notes on the Original Howard Texts. If you stumble onto this post here at On An Underwood No. 5 and have not heard of these volumes, then you're in luck. Each book is listed below with the blurb from the back of the book describing its contents. I hope this post helps you decide that if you have an interest in Robert E. Howard, these volumes are a worthwhile investment. Feel free to click on any of the links and order the volumes.

[Listed in chronological order according to their publication dates]


Publication Date: December 2, 2003 “Between the years when the oceans drank Atlantis and the gleaming cities . . . there was an Age undreamed of, when shining kingdoms lay spread across the world like blue mantles beneath the stars. . . . Hither came Conan, the Cimmerian, black-haired, sullen-eyed, sword in hand . . . to tread the jeweled thrones of the Earth under his sandalled feet.” Conan is one of the greatest fictional heroes ever created–a swordsman who cuts a swath across the lands of the Hyborian Age, facing powerful sorcerers, deadly creatures, and ruthless armies of thieves and reavers. In a meteoric career that spanned a mere twelve years before his tragic suicide, Robert E. Howard single-handedly invented the genre that came to be called sword and sorcery. Collected in this volume, profusely illustrated by artist Mark Schultz, are Howard’s first thirteen Conan stories, appearing in their original versions–in some cases for the first time in more than seventy years–and in the order Howard wrote them. Along with classics of dark fantasy like “The Tower of the Elephant” and swashbuckling adventure like “Queen of the Black Coast,” The Coming of Conan the Cimmerian contains a wealth of material never before published in the United States, including the first submitted draft of Conan’s debut, “Phoenix on the Sword,” Howard’s synopses for “The Scarlet Citadel” and “Black Colossus,” and a map of Conan’s world drawn by the author himself. Here are timeless tales featuring Conan the raw and dangerous youth, Conan the daring thief, Conan the swashbuckling pirate, and Conan the commander of armies. Here, too, is an unparalleled glimpse into the mind of a genius whose bold storytelling style has been imitated by many, yet equaled by none.
Publication Date: June 29, 2004 With Conan the Cimmerian, Robert E. Howard created more than the greatest action hero of the twentieth century—he also launched a genre that came to be known as sword and sorcery. But Conan wasn’t the first archetypal adventurer to spring from Howard’s fertile imagination. “He was . . . a strange blending of Puritan and Cavalier, with a touch of the ancient philosopher, and more than a touch of the pagan. . . . A hunger in his soul drove him on and on, an urge to right all wrongs, protect all weaker things. . . . Wayward and restless as the wind, he was consistent in only one respect—he was true to his ideals of justice and right. Such was Solomon Kane.” Collected in this volume, lavishly illustrated by award-winning artist Gary Gianni, are all of the stories and poems that make up the thrilling saga of the dour and deadly Puritan, Solomon Kane. Together they constitute a sprawling epic of weird fantasy adventure that stretches from sixteenth-century England to remote African jungles where no white man has set foot. Here are shudder-inducing tales of vengeful ghosts and bloodthirsty demons, of dark sorceries wielded by evil men and women, all opposed by a grim avenger armed with a fanatic’s faith and a warrior’s savage heart. This edition also features exclusive story fragments, a biography of Howard by scholar Rusty Burke, and “In Memoriam,” H. P. Lovecraft’s moving tribute to his friend and fellow literary genius.
Publication Date: November 23, 2004 In his hugely influential and tempestuous career, Robert E. Howard created the genre that came to be known as sword and sorcery–and brought to life one of fantasy’s boldest and most enduring figures: Conan the Cimmerian–reaver, slayer, barbarian, king. This lavishly illustrated volume gathers together three of Howard’s longest and most famous Conan stories–two of them printed for the first time directly from Howard’s typescript–along with a collection of the author’s previously unpublished and rarely seen outlines, notes, and drafts. Longtime fans and new readers alike will agree that The Bloody Crown of Conan merits a place of honor on every fantasy lover’s bookshelf. THE PEOPLE OF THE BLACK CIRCLE Amid the towering crags of Vendhya, in the shadowy citadel of the Black Circle, Yasmina of the golden throne seeks vengeance against the Black Seers. Her only ally is also her most formidable enemy–Conan, the outlaw chief. THE HOUR OF THE DRAGON Toppled from the throne of Aquilonia by the evil machinations of an undead wizard, Conan must find the fabled jewel known as the Heart of Ahriman to reclaim his crown . . . and save his life. A WITCH SHALL BE BORN A malevolent witch of evil beauty. An enslaved queen. A kingdom in the iron grip of ruthless mercenaries. And Conan, who plots deadly vengeance against the human wolf who left him in the desert to die.
Publication Date: May 31, 2005 From Robert E. Howard’s fertile imagination sprang some of fiction’s greatest heroes, including Conan the Cimmerian, King Kull, and Solomon Kane. But of all Howard’s characters, none embodied his creator’s brooding temperament more than Bran Mak Morn, the last king of a doomed race. In ages past, the Picts ruled all of Europe. But the descendants of those proud conquerors have sunk into barbarism . . . all save one, Bran Mak Morn, whose bloodline remains unbroken. Threatened by the Celts and the Romans, the Pictish tribes rally under his banner to fight for their very survival, while Bran fights to restore the glory of his race. Lavishly illustrated by award-winning artist Gary Gianni, this collection gathers together all of Howard’s published stories and poems featuring Bran Mak Morn–including the eerie masterpiece “Worms of the Earth” and “Kings of the Night,” in which sorcery summons Kull the conqueror from out of the depths of time to stand with Bran against the Roman invaders. Also included are previously unpublished stories and fragments, reproductions of manuscripts bearing Howard’s handwritten revisions, and much, much more. Special Bonus: a newly discovered adventure by Howard, presented here for the very first time.
Publication Date: November 29, 2005 “FOR HEADLONG, NONSTOP ADVENTURE AND FOR VIVID, EVEN FLORID, SCENERY, NO ONE EVEN COMES CLOSE TO HOWARD.” –Harry Turtledove In a meteoric career that covered only a dozen years, Robert E. Howard defined the sword-and-sorcery genre. In doing so, he brought to life the archetypal adventurer known to millions around the world as Conan the barbarian. Witness, then, Howard at his finest, and Conan at his most savage, in the latest volume featuring the collected works of Robert E. Howard, lavishly illustrated by award-winning artist Greg Manchess. Prepared directly from the earliest known versions–often Howard’s own manuscripts–are such sword-and-sorcery classics as “The Servants of Bit-Yakin” (formerly published as “Jewels of Gwahlur”), “Beyond the Black River,” “The Black Stranger,” “Man-Eaters of Zamboula” (formerly published as “Shadows in Zamboula”), and, perhaps his most famous adventure of all, “Red Nails.” The Conquering Sword of Conan includes never-before-published outlines, notes, and story drafts, plus a new introduction, personal correspondence, and the revealing essay “Hyborian Genesis”–which chronicles the history of the creation of the Conan series. Truly, this is heroic fantasy at its finest.
Publication Date: October 31, 2006 “Howard’s writing seems so highly charged with energy that it nearly gives off sparks.” –Stephen King “Robert E. Howard had a gritty, vibrant style–broadsword writing that cut its way to the heart, with heroes who are truly larger than life.” –David Gemmell In a meteoric career that spanned a mere twelve years, Robert E. Howard single-handedly invented the genre that came to be called sword and sorcery. From his fertile imagination sprang some of fiction’s most enduring heroes. Yet while Conan is indisputably Howard’s greatest creation, it was in his earlier sequence of tales featuring Kull, a fearless warrior with the brooding intellect of a philosopher, that Howard began to develop the distinctive themes, and the richly evocative blend of history and mythology, that would distinguish his later tales of the Hyborian Age. Much more than simply the prototype for Conan, Kull is a fascinating character in his own right: an exile from fabled Atlantis who wins the crown of Valusia, only to find it as much a burden as a prize. This groundbreaking collection, lavishly illustrated by award-winning artist Justin Sweet, gathers together all Howard’s stories featuring Kull, from Kull’s first published appearance, in “The Shadow Kingdom,” to “Kings of the Night,” Howard’s last tale featuring the cerebral swordsman. The stories are presented just as Howard wrote them, with all subsequent editorial emendations removed. Also included are previously unpublished stories, drafts, and fragments, plus extensive notes on the texts, an introduction by Howard authority Steve Tompkins, and an essay by noted editor Patrice Louinet. “Howard was a true storyteller–one of the first, and certainly among the best, you’ll find in heroic fantasy. If you’ve never read him before, you’re in for a real treat.” –Charles de Lint “For stark, living fear . . . what other writer is even in the running with Robert E. Howard?” –H. P. Lovecraft
Publication Date: August 14, 2007 Robert E. Howard is one of the most famous and influential pulp authors of the twentieth century. Though largely known as the man who invented the sword-and-sorcery genre–and for his iconic hero Conan the Cimmerian–Howard also wrote horror tales, desert adventures, detective yarns, epic poetry, and more. This spectacular volume, gorgeously illustrated by Jim and Ruth Keegan, includes some of his best and most popular works. Inside, readers will discover (or rediscover) such gems as “The Shadow Kingdom,” featuring Kull of Atlantis and considered by many to be the first sword-and-sorcery story; “The Fightin’est Pair,” part of one of Howard’s most successful series, chronicling the travails of Steve Costigan, a merchant seaman with fists of steel and a head of wood; “The Grey God Passes,” a haunting tale about the passing of an age, told against the backdrop of Irish history and legend; “Worms of the Earth,” a brooding narrative featuring Bran Mak Morn, about which H. P. Lovecraft said, “Few readers will ever forget the hideous and compelling power of [this] macabre masterpiece”; a historical poem relating a momentous battle between Cimbri and the legions of Rome; and “Sharp’s Gun Serenade,” one of the last and funniest of the Breckinridge Elkins tales. These thrilling, eerie, compelling, swashbuckling stories and poems have been restored to their original form, presented just as the author intended. There is little doubt that after more than seven decades the voice of Robert E. Howard continues to resonate with readers around the world.
Publication Date: November 27, 2007 The classic pulp magazines of the early twentieth century are long gone, but their action-packed tales live on through the work of legendary storyteller Robert E. Howard. From his fecund imagination sprang an army of larger-than-life heroes–including the iconic Conan the Cimmerian, King Kull of Atlantis, Solomon Kane, and Bran Mak Morn–as well as adventures that would define a genre for generations. Now comes the second volume of this author’s breathtaking short fiction, which runs the gamut from sword and sorcery, historical epic, and seafaring pirate adventure to two-fisted crime and intrigue, ghoulish horror, and rip-roaring western. Kull reigns supreme in “By This Axe I Rule!” and “The Mirrors of Tuzan Thune”; Conan conquers in one of his most popular exploits, “The Tower of the Elephant”; Solomon Kane battles demons deep in Africa in “Wings in the Night”; and itinerant boxer Steve Costigan puts up his dukes of steel inside and outside the ring in “The Bulldog Breed.” In between, warrior kings, daring knights, sinister masterminds, grizzled frontiersmen–even Howard’s stunning heroine, Red Sonya–tear up the pages in stories built to thrill by their masterly creator. And in such epic poems as “Echoes from an Anvil,” “Black Harps in the Hills,” and “The Grim Land,” the author blends his classic characters and visceral imagery with a lyricism as haunting as traditional folk balladry. Lavishly illustrated by Jim and Ruth Keegan, here is a Robert E. Howard collection as indispensable as it is unforgettable.
Publication Date: October 28, 2008 Here are Howard’s greatest horror tales, all in their original, definitive versions. Some of Howard’s best-known characters–Solomon Kane, Bran Mak Morn, and sailor Steve Costigan among them–roam the forbidding locales of the author’s fevered imagination, from the swamps and bayous of the Deep South to the fiend-haunted woods outside Paris to remote jungles in Africa. The collection includes Howard’s masterpiece “Pigeons from Hell,” which Stephen King calls “one of the finest horror stories of [the twentieth] century,” a tale of two travelers who stumble upon the ruins of a Southern plantation–and into the maw of its fatal secret. In “Black Canaan” even the best warrior has little chance of taking down the evil voodoo man with unholy powers–and none at all against his wily mistress, the diabolical High Priestess of Damballah. In these and other lavishly illustrated classics, such as the revenge nightmare “Worms of the Earth” and “The Cairn on the Headland,” Howard spins tales of unrelenting terror, the legacy of one of the world’s great masters of the macabre.
Publication Date: February 9, 2010 Robert E. Howard is famous for creating such immortal heroes as Conan the Cimmerian, Solomon Kane, and Bran Mak Morn. Less well-known but equally extraordinary are his non-fantasy adventure stories set in the Middle East and featuring such two-fisted heroes as Francis Xavier Gordon—known as “El Borak”—Kirby O’Donnell, and Steve Clarney. This trio of hard-fighting Americans, civilized men with more than a touch of the primordial in their veins, marked a new direction for Howard’s writing, and new territory for his genius to conquer. The wily Texan El Borak, a hardened fighter who stalks the sandscapes of Afghanistan like a vengeful wolf, is rivaled among Howard’s creations only by Conan himself. In such classic tales as “The Daughter of Erlik Khan,” “Three-Bladed Doom,” and “Sons of the Hawk,” Howard proves himself once again a master of action, and with plenty of eerie atmosphere his plotting becomes tighter and twistier than ever, resulting in stories worthy of comparison to Jack London and Rudyard Kipling. Every fan of Robert E. Howard and aficionados of great adventure writing will want to own this collection of the best of Howard’s desert tales, lavishly illustrated by award-winning artists Tim Bradstreet and Jim & Ruth Keegan.
Publication Date: January 25, 2011 The immortal legacy of Robert E. Howard, creator of Conan the Cimmerian, continues with this latest compendium of Howard’s fiction and poetry. These adventures, set in medieval-era Europe and the Near East, are among the most gripping Howard ever wrote, full of pageantry, romance, and battle scenes worthy of Tolstoy himself. Most of all, they feature some of Howard’s most unusual and memorable characters, including Cormac FitzGeoffrey, a half-Irish, half-Norman man of war who follows Richard the Lion-hearted to twelfth-century Palestine—or, as it was known to the Crusaders, Outremer; Diego de Guzman, a Spaniard who visits Cairo in the guise of a Muslim on a mission of revenge; and the legendary sword woman Dark Agnès, who, faced with an arranged marriage to a brutal husband in sixteenth-century France, cuts the ceremony short with a dagger thrust and flees to forge a new identity on the battlefield. Lavishly illustrated by award-winning artist John Watkiss and featuring miscellanea, informative essays, and a fascinating introduction by acclaimed historical author Scott Oden, Sword Woman and Other Historical Adventures is a must-have for every fan of Robert E. Howard, who, in a career spanning just twelve years, won a place in the pantheon of great American writers.

Sci-Fi/Fantasy Readers & REH

I currently work in the last remaining large national chain of bookstores in the U.S.. I chat with readers on a daily basis about books. Occasionally I will spot a customer with an H.P. Lovecraft book, or some kind of sci-fi/fantasy book. I invariably ask them if they have ever heard of Robert E. Howard. It's safe to say that about 95% of customers I ask answer in the negative.


This being the case, I usually re-direct my question, "Well, you know who Conan the Barbarian is, right?" They always say, "Yes!" My response is to tell them that Howard is the creator of Conan. If they are holding a Lovecraft book I also mention that the two writers were contemporaries and carried on volumes of correspondence toward the latter part of Howard's life. This is always followed by me declaring, "You know, Howard wrote horror stories as well." Unsurprisingly, this always surprises them. "Really?" They ask. I nod and say, "He also wrote westerns, pirate tales, boxing stories, and poetry." "Poetry?" They ask. "Yes, he was quite the poet," I tell them.

By the time I get to REH's poetry in the conversation they usually ask, "Do ya'll carry any of his works?" I then walk them over to the selection of Del Rey copies we keep in stock and pull a few and hand them to the customer. Their response is usually something like this, "I've read his Conan stories, but I had no idea he wrote anything else." Inside I'm smiling because I know if they like Lovecraft, they will really enjoy Howard. Thus, a new fan is gained.

I do the same thing whenever I see a customer with an Edgar Rice Burroughs work. However, the majority of ERB fans already know about Howard. Also, chances are high that the ERB fans are familiar with other Howard characters and stories besides Conan. It's with these customers I usually discuss pulp writers and historical facts about other writers of the same ilk.


I've seen several of these customers return to our store after purchasing a Howard book I've recommended. I ask them if they've had a chance to read Howard. Several have said, "yes," and they have told me they really enjoyed his work. Others have even thanked me for letting them know about Howard. All in a days work.