Hello,

What classic horror stories do you like besides those written by the man this site is devoted to? My short list is as follows:

Algernon Blackwood - Accessory Before The Fact, The Willows, The Listener
John Buchan - Skule Skerry, The Wind In The Portico
Leonard Cline - The Dark Chamber
Walter De La Mare - All Hollows
Hans Heinz Ewerit - The Spider
W.H.Hodgson - The Baumoff Explosive, The Ghosts Pirates, The Derelict, The House On The Borderland
Arthur Machen - The Great God Pan, The Terror
Guy De Maupassant - Horla
Abraham Merritt - The People From The Pit
John Metcalfe - The Bad Lands, The Proxy
William Mudford - The Iron Shroud
M.P.Shiel - Xélucha, The House Of Sounds
R.L.Stevenson - Dr. Jekyll And Mr. Hyde
Samuel Warren - The Spectre-Smitten

Take care

Interesting list. You do not see Warren cited often, and then mostly as a possible inspiration for Le Fanu's Dr. Hesselius: [www.lefanustudies.com]

I always remember Pigeons From Hell by REH to be quite unsettling to put it mildly.

jimrockhill2001 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Interesting list. You do not see Warren cited
> often, and then mostly as a possible inspiration
> for Le Fanu's Dr. Hesselius:
> [www.lefanustudies.com]


You are right. The other day I read "The Spectral Dog" by Warren and the main premise of an optical illusion seen by an irritated individual is virtually identical to "The Green Tea" by Le Fanu. Personally I do not like Le Fanu too much, because of his strongly religious point of view, his morality and his old-fashioned literal approach.
I have read cca. six or seven stories written by Warren, contained in The "Passages Of A Late Physican" but though it is written in the crinoline fashion using "And, my dear reader," or "Let the reader think for himself", I must say I like the Warren's work is devoid of the sticky religious view.
In Warren's stories one can also find very progressive ideas, employed by later authors, i.e. a cataleptic state reminding of death and caused by an external element; an extrasensory perception; a comet approaching the Earth to destroy the mankind etc.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 28 Dec 13 | 05:23AM by Minicthulhu.

The story you mention is really good, though personally I prefer other authors' stories to those written by Robert E. Howard (his best story I have read so far is probably the vampiric piece "The Cairn On The Headland).



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 28 Dec 13 | 05:25AM by Minicthulhu.

I feel that these qualities you cite in Le Fanu - "strongly religious point of view, his morality and his old-fashioned literal approach" - are simplifications of what actually appears in that author's work. There is no doubt that Le Fanu writes from a Christian background, but even in the one overtly allegorical tale, "The Mysterious Lodger" (if it is indeed by Le Fanu), the author repeatedly undermines the easy tenets of salvation taught by the church. All of the stories in IN A GLASS DARKLY work towards the point that no institution offers protection against the inimical forces arrayed against mankind: Barton turns to medicine, the church, his own rationalism, etc. without succor; Jennings finds no comfort in his faith nor in his recourse to medicine, and is merely the victim of his own curiosity; Harbottle's victims still suffer the severity of the sentences he assigned them in the next life, and are become mere instruments of a large, more grotesque instrument of malevolent "justice" in the afterlife; innocence, seclusion, and love offer no defense against the predator in "Carmilla", who is clearly herself the victim and tool of greater forces. Victorian morality is most clearly present in the demonic pact stories, but these become progressively more complex and less clearly black-and-white as Le Fanu revisits this theme, so that in the first version (“The Fortunes of Sir Robert Ardagh”, 1838), we are already offered the traditional version of events in addition to an eye-witness account, and in the short novel "The Haunted Baronet" of 1870 Le Fanu is just as interested in the accumulated weight of history as he is in any demonic pact. The weight of history, the instability of social (and religious) institutions and personal accountability are felt much more strongly in Le Fanu's work than any concept of Christian morality. The fates of the children in "The Mysterious Lodger" (what kind of moralistic tale destroys the innocent in the cruelest way possible, but leaves the doubter and "sinner" unharmed?), Jennings in "Green Tea", the daughters in "Ultor de Lacy", Rose in "Schalcken the Painter", Dickon in "Dickon the Devil", the children in both "Ghost Stories of the Tiled House" and "Mr Justice Harbottle", Laura, Carmilla, and the other doomed young women in "Carmilla", Laura Silver Bell, the child that went with the Fairies, and countless others in Le Fanu have nothing to do with their culpability and nothing to do with conventional Victorian Christian morality. The fact that Harbottle's victims are still trapped and misshapen by the injustice of which he is merely the smallest mortal part merely reinforces that. There is also in all this very little that is "literal", as can readily be seen in those stories offering various viewpoints, as well as in those where the characters attempt to rid themselves of their afflictions or even come to some level of understanding of what is happening to them, let alone why. In the conventional ghost story (see some of Le Fanu's own "Ghost Stories of Chapelizod"), that "why" is clear from the outset, but even in those later tales where there seems to be a clear "why", such as "Mr Justice Harbottle" and "Squire Toby's Will", the details surrounding the haunting, and sometimes even the nature of the guilt itself are out of proportion to the supernatural response.

jimrockhill2001 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I feel that these qualities you cite in Le Fanu -
> "strongly religious point of view, his morality
> and his old-fashioned literal approach" - are
> simplifications of what actually appears in that
> author's work. There is no doubt that Le Fanu
> writes from a Christian background, but even in
> the one overtly allegorical tale, "The Mysterious
> Lodger" (if it is indeed by Le Fanu), the author
> repeatedly undermines the easy tenets of salvation
> taught by the church. All of the stories in IN A
> GLASS DARKLY work towards the point that no
> institution offers protection against the inimical
> forces arrayed against mankind: Barton turns to
> medicine, the church, his own rationalism, etc.
> without succor; Jennings finds no comfort in his
> faith nor in his recourse to medicine, and is
> merely the victim of his own curiosity;
> Harbottle's victims still suffer the severity of
> the sentences he assigned them in the next life,
> and are become mere instruments of a large, more
> grotesque instrument of malevolent "justice" in
> the afterlife; innocence, seclusion, and love
> offer no defense against the predator in
> "Carmilla", who is clearly herself the victim and
> tool of greater forces. Victorian morality is most
> clearly present in the demonic pact stories, but
> these become progressively more complex and less
> clearly black-and-white as Le Fanu revisits this
> theme, so that in the first version (“The
> Fortunes of Sir Robert Ardagh”, 1838), we are
> already offered the traditional version of events
> in addition to an eye-witness account, and in the
> short novel "The Haunted Baronet" of 1870 Le Fanu
> is just as interested in the accumulated weight of
> history as he is in any demonic pact. The weight
> of history, the instability of social (and
> religious) institutions and personal
> accountability are felt much more strongly in Le
> Fanu's work than any concept of Christian
> morality. The fates of the children in "The
> Mysterious Lodger" (what kind of moralistic tale
> destroys the innocent in the cruelest way
> possible, but leaves the doubter and "sinner"
> unharmed?), Jennings in "Green Tea", the daughters
> in "Ultor de Lacy", Rose in "Schalcken the
> Painter", Dickon in "Dickon the Devil", the
> children in both "Ghost Stories of the Tiled
> House" and "Mr Justice Harbottle", Laura,
> Carmilla, and the other doomed young women in
> "Carmilla", Laura Silver Bell, the child that went
> with the Fairies, and countless others in Le Fanu
> have nothing to do with their culpability and
> nothing to do with conventional Victorian
> Christian morality. The fact that Harbottle's
> victims are still trapped and misshapen by the
> injustice of which he is merely the smallest
> mortal part merely reinforces that. There is also
> in all this very little that is "literal", as can
> readily be seen in those stories offering various
> viewpoints, as well as in those where the
> characters attempt to rid themselves of their
> afflictions or even come to some level of
> understanding of what is happening to them, let
> alone why. In the conventional ghost story (see
> some of Le Fanu's own "Ghost Stories of
> Chapelizod"), that "why" is clear from the outset,
> but even in those later tales where there seems to
> be a clear "why", such as "Mr Justice Harbottle"
> and "Squire Toby's Will", the details surrounding
> the haunting, and sometimes even the nature of the
> guilt itself are out of proportion to the
> supernatural response.


I am no authority on Le Fanu's work, I only wrote what impression the stories of his I have read so far make on me; unlike a lot of classic horror wiriters, Le Fanu's tales seem to me to be very harmless, almost innocent, but it may be that I am demanding too much. :-)
No wonder the best tale by Le Fanu I have read is "Uncle Silas" which has virtually no truck with the supernatural.

You are entitled to your opinion, but I have always found Le Fanu to be one of the least "harmless" of ghost story writers. I am not alone, since the multitude of writers, critics, and genre scholars who have expressed a similar opinion includes, but is not limited to, M. R. James (1923), E. F. Benson (1931), Elizabeth Bowen (1947, 1963), Peter Penzoldt (1952), V. S. Pritchett (1964), E. F. Bleiler (1964, 1975), Julia Briggs (1977), Jack Sullivan (1978), W. J. Mc Cormack (1980, 1993), Victor Sage (1988, 2000, 2004), Robert Tracy (1993), Gary William Crawford (1993 ff.), William Hughes (2005, 2011), Brian J. Showers (2006 ff.), James Walton (2007), Nicholas Allen (2010), John Langan (2011), Simon Cooke (2011), Jarlath Killeen (2011, 2013), and many others.

As to UNCLE SILAS having "virtually no truck with the supernatural", you are forgetting Dr. Bryerly's eerie, Swedenborgian disquisition on death prior to Maud's departure and Lady Knollys's comment, “Perhaps other souls than human are sometimes born into the world and clothed in flesh.” W. J. Mc Cormack's essay "A Habitation of Symbols" locates multiple parallels in text of UNCLE SILAS with passages in the works of Emanuel Swedenborg, supporting an interpretation of Silas as the dark, doppelganger of Maud's father, and he has not been the only critic who has found this argument compelling.

As for E.F.Benson, his stories have not impressed me to much, because chiefly they are "hardcore" ghost tales (The House Wth The Brick Kiln, Negotium Perambulans, In The Tube or The Thing In The Hall), dealing with spiritualistic practises or "cliché boogies" (apparations of dead people etc.), the stuff I do not like too much. His best piece is definitely "The Horror-Horn".
Speaking of E.F.Benson, I must mention his less known brother A.C.Benson and his short story "Closed Window" which includes the pioneering idea of a window leading to another world, which was employed later by such authors as H.P.Lovecraft in "The Music Of Erich Zahn" or China Mieville in "The Different Sky".
As for M.R.James, some stories he wrote have a good atmosphere (cathedrals, old ruins), they are much better than those written by afore-mentioned E.F.Benson, but once again, his monsters are much more boogies than real horrors that make you hair stand on end. :-) The best tale by James is probably "Count Magnus".
The other writers you mention I don't know at all; I have made a point of reading only horror stories up to 1945 and earlier, though here and now I come upon a modern writer like Brian Lumley or China Mielville, or a short story anthology containing modern horror authors.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 28 Dec 13 | 11:29AM by Minicthulhu.

I am sorry, but there are few topics in the discussion of supernatural literature that irritate me more than these commonly stated opinions:

1) Clark Ashton Smith has nothing to offer the reader but logorrhea and the loving depiction of torture and decay;

2) Robert Aickman’s stories are not really about anything, and he merely trimmed away all explanatory material in order to fool gullible readers into finding profundity where none exists;

&

3) Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu’s supernatural stories are simplistic parables about the triumph of Good (in the guise of Victorian Christian Morality) over Evil, in which Providence rights long-disguised wrongs and punishes evil-doers.

All three of these statements have persisted in some form or other for decades, and no amount of critical attention to context, metaphor, allusion, or the nuances of language employed by these authors seems capable of dispelling misconceptions as fundamental as offering “a little boy loses his sled and regrets it to his dying day” as a summary of CITIZEN KANE.

Agree with you fundamentally about Benson, but my favorites of his are the more atmospheric tales, such as "The Room in the Chair", "The Face", "The Step" (similar in theme to Hearn's "The Mujina"), "The Bath Chair", "The Outcast". Re: his more overtly horrific stories, I have never cared for "The Horror Horn", but I do like "Monkeys".

Benson's "The Closed Door" is hardly the earliest use of the portal to another world motif. Homer and Virgil both refer to the Gates of Ivory and Horn, George MacDonald's PHANTASTES (1858) features doors leading to several worlds and there is also, of course, the mirror in Lewis Carroll's THROUGH THE LOOKING GLASS (1871).

jimrockhill2001 Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> Agree with you fundamentally about Benson, but my
> favorites of his are the more atmospheric tales,
> such as "The Room in the Chair"

Already the title gives me chills! Who lives in that room? They must be very small and creepy! Unless, of course, the chair itself is very large.

About Le Fanu: He is subtly subversive, which tends to be missed by many readers, even when they realize that he invented the lesbian vampire story.

1) Clark Ashton Smith has nothing to offer ...
For my money, it is nonsense; I like classic horror/mystery/scifi (call it what you want) tales and have read hundreds of short stories, novelettes and books, and even not being an authority in the right sense of word, I dare say I know something about the literature we are talking about to judge whether Smith has, or has not something to bring to the table in terms of macabre literature.
As for his stories, it is truth there are flies in the ointment, for example he made no bones about depicting some deep characterization of his protagonists; he used the same narrative modus in several different tales (an old man writing a manuscript which contains his hideous experiences; a jilted lover willing to destroy his boss for his nicking his sweetheart etc.), but in the teeth of these minor "deliquencies" on his part, Clark is, in my eyes, one of the great persons in horror literature though less known (and unjustly) than, for example, Lovecraft.
Some time ago I read cca. 20 issues of "Weird Tales" and must say that Clark who was also contributor to the magazine is head and shoulders above the other guys (though some of them wrote really creepy and good tales of suspense).
P.S. "Genius Loci" is one of the best stories I have ever read.
2) I've read nothing by Aickman, so cannot judge (but maybe will give him a try)
3) We've talked about the Irishman so there's no need to say more.
4) It is funny, but as for E.F.Benson, I have read none of the stories you mention! :-) So I'll give them a shot and maybe will chage my mind saying I read the wrong stuff of his.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 28 Dec 13 | 12:56PM by Minicthulhu.

You might enjoy "The Room in the Chair" more by its original title, "The Room in the Tower".

Jojo: "The Room in the Chair", with its terrifying microcosms, sounds more like a tale Rhys Hughes would write.

Glad to see you enjoy "Genius Loci" - many people do not care for this story.

I have got all the Benson's tales you are recommending in your previous post; they are available on gutenberg.org; they are safe and sound in my reader, waiting to be read. :-)

One note about Le Fanu: Jim is correct in that he constantly undermines any idea that good will triumph over evil. In many ways, the universe of his tales is one in which, at best, the creator was almost a demiurge, and simply isn't involved any longer, while what he calls "the vast machinery of Hell" is still operating quite well, thank you... albeit often blindly and without seeming intelligence. Thus, there really is no sort of safety for any of the characters; there is no "out", and once they happen to fall afoul of whatever particular nastiness it may be, they are (save by rare chance) damned. And the subtle, chilling hints at the end of "Carmilla" that the infection is destined to spread (not to mention the complex nature of the titular character herself) makes this story chilling and poignant at one and the same time.

Benson... I have a liking for several of his stories, and I would agree that "The Room in the Tower" is well worth reading. Even "Caterpillars", though hardly his best, is a very effective bit.

Minicthulhu: Have you read other of Ewers' stories? Though few are truly supernatural, he was very good indeed at handling the horrific in ways that border on that atmosphere; and I would also suggest "Fairy Land" for a surprising emotional complexity which blends the horrific and the beautiful in a particularly uncomfortable way.

Also, have you read anything much by Erckmann-Chatrian? Some of their pieces reach enviable heights, though they are not often mentioned these days.

By Ewers I have read "The Spider" (very goddd) and "The Vampyre" (leaves much to be desired). Now I have got the "Fairyland" you propose so I'll give it a shot.

I have read nothing by Erckmann-Chatrian though I know this duo of authors, of course. Maybe it is high time to atone myself for this terrible delict and read something by them. :-)
To tell the truth, what has discouraged me from reading their stories so far was the fact they were written by two persons and I have learnt it to my cost these corrabolations don't work for me (Houdini-Lovecraft etc.). But like I said, I will give them a try and we'll shall see.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 29 Dec 13 | 05:17AM by Minicthulhu.

The Room in the Chair
by Jojo Lapin X

At the far end of the gallery was a low doorway hung with black curtains. None of the other patrons showed any interest in it, being absorbed in the paintings, but it aroused his curiosity. No sign indicated if it was part of the exhibit. He had to stoop in order to enter.

Beyond was a dimly lit room of moderate size. As his eyes adjusted to the gloom, he realized the space was empty except for a somewhat rustic wooden chair. Again, there were no signs to inform him if this was intended as a work of art, and he decided the room was just somewhere for the attendants to rest. He was just about to retreat when he noticed a pinprick of light coming out of the back of the chair.

There was a small hole, and he had to kneel on the seat of the chair in order to comfortably look into it. What he saw when he finally made something out was a tiny enclosure, a room. In the room was a chair. In fact, the whole thing was a perfect replica of his own situation, as on the chair, with its back to the observer, kneeled a minute human figure. He was about to dismiss the thing as simply a projection from a camera mounted somewhere above him, but then I turned around and waved to him.



Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 29 Dec 13 | 06:07AM by Jojo Lapin X.

"Under the Pyramids" wasn't actually a collaboration -- it was ghost-written by Lovecraft, who took the initial material by Houdini and, with the latter's permission, ran with it in his own direction. As with so many of Lovecraft's "revisions", the original supplied little more than the inspiration.

Erckmann-Chatrian, on the other hand, tends toward true collaboration, and often quiet seamlessly. It doesn't "read" as if it were written by two people, but rather the two blended their talents very well, producing some very fine works. (Not all their work is so successful; they were quite prolific. But the majority of their weird work -- at least that which I've read -- can be described thus.)

I'm also assuming you've read Hawthorne? While a fair amount of his work is rather innocuous, at his best he produces some marvelous work, very haunting. I would also suggest several of the works of Oliver Onions, as well as Walter de la Mare, both of whom are often very subtle, but extremely powerful. For one a little less subtle, but at his best quite good, I would also recommend Robert S. Hichens, particularly Tongues of Conscience, which includes "How Love Came to Professor Guildea" (with which you may be familiar).

Sorry but to pass one's horror story idea on to another person to evolve it as a ghost-writter really sounds to me like a collaboration. But it really does not matter.

As for Hawthorne, I have read one o two stories by him without being impressed too much.

As far as Onions or De La Mare are concerned, I like them both; besides several other fortunate authors these two are entitled to call themselves my favourites. :-)

Re: Hawthorne -- As for novels, I'd suggest The House of the Seven Gables and The Scarlet Letter, but also The Marble Faun, which is often overlooked. It's a more subtle approach to the weird, but there are some truly magnificent passages. As for the short stories, I would particularly suggest: "The Minister's Black Veil", "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment", the "Legends from the Province House", "The White Old Maid", "The Birthmark" (which should be compared to Poe's "The Oval Portrait"), "Young Goodman Brown", and "Ethan Brand", though frankly the entirety of the Twice-Told Tales is well worth reading simply for its richness of imagination and subtlety.

As for Erckmann-Chatrian, you might want to look here:

[archive.org]

though, if memory serves, "The Man-Wolf" is somewhat abridged in this form. It can be found in its entirety at Project Gutenbberg....

I started to read "The House Of The Seven Gables" some years ago but found it so tedious I have never finished it which is very rare with me; as a rule I am able to bite through a book even if it is very lenghty and dull. The second example of a not finished book on my part I remember is "The Lair Of A White Worm" by Stoker which is one of the worst books I have ever read.
I read two short stories by Hawthorne, "Dr. Heidegger's Experiment" and "Earth's Holocaust" but they do not seem to have impressed me much because in the case of the first one I am absolutely unable to recall what was it all about ... :-)
I'll give Erckmann-Chatrian a try and we'll see if their work is worth its salt.

I think you would enjoy Le Fanu's "Wicked Captain Walshawe, of Wauling". It has a singularly wonderful description of a traditional apparition.
Otherwise I think "Squire Toby's Will" is my favorite story by Le Fanu. Effective and very well written. But he is a quite demanding writer, taking his own very personal course. What I like best is when he delivers us back to glimpses of the 1700s culture. It is easier to enjoy his "successor" M. R. James.

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I started to read "The House Of The Seven Gables"
> some years ago but found it so tedious I have
> never finished it which is very rare with me; as a
> rule I am able to bite through a book even if it
> is very lenghty and dull.

It is one of the best books I have ever read.

I have two or three books of short stories by Le Fanu but I cannot tell if I ever will be able to read them ... I´ve got so many books and tales to read which seem to be much better than those by Le Fanu.

Minicthulhu Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> I have two or three books of short stories by Le
> Fanu but I cannot tell if I ever will be able to
> read them ... I´ve got so many books and tales to
> read which seem to be much better than those by Le
> Fanu.

I try to only read the very best from each new author I discover nowadays. I don't have time for more.

On Le Fanu, probably the best choice would be the aptly titled Best Ghost Stories, edited by E. F. Bleiler, published by Dover.

jdworth Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> On Le Fanu, probably the best choice would be the
> aptly titled Best Ghost Stories, edited by E. F.
> Bleiler, published by Dover.

Agreed. It is excellent. Excellent!

It has most of the great stories, ... a few others I wanted I printed out from pdf or word.

Here's one I hope the readers here will like:

The Scallion Stone, by Basil Smith.

An atmospheric tale using the cozy "fireside re-telling" technique about an odd "stone" that relates back to St. Cuthbert of Northumbria.

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Has someone here read "The Other Place" by J. B. Priestley? I wonder if it's worth tracking down. Perhaps the author's outlook was a bit too worldly for the general weird fiction reader?

I have never heard of J. B. Priestely. I have found "The Other Place, and Other Stories of the Same Sort" which seems to be a short story collection by the author. Judging by reviews one can find, this book and his novel called "Benighted" could be worth reading.

This is one OLD thread that's been revived. I find myself disagreeing with some statement someone made, get ready to post some retort, and then, on second look, find the statement was made years ago.

I have yet to read everything by Le Fanu. One story that rather impressed me, which I don't see mentioned above, was "... Strange Disturbances in Aungier Street". I think what I found particularly memorable was the horrible rat. I guess some might find this story unsatisfying for the lack of any real resolution, but to me that is merely typical of real-world ghost stories, and gives it an aura of authenticity.

I think "... Aungier Street" almost certainly inspired Bram Stoker's story "The Judge's House", which isn't bad, and offers more in the way of resolution.



Edited 2 time(s). Last edit at 8 Dec 18 | 03:50PM by Platypus.

Platypus Wrote:
-------------------------------------------------------
> This is one OLD thread that's been revived. I
> find myself disagreeing with some statement
> someone made, get ready to post some retort, and
> then, on second look, find the statement was made
> years ago.
>

I revived that thread intentionally because I thought it had interesting information. There was a lot more activity on the Eldritch Dark forum back then. The golden age of this forum was during the first decade of the 2000s; many generous contributions, and long discussions. Calonlan (Dr. Farmer), Kyberean (later Absquatch), even Sawfish was here for a condensed but energetic visit (good to see you back), and several other prominent posters. Most have left the forum.

Some complain that the forum is not worth visiting anymore because of Dr. Farmers demise. I certainly don't sympathize with that simplistic apology for not contributing. Everything can not stand or fall depending on him alone. Dr. Farmer was a professor of English, an excellent linguistic conversationalist, and told very interesting reminiscences of his meetings with Clark Ashton Smith. But he really didn't seem to understand much about the weird and fantastic as a subject.
I see other reasons for the reduced activity on the forum. One is perhaps information overstrain, as a result of the Internet times we live in. We have grown mentally exhausted. Also, most of CAS's readership is likely part of an older generation.
Another reason seems to be the structure of the forum itself; there are no sub-forums for different subjects and interests where one can tuck in a concern (for example discussing other writers), so whatever little thought one writes instead gets center-focus of attention, for everyone to see, and I believe that makes many feel diffident about posting. Me, I am not so much affected by it (although some), because I am the kind who just can't help blurting out what's on my mind.
Yet another explanation for the lessening activity may perhaps be found, if one is so inclined, in Smith's own writing, in stories like "The Chain of Aforgomon" and "The Monster of the Prophecy", where he expressed anxiety over his writing "supernaturally" drifting into oblivion.


Much valuable information can be found if searching the forum. Here is another great old thread, "Less Familiar Weird Literature", which lasted for 33 pages:
http://www.eldritchdark.com/forum/read.php?1,4212,page=1

Here is another great thread, in which notably jdworth argues Lovecraft's artistic ability and his cosmic horror. So many good things buried in the Eldritch Dark archives! There are innumerable threads in great spirit, than can be re-opened and continued. No need to start new threads before carefully checking back.

http://www.eldritchdark.com/forum/read.php?1,9578,10162#msg-10162

Back to Stories by ..., I could recommend Ligotti. I haven't yet read much by him. A few stories I find too immersed in self-pity and misery, too emotionally stuck in ugly mundane life, for my taste. But "Drink to Me Only with Labyrinthine Eyes" and "Nethescurial" are excellent, they rise in ecstasy and intensity, richly imaginative. Classics. I look forward to reading more.

@Knygatin. Thanks for the links.

Posts like yours are why I am on this forum, in truth.

--Sawfish

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
"The food at the new restaurant is awful, but at least the portions are large."
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~