The Terror of the Totem Poles
The First Nations of the Pacific Coast and Alaska are known for their beautiful art and their spiritual totem poles. For my sister, Sheila and Read More
Category: Mystery
A Cowboy, A Space Captain, a Private Detective and a Barbarian Walk Into a Bar…
That could be the beginnings of a really lame joke, but it’s something more. All four of these characters, these separate genre icons, share something Read More
Sherlock Holmes Parodies
Every time you turn around someone comes out with their own Sherlock Holmes novel these days. But almost from the very beginning other writers have Read More
Paul Ernst and the Clayton Astounding
Paul Ernst (1899-1983) was the consummate professional writer, one who understood exactly what an editor wanted and provided it. Getting his start in Weird Tales Read More
The Gods of East & West
In a previous article I showed how “The Tomb of Sarah” was the inspiration for one of Seabury Quinn’s Jules de Grandin stories. Quinn wrote Read More
Why I Read & Write Pulp
I’ve been spending a lot of time amongst the Pulps lately. And it begs the question: what is the appeal of these old, flaking, brown Read More
Ray A. Palmer and the Science Fiction Mystery
Ray A. Palmer is best remembered as the dictatorial editor of Amazing Stories and Fantastic Adventures who fostered the Shaver Mystery and later UFOs. What Read More
Pulp Writing: Opening With a Punch
I miss the Pulps. Not for the garish covers featuring aliens molesting sweet-young space maidens. Not for the variety that gave us the brash adventure Read More
The False Monster Tradition
This post begins: The notion that a monster should prove to be a fraud is a fairly recent idea. The warriors gathered around the scop Read More
The Case of the Coptic Priest
How do you create an Occult Detective in the last half of the 20th century? Edward D. Hoch found an old solution to a new Read More