British Apemen of the Boys’ Papers
The Jungle Lord is a cultural construct, like the Western gun-fighter, the Northern Mountie, the Noir private detective or the African adventurer. All these motifs Read More
Category: Pulp Magazines
Sword & Sorcery versus Sword & Planet
A swordsman, his arms bearing red wounds, limps across a battlefield covered in bodies. His helmet is gone; his shield is broken. The flag of 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 Science Fiction of Clark Ashton Smith
Usually when you mention Clark Ashton Smith you get a nod towards H. P. Lovecraft or Weird Tales. Certainly Smith did make his reputation in 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
Doc Savage: The Northerns
Doc Savage novels have the advantage of having a toe in many different genres. This means the story never has to stop in one place. 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