The King in Yellow (Lovecraft intro)

[wytchcroft]

Anyone read The King in Yellow by Robert W. Chambers?
Lovecraft writes the intro.
I thought the book was great - surprisingly fresh and very atmospheric.
I can think of several writers (poppy brite for one) who would appear to have been influenced...

 

[j d worthington]

Actually, Lovecraft did not write an introduction to the book. What we have now is an excerpt from his essay, Supernatural Horror in Literature, on the subject; something which is a little ironic, considering how much more well-known Chambers was rather than Lovecraft during their lifetimes. It's a good piece, however; so using it this way does no particular harm.

As for influence: quite a few writers have been influenced by Chambers' book, including Marion Zimmer Bradley, Karl Edward Wagner, and even Lovecraft himself (to a degree). It is a very good collection, quite possibly the best thing Chambers ever did, and well worth reading....