Who Do You Think Are The Most Neglected and Forgotten Writers?

J-Sun said:
That's a particularly good one - not sure why I didn't cite him. But I'm wondering why he is neglected (rural, pastoral stuff is passe?). This is one of the first Grand Masters, author of the famous, classic, award-winning Way Station and the huge, famous (if maybe critically overrated) City and a guy who was publishing and winning awards right through the 80s along with Asimov, Clarke, and Heinlein (though, granted, perhaps without as much commercial success even then, but ACH set high best-selling bars for that). And he really does seem to have disappeared from the shelves, new and used[1] and may not be talked about so much, either. Have any opinions on why that happened?

_____

[1] I think one or two are in the SF Masterworks thing, though - ironic that he's probably printed more in the UK than the US.
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OK, I'll take some of the blame for Cliff's works being largely unavailable for a couple of decades. Let me explain...
While in part that phenomenon was a function of the market, and particularly of publishing decisions, reader preferences, and the tax code, in part it was the result of a conscious decision by the Simak Estate (which I have the honor to represent). Specifically, I purposely sat on the rights to Cliff's stories, except for occasionally authorizing a particularly good-looking deal.
I did so because the inability to find some of Cliff's work had been going on even before he died; and I decided, early on after being appointed to run his Estate, that since there were only a couple of his titles that publishers really seemed interested in, I would concentrate on recovering the publishing rights to all of his stories -- and then use publishers' desires to get the most popular of the novels onto their lists to, more or less, coerce them into publishing the lesser-known works. (extortion in a good cause?)
Aided in part by what appears to have been an increased interest in Cliff's works, which might have been led by the rise of e-publishing (which made it less expensive for publishers to "print" books), I have to say it appears to have been working -- in fact, even better than I had hoped (although it took longer than I thought it would to get here).
And it helps that I have found a couple of editors (Malcolm Edwards at Orion in the UK and Betsy Mitchell at Open Road Media here in the US) who were willing, even eager, to take part in a republication program. I am immensely grateful to them and their companies.
And since you wrote the words I quoted above, I trust you have noted that Cliff's works are much more available here in the U.S. than they were when you wrote...? There is still a distance to be traveled, but I'm vastly heartened by the events of the past couple of years...
And in part, too, that results from the interest and the memories of people like you. Thank you.

Dave Wixon
 
Bick said:
Edmund Crispin!

I came across him as the Editor of this series of UK-published SF anthologies.

It was then pointed out to me by Randy M. that Crispin wrote some rather good detective novels in the '40's and '50's. They were described as a cross between PG Wodehouse and Agatha Christie in a review I found, which I liked the sound of. I'm now reading "Swan Song" and its great. He is surely not remembered much though.
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Bravo, Bick! I loved Crispin's mysteries decades ago, but have forgotten them (largely because in one move or another they likely got packed into a box that has never been reopened...) -- I need to dig them out! Thank you for reminding me!
Dave
 
svalbard said:
I read The Allan Quartamaine Trilogy made up of Marie, Child of Storm and Finished many years ago. My memory is sketchy on the details, but I do remember Child of Storm as my favourite. I also recall prefering them to King Solomon's Mines. There is also a vague memory of one of his novels about a Viking. I am really stretching my memory here as it must be 30 years or so since I read Haggard.

At the time(my early teens) I was reading quite a lot of old adventure 'classics'. Scott's Ivanhoe, Quentin Durwood, a book by Conan Doyle about a medieval knight??, and others whose names now escape me.
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The White Company? (Doyle, that is...)
 
BAYLOR said:
I have a copy that book, it't the only edition of the book I've ever found . :)
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I doubt that we have the same edition (of Doyle's THE WHITE COMPANY). Mine bears no date, but was apparently published in Chicago, by M.A. Donohue & Co. It's not in the best of condition and has no dust jacket -- but its front includes what appears to be the face of a late-nineteenth century young woman, printed on a triangular piece of paper and apparently glued to the front cover...I've no idea how that was considered to be appropriate to this book.
The book does not give the date of the edition, nor of the original edition -- for that matter, there's no copyright notice.
However, I know that the book's first publication was in 1891, and this one might well have been published soon after that.

(Are you aware, by the way, of the prequel, SIR NIGEL? It was published in 1906, I believe, but my copy indicates that there have been a number of republications through as late as 1955. This one was published in London by John Murray, and the dust jacket indicates it is part of the "Conan Doyle Uniform Edition.")

The reason I know about these books at all is that Gordy Dickson loved them, and turned me on to them -- the Sir Nigel character in these books is generally believed to have been modeled on Sir John Hawkwood, who, in turn was part of the historical base Gordy used for his Childe Cycle books (and who actually appeared in one of them).

Kind of a shame that no one remembers Doyle for much beyond the Sherlock Holmes books (yes, there are a couple of exceptions to that...)
 
The edition I have Wordsworth Classic, 1994.

The Sad part is Doyle is remembered primarily for Sherlock Holmes and Professor Challenger. He was in truth a very versatile writer and one the best I've ever read.
 
Manly Wade Wellman. I don't hear much about the man who possessed such an extraordinary imagination and splendid writing capabilities. I love the character of John the Balladeer aka Silver John, a wandering Johnny Cash like troubadour who wields a silver-stringed guitar and battles the forces of darkness throughout the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina.
 
JD Lone Bear said:
Manly Wade Wellman. I don't hear much about the man who possessed such an extraordinary imagination and splendid writing capabilities. I love the character of John the Balladeer aka Silver John, a wandering Johnny Cash like troubadour who wields a silver-stringed guitar and battles the forces of darkness throughout the Appalachian mountains of North Carolina.
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Magnificent stuff. I read all the short stories.
 
I'm a big fan of May Sinclair. Some wonderful, psychologically complex ghost stories and paranormal thrillers. I especially recommend "The Flaw in the Crystal."
 
Hugh cook is one who very few people have heard of, though he was a creative storyteller. Brilliant even imo.
His works featured reprehensible protagonists , quirky worldbuilding, and unpredictable plotlines. Not to everyone's taste, for sure.
 
picklematrix said:
Hugh cook is one who very few people have heard of, though he was a creative storyteller. Brilliant even imo.
His works featured reprehensible protagonists , quirky worldbuilding, and unpredictable plotlines. Not to everyone's taste, for sure.
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Sounds like a very good writer .:cool:
 
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