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Diablerie, v. 1, issue 1, January 1944

Page 8

8 diablerie

wholly subordinate role. (cf. Last and First Men, Starmaker) It is to be regretted that Lovecraft did not leave us more than the one stf novel written in this manner; At the Mountains of Madness was a good start, but after all was merely an experiment. Lovecraft of course had a peculiar mind in that he strove to glorify purely mental and philosophical appreciation at the expense of the more common human emotions. Since few people can attain to this ascetic outlook, Lovecraft does not enjoy as universal popularity as many of the cheaper writers. Nevertheless, a judicious infusion of semi-Lovecraftian technique would improve most stf and fantasy fiction.

A writer who is not dependent on plot-incident, but is merely trying to express or create some mood, need never worry about triteness. If a truly realistic and genuine atmosphere is created, the subject matter is relatively unimportant; for, unlike the plot-incident narrative, the "mood" story does not rely on tricks of plot manipulation. Of course an atmospheric story has a plot, and progresses through a series of incidents. The all-important distinction is that the plot – instead of being an arbitrarily rigid, pre-conceived, and iron-clad plan – is merely a loose framework to keep the narrative unified; and the incidents are truly incidental and not the main feature of the story

Many fantasy fans seem to feel that the Lovecraftian type of tale is played out, but this is a symptom of slip-shod thinking. True, stories utilizing the Cthulhu mythos have been quite thoroughly exploited (in fact Lovecraft himself was at the time of his death gradually working away from this theme), but it must be borne in mind that tales of this cycle strove to present only horror, and this is but one of a myriad of moods and emotions which are fit subjects for fantastic fiction.

Relatively few pulp fantasies have been of the atmosphere type, and relatively few emotions and moods have been exploited in these few. Horror has been the main theme, though weird beauty has also found expression. What might be called a combination of cruelty and hero worship tinged with horror has been ably portrayed by such writers as Robert E. Howard and E. Hoffman Price. A feeling of insignificance and futility has been admirably expressed by Stapledon. While there have undoubtedly been other moods and emotions portrayed which do not come to mind at the moment, certainly there must be dozens of emotions suitable for stf and fantasy which are wholly untouched on. By way of clarafication, imagine any scientifictional scene or situation, and then imagine what different emotions it might be made to engender. To write the type of story I have in view, it would be necessary only to create in the mind of the reader a mood analogous to the given emotion. This type of writing requires much greater skill than formula junk. Furthermore, it is highly probable that much experimental work would have to be done before satisfactory stf in this vein could be created.

A strictly realistic treatment is required to write truly literate fantasy, if we except the dreamy Dunsany-Smith sort of thing whose entire fabric is tinged with unreality. This means that artificial plot forms must be wholly done away with – we may have villainous actions, but no villain; principle characters, but no heroine or hero. In actual life, "good" does not always prevail, nor do events always come out the way we want them to. In actual life, our daily affairs do not confirm to rigid patterns, but show an almost bewildering variety and pointlessness. It should be obvious, then, that realism will give the author a much wider range of plot, since he will not be fettered by stereotyped formulas. He can do anything he wishes to his principle characters when it is unnecessary to preserve the hero in good enough repair to marry the (next page)

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8 diablerie wholly subordinate role. (cf. Last and First Men, Starmaker) It is to be regretted that Lovecraft did not leave us more than the one stf novel written in this manner; At the Mountains of Madness was a good start, but after all was merely an experiment. Lovecraft of course had a peculiar mind in that he strove to glorify purely mental and philosophical appreciation at the expense of the more common human emotions. Since few people can attain to this ascetic outlook, Lovecraft does not enjoy as universal popularity as many of the cheaper writers. Nevertheless, a judicious infusion of semi-Lovecraftian technique would improve most stf and fantasy fiction. A writer who is not dependent on plot-incident, but is merely trying to express or create some mood, need never worry about triteness. If a truly realistic and genuine atmosphere is created, the subject matter is relatively unimportant; for, unlike the plot-incident narrative, the "mood" story does not rely on tricks of plot manipulation. Of course an atmospheric story has a plot, and progresses through a series of incidents. The all-important distinction is that the plot – instead of being an arbitrarily rigid, pre-conceived, and iron-clad plan – is merely a loose framework to keep the narrative unified; and the incidents are truly incidental and not the main feature of the story Many fantasy fans seem to feel that the Lovecraftian type of tale is played out, but this is a symptom of slip-shod thinking. True, stories utilizing the Cthulhu mythos have been quite thoroughly exploited (in fact Lovecraft himself was at the time of his death gradually working away from this theme), but it must be borne in mind that tales of this cycle strove to present only horror, and this is but one of a myriad of moods and emotions which are fit subjects for fantastic fiction. Relatively few pulp fantasies have been of the atmosphere type, and relatively few emotions and moods have been exploited in these few. Horror has been the main theme, though weird beauty has also found expression. What might be called a combination of cruelty and hero worship tinged with horror has been ably portrayed by such writers as Robert E. Howard and E. Hoffman Price. A feeling of insignificance and futility has been admirably expressed by Stapledon. While there have undoubtedly been other moods and emotions portrayed which do not come to mind at the moment, certainly there must be dozens of emotions suitable for stf and fantasy which are wholly untouched on. By way of clarafication, imagine any scientifictional scene or situation, and then imagine what different emotions it might be made to engender. To write the type of story I have in view, it would be necessary only to create in the mind of the reader a mood analogous to the given emotion. This type of writing requires much greater skill than formula junk. Furthermore, it is highly probable that much experimental work would have to be done before satisfactory stf in this vein could be created. A strictly realistic treatment is required to write truly literate fantasy, if we except the dreamy Dunsany-Smith sort of thing whose entire fabric is tinged with unreality. This means that artificial plot forms must be wholly done away with – we may have villainous actions, but no villain; principle characters, but no heroine or hero. In actual life, "good" does not always prevail, nor do events always come out the way we want them to. In actual life, our daily affairs do not confirm to rigid patterns, but show an almost bewildering variety and pointlessness. It should be obvious, then, that realism will give the author a much wider range of plot, since he will not be fettered by stereotyped formulas. He can do anything he wishes to his principle characters when it is unnecessary to preserve the hero in good enough repair to marry the (next page)