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Fantasy Times, November 1941
Page 4
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FUTURE AIMS of Thrilling Wonder Stories Startling Stories + Captain Future [.] [image captioned CAPT FUTURE] (A STATEMENT OF POLICY FROM THE EDITORS) STYLES of fiction and tastes of readers come and go thru the years in that ever-recurring cycle--like the pulse-beat of the human heart, surging and then receding. But of all the kinds of fiction there are, one type stands out markedly with a steady sort of constancy that is worthy of note. This is the field of science fiction. People come and go, but the thirst for imaginative conquest, for glorious adventures in teh pursuit of knowledge--that eternal quest of man which lifts him to the stars--goes on forever. AS long as that spirit lasts there will always be frontiers to cross, life will push onward and upward in a restless, unconquerable tide---and man's destiny will yet be [illegible] yet clearly preceived immortal goal. THRILLING WONDER STORIES, STARTLING STORIES, and CAPTAIN FUTURE, our trilogy of imaginative fiction, which so frequently does not prephesy the tomorrow of science but is based directly on new scientific discoveries of today, have adopted a general policy to shape the trend of scientific yarns. This is simply to humanize the characters, highlight their emotions, dramatize the little intimate things in their lives and their struggles. We want to see real, living, human beings whose destines and fates hold our interest and empathy work out their problems against the back-drop of a great scientific theory, an epic [begira?] to the stars. In short, we want to humanize fiction so that it grpis the heart as well as appeals to the intellect. We don't want to see stories so cluttered up with scientific gadgets and obstrust and obtuse problems that the story sense is lost, and the thing reads like a copy of the Congressional Record. Comedy, humor, pathose, sacrifice ---any one of the standard and time-tested dramatic situations so laboriously compiled and analyzed by Polti---any of this we want, against the back-drop of the miracle of genuine or quasi-science. We realize that our hopes and aims cannot magically be inaugurated merely upon our wish. We understand that our own opinions and tastes may change in the future, undoubtable will, as they reflect the tastes of our readers. We know that the only constant man comprehends, is, paradozically, change. We can't remake scientifiction writers over night. We don't want to. Bu we are gradually trying to incorporate this humanizing viewpoint in our science fiction of today, giving this distinctive and growing branch of literature a health and vital life---and giving you readers better stories. After all, when you sumi it up, everything of interst to man deals directly or indirectly, with people. What is power to a dictator if it isn't power over human beings? What is scientific discovery to a
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FUTURE AIMS of Thrilling Wonder Stories Startling Stories + Captain Future [.] [image captioned CAPT FUTURE] (A STATEMENT OF POLICY FROM THE EDITORS) STYLES of fiction and tastes of readers come and go thru the years in that ever-recurring cycle--like the pulse-beat of the human heart, surging and then receding. But of all the kinds of fiction there are, one type stands out markedly with a steady sort of constancy that is worthy of note. This is the field of science fiction. People come and go, but the thirst for imaginative conquest, for glorious adventures in teh pursuit of knowledge--that eternal quest of man which lifts him to the stars--goes on forever. AS long as that spirit lasts there will always be frontiers to cross, life will push onward and upward in a restless, unconquerable tide---and man's destiny will yet be [illegible] yet clearly preceived immortal goal. THRILLING WONDER STORIES, STARTLING STORIES, and CAPTAIN FUTURE, our trilogy of imaginative fiction, which so frequently does not prephesy the tomorrow of science but is based directly on new scientific discoveries of today, have adopted a general policy to shape the trend of scientific yarns. This is simply to humanize the characters, highlight their emotions, dramatize the little intimate things in their lives and their struggles. We want to see real, living, human beings whose destines and fates hold our interest and empathy work out their problems against the back-drop of a great scientific theory, an epic [begira?] to the stars. In short, we want to humanize fiction so that it grpis the heart as well as appeals to the intellect. We don't want to see stories so cluttered up with scientific gadgets and obstrust and obtuse problems that the story sense is lost, and the thing reads like a copy of the Congressional Record. Comedy, humor, pathose, sacrifice ---any one of the standard and time-tested dramatic situations so laboriously compiled and analyzed by Polti---any of this we want, against the back-drop of the miracle of genuine or quasi-science. We realize that our hopes and aims cannot magically be inaugurated merely upon our wish. We understand that our own opinions and tastes may change in the future, undoubtable will, as they reflect the tastes of our readers. We know that the only constant man comprehends, is, paradozically, change. We can't remake scientifiction writers over night. We don't want to. Bu we are gradually trying to incorporate this humanizing viewpoint in our science fiction of today, giving this distinctive and growing branch of literature a health and vital life---and giving you readers better stories. After all, when you sumi it up, everything of interst to man deals directly or indirectly, with people. What is power to a dictator if it isn't power over human beings? What is scientific discovery to a
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