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Quanta, v. 1, issue 3, August 1949
Page 8
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8. A DEFENSE AND CRITICISM OF S-F By Chick Derry Every time I read where some poor schmoe doesn't like a particular author's story or practicing artist's illustration I get mad!! Why? Simple. Stop and consider this thing that we dote on .. this brain-child of ours: Science-Fiction and Fantasy. True, we like it above most other types of fiction. But does that give us the right to say we hate a certain thing about it? Yes, in a way it does. But do we say that we hate our wives' or girl-friends' hair-dos just because they happen to change it once? You're damn well right we don't! Well, the analogy applies in this case. We are downright insulting to the man or woman who wrote or drew the story or picture that we don't happen to like. Can they help the fact that we don't like it? No, and perhaps they know that it is lousy. After all, they wrote it, and most of them are somewhat science-fiction and fantasy fans themselves. They would almost have to be in order to write the stuff. And, too, remember that they have to live. To most of them the writing trade is a primary means of existence. So if they submitted a story that smelled, maybe they needed the dough, and in their hunger they didn't take time to work it over a bit more. Most writers produce on a schedule, and they do what is necessary to maintain it. Forget that the stories are produced for you to benefit alone. They aren't, and the editor must try to satisfy a helluva lot of different people. More readers aren't fans than are. So if a particular editor leans way over backwards in one issue to get in plenty of sex, give him time to put out the next issue. He might lean just as far to get in plenty of science or whatever you want, thus pleasing you as well as the other guy. Remember that the pulp publishing business, like the movie trade, found that a large segment of the pubic doesn't particularly want good stuff. They are so used to poor action and sex tripe that they don't want the really good stuff. The mags had to do what the movies are doing. They are both changing for the better, but it takes time. They must feed Johnny public the good stuff in small doses with a lot of the same old crap sandwiched in between. You must admit that there are better stories being printed right now than there ever were in the science-fiction trade. True, some of the worst pieces of hack are being printed, too.
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8. A DEFENSE AND CRITICISM OF S-F By Chick Derry Every time I read where some poor schmoe doesn't like a particular author's story or practicing artist's illustration I get mad!! Why? Simple. Stop and consider this thing that we dote on .. this brain-child of ours: Science-Fiction and Fantasy. True, we like it above most other types of fiction. But does that give us the right to say we hate a certain thing about it? Yes, in a way it does. But do we say that we hate our wives' or girl-friends' hair-dos just because they happen to change it once? You're damn well right we don't! Well, the analogy applies in this case. We are downright insulting to the man or woman who wrote or drew the story or picture that we don't happen to like. Can they help the fact that we don't like it? No, and perhaps they know that it is lousy. After all, they wrote it, and most of them are somewhat science-fiction and fantasy fans themselves. They would almost have to be in order to write the stuff. And, too, remember that they have to live. To most of them the writing trade is a primary means of existence. So if they submitted a story that smelled, maybe they needed the dough, and in their hunger they didn't take time to work it over a bit more. Most writers produce on a schedule, and they do what is necessary to maintain it. Forget that the stories are produced for you to benefit alone. They aren't, and the editor must try to satisfy a helluva lot of different people. More readers aren't fans than are. So if a particular editor leans way over backwards in one issue to get in plenty of sex, give him time to put out the next issue. He might lean just as far to get in plenty of science or whatever you want, thus pleasing you as well as the other guy. Remember that the pulp publishing business, like the movie trade, found that a large segment of the pubic doesn't particularly want good stuff. They are so used to poor action and sex tripe that they don't want the really good stuff. The mags had to do what the movies are doing. They are both changing for the better, but it takes time. They must feed Johnny public the good stuff in small doses with a lot of the same old crap sandwiched in between. You must admit that there are better stories being printed right now than there ever were in the science-fiction trade. True, some of the worst pieces of hack are being printed, too.
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