Small Presses & Fantastic Fiction
Small Specialty Publishers Preserve Classic Fantastic Literature
Sep 16, 2009
When H. P. Lovecraft died in 1937, two friends and fellow writers tried to interest a large publisher in a collection of Lovecraft's stories. Scattered among various pulp magazines and amateur publications, the stories were in danger of fading into obscurity. Outside of haunting used magazine stores and trading with other fans, there was no way to obtain his work, so a hardcover collection just made sense.
But not to the major publishers. When there were no takers, August Derleth and Donald Wandrei took matters into their own hands and founded Arkham House, issuing the book themselves. Their love of weird fiction formed a solid foundation for an imprint that is still publishing today, 70 years later. Though never a huge money-maker, Arkham House was nonetheless the first successful small press dedicated to the weird and fantastic.
Arkham House books were limited editions, originally under 1500 copies, though that expanded to over 3,000 as its success grew. Their authors list is a who's who of classic weird fiction, including Clark Ashton Smith, Robert E, Howard, Walter De la Mare, Henry S. Whitehead and many others.
There had been small presses before; as early as 1891, William Morris was publishing some fantastic literature through his famous Kelmscott Press. But most were amateur ventures that published chapbooks rather than hardbacks, and the publishers often folded after issuing only a few titles.
After World War 2, a number of small presses started up, mostly reprinting science fiction from the pulp magazines. The most successful of these was Gnome Press, which also published a fair share of fantasy titles. They reprinted Robert E, Howard's only Conan novel, The Hour of the Dragon, as Conan the Conqueror. This and four other Conan volumes with stories by other authors, are highly sought after today.
Donald M. Grant Makes His Mark
Don Grant appeared on the scene in 1949, issuing several fantasy titles through his Grandon Publishers. He got out of publishing for awhile, but in the early 1960s, he started Donald M. Grant, Publisher. At first he reprinted obscure classic fantasy from the pulps, including a series of the complete Conan stories,utilizing up and coming fantasy artists. Other titles included The Bowl of Baal by Robert Owen Bennet, originally published in 1916, and The Temple of Ten by H. Bedford-Jones from 1921, as well as rare story collections and bio-bibliographical works on William Hope Hodgson, Talbot Mundy and Robert E. Howard.
When Grant established a partnership with mega-author Stephen King in 1981,the machinery was set in motion for him to move beyond his small press beginnings. The Gunslinger, the first book in the Dark Tower series, came out in 1982, with illustrations by Michael Whelan. It sold out and a second printing was ordered, Since that time, the limited, signed editions of King's work have become among the most valuable of that author's voluminous output. Though Grant died in 2009, his firm continues as one of the premiere small press publishers of all time.
In 1973, horror author Karl Edward Wagner started Carcosa Press, which set a new standard for small press publications. Though he only published four titles, two collections by Manly Wade Wellman and one each by Hugh B. cave and E/ Hoffman Price, the books won numerous awards.
Fax Collector's Editions mined Robert E. Howard's unreprinted stories for five books in 1974-1975;Mirage Press dedicated itself to essays and bibliographic works of Howard's output.
The Modern Small Press Publishers
Since the 1980s and the advent of desktop publishing, the horror/science fiction/fantasy small press field has exploded. Most, but not all, publish very limited editions, usually only 400 to 500 copies, in handsomely produced hardcover bindings. Even new, the books are not cheap due to their small print run, and many titles become sought after collector's items.
Tartarus Press, founded in 1989 to publish the works of Arthur Machen, has broadened its original goal, presenting weird and exotic fiction from the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Ghost Story Press was devoted to preserving classic ghost stories of the 19th century; when it foundered, Ash-Tree Press stepped in to take over that mission.
Headquartered in Canada, Ash-Tree Press has over 140 books in its catalog, though many are long out of print. In addition to thorough and well-researched ghost story collections, they have published some of today's best authors as well, and through their subsidiary, Calabash Press, they release softcover editions of Sherlock Holmes pastiches. Firsts magazine, in their October, 2008 issue called Ash-Tree Press "the most collectible small press in the world."
Midnight Press specialized in limited hardcover editions of obscure, classic horror, such as works by Edward Lucas White, Sir Charles Birkin and Edgar Jepson, while its sister house, Silver Salamander, reprinted classics by Fritz Leiber and Clifford Simak.
Gauntlet Press, Bloodletting Press, Golden Gryphon Press and Necro Press are just a few of the myriad small presses dedicated to horror, most of it by contemporary authors. Necronomicon Press and Hippocampus Press are yet two more publishers that cater to fans of H. P. Lovecraft, the former taking critical studies as its focus, while the latter tends toward related fiction.
NESFA Press is the official publishing arm of the New England Science Fiction Association, issuing titles by titans like Robert Zelazny and Poul Anderson.
Some companies that started as small presses have grown into trade publishers, among them Fedogan & Bremer (specializing in Lovecraftian fiction), Cemetery Dance ( horror by authors like Jack Ketchum & Dean Koontz), and Wildside Press (horror & mystery.) Some still release the occasional limited edition hardcover.
There are dozens of others in this field alone, not taking into account non-fiction and other genre publishers. Reprints of older works, many not reprinted since their initial appearance, still dominate but are slowly giving way to new, often first-time authors as well as experimental novels by established writers. But for the fan of fantastic literature, the best reads are rarely found on the best-seller lists. The small press publishers continue to feed the needs of fans worldwide.
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