Anyone read H.P Lovecraft?

I've been dying to get his books, but lately, I've hardly had time to read the ones I have now, only right before I sleep or late at night. Can't wait till this stuff is over.

Next time I'm at half-price books, I'll be picking up Call of Cthulu.

Yeah, Lovecraft is a great writer/poet. His work is so much in the awesome, I cannot express how much I love the majority of his stories. Add to the fact that they tend to end with the protagonist either going insane,killing himself,or being killed just makes them that much better. Wetall_basic

he really knows how to create disturbing atmosphere, I have a leather bound collection of his work. Its over 800 pages long:D Also look whos doing a movie based on one of his best books:P

http://imdb.com/title/tt1118070/

Ive heard of him recently, he wrote about some guy who found out about a higher power and he went insane right? Whats the book called?123625

The Call of Cthulhu. Here is an article on it.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Call_of_Cthulhu

He tends to write about subjects like that, and insanity. People find it weird I get my theorys on religion and a higher power from a horror writer:P

[QUOTE="Wetall_basic"]Yeah, Lovecraft is a great writer/poet. His work is so much in the awesome, I cannot express how much I love the majority of his stories. Add to the fact that they tend to end with the protagonist either going insane,killing himself,or being killed just makes them that much better. Film-Guy

he really knows how to create disturbing atmosphere, I have a leather bound collection of his work. Its over 800 pages long:D Also look whos doing a movie based on one of his best books:P

\

WOW! Most anticipated movie EVER much?

[QUOTE="Wetall_basic"]Yeah, Lovecraft is a great writer/poet. His work is so much in the awesome, I cannot express how much I love the majority of his stories. Add to the fact that they tend to end with the protagonist either going insane,killing himself,or being killed just makes them that much better. Film-Guy

he really knows how to create disturbing atmosphere, I have a leather bound collection of his work. Its over 800 pages long:D Also look whos doing a movie based on one of his best books:P

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]

[QUOTE="Wetall_basic"]Yeah, Lovecraft is a great writer/poet. His work is so much in the awesome, I cannot express how much I love the majority of his stories. Add to the fact that they tend to end with the protagonist either going insane,killing himself,or being killed just makes them that much better. Wetall_basic

he really knows how to create disturbing atmosphere, I have a leather bound collection of his work. Its over 800 pages long:D Also look whos doing a movie based on one of his best books:P

\

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Necronomicon-Weird-Fiction-Lovecraft-Gollancz/dp/0575081562

Its not available yet on amazon, but search for the book on other sites and you should find it. Its 1008 pages long:D Also here is an awesome dramatized version of his story at the mountains of madness done by the H.P Lovecraft Historical society:)

[url]http://www.amazon.com/Dark-Adventure-Radio-Theatre-Mountains/dp/B000NFWGCW/ref=pd_bbs_sr_3?ie=UTF8&s=music&qid=1204528931&sr=8-3[url]

Yeah I've been meaning to have a look at some of his books because they sound pretty interesting, I just haven't gotten around to it yet.

I've been dying to get his books, but lately, I've hardly had time to read the ones I have now, only right before I sleep or late at night. Can't wait till this stuff is over.

Next time I'm at half-price books, I'll be picking up Call of Cthulu.

ElArab

Call of cthulhu is a good start, has lots of really creepy stories. Then go for The dreams in the witch house. Don't bother with any of the movies though.

I think he was one of the best writers of his time, certainly better than anyone today. For those who dont know, he is a horror writer who writes about Cosmic horror dealing with man's inability to comprehend a higher power and also insanity. Some of you might recognize where I get my beliefs on religion from now:PFilm-Guy

i beg to differ. H.P. Lovecraft was never a truly successful writer, and what little fame he and his works have gathered is largely limited to the occult readership, and indeed mostly in america only. his works ( most of which you can read for free online ) are reasonably interesting, but he is definitely not among the best writers of his time ( late 19 century to mid 20th ), an tumultuous age that has seen such literary giants as Franz Kafka, Joseph Conrad, and James Joyce ( who is widely regarded as one of the best writers in history ). after WW2, horror/science-fiction became the fastest growing genre, and it's safe to say that Lovecraft is matched and surpassed by many modern writers.

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]I think he was one of the best writers of his time, certainly better than anyone today. For those who dont know, he is a horror writer who writes about Cosmic horror dealing with man's inability to comprehend a higher power and also insanity. Some of you might recognize where I get my beliefs on religion from now:PJinroh_basic

i beg to differ. H.P. Lovecraft was never a truly successful writer, and what little fame he and his works have gathered is largely limited to the occult readership, and indeed mostly in america only. his works ( most of which you can read for free online ) are reasonably interesting, but he is definitely not among the best writers of his time ( late 19 century to mid 20th ), an tumultuous age that has seen such literary giants as Franz Kafka, Joseph Conrad, and James Joyce ( who is widely regarded as one of the best writers in history ). after WW2, horror/science-fiction became the fastest growing genre, and it's safe to say that Lovecraft is matched and surpassed by many modern writers.

Why should i care about how successful he was? His work interests me and he has a very unique style of storytelling. i am not saying those authors you mentioned are bad ( I have read Joseph Conrad and James Joyce and as a writer i admire them and love their work.) but in his genre Lovecraft was one of the best. I don't think he has been surpassed by many modern writers, who has surpassed him today that you can name? If you say J.K Rowling I will personally destroy you.

Del Toro is making a movie rendition of At The Mountains Of Madness, i cant wait to see it

Man,If I had the extra cash flow I'd buy this:


Wetall_basic

i want to hug it:D But I might go insane if i do:(

Man,If I had the extra cash flow I'd buy this:


Wetall_basic

:lol: My freind has a Thulu plushie, totally worth it.

For a writer who was virtually unknown during his life, he ended up being quite influential.

After reading most of his stories, it's fun to find small references to his works all over the place.

It's interesting reading about H.P Lovecrafts life and then reading his stories. He has an odd fascination with insanity, apparently lots of his family and friends either died, commited suicide or went insane during his short life. Shame he didn't get much interest when he was around.Film-Guy

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]It's interesting reading about H.P Lovecrafts life and then reading his stories. He has an odd fascination with insanity, apparently lots of his family and friends either died, commited suicide or went insane during his short life. Shame he didn't get much interest when he was around.Wetall_basic

its good to see him get some respect now, Clive Barker and Stephen King name him as a big influence. Stephen King calls Lovecraft "The twentieth century horror story's dark and baroque prince" on the back of my lovecraft book I have on my desk.

I'm not sure how complete this is, but here are some of his stories.
I'm also not sure if all his work is in the public domain, so don't be mad at me. :(
EmilioDigsIt

Great find, it has at the mountains of madness, probably his best story.

I'm not sure how complete this is, but here are some of his stories.
I'm also not sure if all his work is in the public domain, so don't be mad at me. :(
EmilioDigsIt

[QUOTE="EmilioDigsIt"]I'm not sure how complete this is, but here are some of his stories.
I'm also not sure if all his work is in the public domain, so don't be mad at me. :(
Wetall_basic

Same here, I love having a book collection. One of my biggest joys is seeing all the books in my personal library. Its not huge like room filling huge, but I do need to get a new shelf to hold them. Plus lots of them are Calvin and Hobbes books:P

[QUOTE="Jinroh_basic"]

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]I think he was one of the best writers of his time, certainly better than anyone today. For those who dont know, he is a horror writer who writes about Cosmic horror dealing with man's inability to comprehend a higher power and also insanity. Some of you might recognize where I get my beliefs on religion from now:PFilm-Guy

i beg to differ. H.P. Lovecraft was never a truly successful writer, and what little fame he and his works have gathered is largely limited to the occult readership, and indeed mostly in america only. his works ( most of which you can read for free online ) are reasonably interesting, but he is definitely not among the best writers of his time ( late 19 century to mid 20th ), an tumultuous age that has seen such literary giants as Franz Kafka, Joseph Conrad, and James Joyce ( who is widely regarded as one of the best writers in history ). after WW2, horror/science-fiction became the fastest growing genre, and it's safe to say that Lovecraft is matched and surpassed by many modern writers.

Why should i care about how successful he was? His work interests me and he has a very unique style of storytelling. i am not saying those authors you mentioned are bad ( I have read Joseph Conrad and James Joyce and as a writer i admire them and love their work.) but in his genre Lovecraft was one of the best. I don't think he has been surpassed by many modern writers, who has surpassed him today that you can name? If you say J.K Rowling I will personally destroy you.

i'm sure you fully realize that the authors i mentioned aren't just not bad. they are among the best writers ever lived and are subjects to countless studies in all the upper echelon academies. their status and the value of their masterpieces are undeniable. also, even tho some of them didn't enjoy popularity while they were alive, their works are nowadays widely read by readers from all walks of life.

Lovecraft has achieved neither such cannonical status nor the commercial success. how good he is is of coz debatable -- to someone he might be great, no problem, but he is definitely not up there among the best writers of his time.

i can name quite a few modern horror/science fiction writers that i deem better than Lovecraft, but i don't see how it'd be meaningful since you've already made up your mind. i do wish to point out that, although i don't really like Harry Potter series, Rowling's mastery in dramatic narration and elegant diction is rare among modern writers. she has my respect as one of the few that truly knows how to write instead of just depending on lofty imagination.

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"][QUOTE="Jinroh_basic"]

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]I think he was one of the best writers of his time, certainly better than anyone today. For those who dont know, he is a horror writer who writes about Cosmic horror dealing with man's inability to comprehend a higher power and also insanity. Some of you might recognize where I get my beliefs on religion from now:PJinroh_basic

i beg to differ. H.P. Lovecraft was never a truly successful writer, and what little fame he and his works have gathered is largely limited to the occult readership, and indeed mostly in america only. his works ( most of which you can read for free online ) are reasonably interesting, but he is definitely not among the best writers of his time ( late 19 century to mid 20th ), an tumultuous age that has seen such literary giants as Franz Kafka, Joseph Conrad, and James Joyce ( who is widely regarded as one of the best writers in history ). after WW2, horror/science-fiction became the fastest growing genre, and it's safe to say that Lovecraft is matched and surpassed by many modern writers.

Why should i care about how successful he was? His work interests me and he has a very unique style of storytelling. i am not saying those authors you mentioned are bad ( I have read Joseph Conrad and James Joyce and as a writer i admire them and love their work.) but in his genre Lovecraft was one of the best. I don't think he has been surpassed by many modern writers, who has surpassed him today that you can name? If you say J.K Rowling I will personally destroy you.

i'm sure you fully realize that the authors i mentioned aren't just not bad. they are among the best writers ever lived and are subjects to countless studies in all the upper echelon academies. their status and the value of their masterpieces are undeniable. also, even tho some of them didn't enjoy popularity while they were alive, their works are nowadays widely read by readers from all walks of life.

Lovecraft has achieved neither such cannonical status nor the commercial success. how good he is is of coz debatable -- to someone he might be great, no problem, but he is definitely not up there among the best writers of his time.

i can name quite a few modern horror/science fiction writers that i deem better than Lovecraft, but i don't see how it'd be meaningful since you've already made up your mind. i do wish to point out that, although i don't really like Harry Potter series, Rowling's mastery in dramatic narration and elegant diction is rare among modern writers. she has my respect as one of the few that truly knows how to write instead of just depending on lofty imagination.

i think the problem is we are comparing totally different people, James Joyce and Joseph Conrad were Masters of the art of writing and are undeniable greats. Lovecraft is a great Horror writer, and while i love horror dearly, you cant compare it to James Joyce. Also Thomas Pynchon is another author you should mention. Authors like Stephen King and H.P Lovecraft may not be Literary geniuses, but they are great story tellers. Sometimes a great story teller is more important than being a master of words, its a mood thing for me. I may be in a mood for a great classic like James Joyce and others like him, but other times I jsut want to get sucked into a world created by great story teller like Stephen King or George R.R Martin.

i'm just trying to point out that your statement of Lovecraft being one of the best writers of his time ( instead of the genre ) is not quite true. also, coming from a faculty where half the professors focus on modernity studies, i can name quite a number of other writers who are on par with the ones i already mentioned -- the period definitely has more than 3 great writers. :)

i happen to be a great fan of Stephen King, tho.

There is a Lovecraft quote that has always fascinated me since I read it a few years ago, you can think of it as you wish.

"To me there is nothing but puerility in a tale in which the human form-and the local human passions and conditions and standardsare depicted as native to other worlds or other universes. To achieve the essence of real externality, whether of time or space or dimension, one must forget things as organic life, good and evil, love and hate, and all such attributes of a negligible and temporary race called mankind, have any existence at all. Only the human scenes and characters must have human qualities. These must be handled with unsparing realism, but when we cross the line to the boundless and hideous unknown-the shadow-haunted Outside-we must remember to leave our humanity and terrestrialism at the threshold."

I love that quote. The way he thinks and writes is so unique and absorbing in such times of tedium and cliches like today.

i'm just trying to point out that your statement of Lovecraft being one of the best writers of his time ( instead of the genre ) is not quite true. also, coming from a faculty where half the professors focus on modernity studies, i can name quite a number of other writers who are on par with the ones i already mentioned -- the period definitely has more than 3 great writers. :)

i happen to be a great fan of Stephen King, tho.

Jinroh_basic

Yeah I should have specified my post a bit more:P Good to see a fellow Stephen King fan:D You should read his new book Duma Key, its one of his best.

really? wow, i know next to nothing about this new book of his. i'm currently reading Skeleton Crew, his earliest short stories collection which includes The Mist.Jinroh_basic

His short stories are all great, but Duma Key...My god his magic is back. After Cell dissapointed me and Lisey Story underwhelmed yet satisfied I was not ready for Duma Key at all. It's his best book since the stand.

There is a Lovecraft quote that has always fascinated me since I read it a few years ago, you can think of it as you wish.

"To me there is nothing but puerility in a tale in which the human form-and the local human passions and conditions and standardsare depicted as native to other worlds or other universes. To achieve the essence of real externality, whether of time or space or dimension, one must forget things as organic life, good and evil, love and hate, and all such attributes of a negligible and temporary race called mankind, have any existence at all. Only the human scenes and characters must have human qualities. These must be handled with unsparing realism, but when we cross the line to the boundless and hideous unknown-the shadow-haunted Outside-we must remember to leave our humanity and terrestrialism at the threshold."

I love that quote. The way he thinks and writes is so unique and absorbing in such times of tedium and cliches like today.

Film-Guy

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]

There is a Lovecraft quote that has always fascinated me since I read it a few years ago, you can think of it as you wish.

"To me there is nothing but puerility in a tale in which the human form-and the local human passions and conditions and standardsare depicted as native to other worlds or other universes. To achieve the essence of real externality, whether of time or space or dimension, one must forget things as organic life, good and evil, love and hate, and all such attributes of a negligible and temporary race called mankind, have any existence at all. Only the human scenes and characters must have human qualities. These must be handled with unsparing realism, but when we cross the line to the boundless and hideous unknown-the shadow-haunted Outside-we must remember to leave our humanity and terrestrialism at the threshold."

I love that quote. The way he thinks and writes is so unique and absorbing in such times of tedium and cliches like today.

Wetall_basic

Thats from the call of cthulhu, unless i am very mistaken. Brilliant quote all the same.

Thats from the call of cthulhu, unless i am very mistaken. Brilliant quote all the same.

Film-Guy

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"]

Thats from the call of cthulhu, unless i am very mistaken. Brilliant quote all the same.

Wetall_basic

it's a surprisingly deep and meaningful quote for a horror writer. It can easily apply today in a day when Religion still starts wars and other kinds of violence. Just makes you think, how would they react if they actually discovered what lies beyond, or what lies Outside as Lovecraft says.

to be honest? the quotation you've got there is exemplary of Lovecraft's style, whose lofty imagination is never quite backed by his capabilities. like so many amateur writers at that time, Lovecraft tried to impress his readers with off-putting lexicon and unnecessarily twisted narration rather than refined writing skill. as such, Lovecraft's works are highly ineffective in conjuring images and engaging readers.

the idea itself is nothing new. i fully agree to it, but again, his works really don't add to his credibility.

[QUOTE="Wetall_basic"][QUOTE="Film-Guy"]

Thats from the call of cthulhu, unless i am very mistaken. Brilliant quote all the same.

Film-Guy

it's a surprisingly deep and meaningful quote for a horror writer. It can easily apply today in a day when Religion still starts wars and other kinds of violence. Just makes you think, how would they react if they actually discovered what lies beyond, or what lies Outside as Lovecraft says.

to be honest? the quotation you've got there is exemplary of Lovecraft's style, whose lofty imagination is never quite backed by his capabilities. like so many amateur writers at that time, Lovecraft tried to impress his readers with off-putting lexicon and unnecessarily twisted narration rather than refined writing skill. as such, Lovecraft's works are highly ineffective in conjuring images and engaging readers.

the idea itself is nothing new. i fully agree to it, but again, his works really don't add to his credibility.

Jinroh_basic

I know the idea is nothing new, its the way it applies to his stories that makes them great. Sure he wasn't the best writer, but the way his stories mixed horror with cosmic and otherworldly creatures is what makes him unique. Though his stories are short, he packs in a lot of material and stuff to think about in them. The fact that his quotes are easy to apply to modern day life and have lasted as long as they have is a tesitimony to his abilities. Even though his stories were only published in pulp magazines and other obscure articles, they still managed to stand the test of time. That to me is a sign of a author who has real ability to conjure ideas that can really chill and make you think at the same time.

[QUOTE="Film-Guy"][QUOTE="Wetall_basic"][QUOTE="Film-Guy"]

Thats from the call of cthulhu, unless i am very mistaken. Brilliant quote all the same.

Wetall_basic

it's a surprisingly deep and meaningful quote for a horror writer. It can easily apply today in a day when Religion still starts wars and other kinds of violence. Just makes you think, how would they react if they actually discovered what lies beyond, or what lies Outside as Lovecraft says.

All the control and fear tactics being used in modern religion's and other media's just show how little we really know about our world and what is outside it. It's a creepy thought isn't it?