Ninety-four years ago, fellow Texan Robert E. Howard received a rejection letter for a fantasy short story called By This Axe I Rule. Nonplussed, he rewrote the story and replaced the character with his new creation, Conan the Cimmerian. After requesting some modifications and receiving them, the editors at Weird Tales published the story in December, 1932.
It was the Golden Age of pulp fiction, and Weird Tales was one of the foundational and most influential fantasy magazines of the era. Widely read, the publication hosted content by H.P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, Ray Bradbury and others.
Conan was a success, and Howard proceeded to crank out many more stories featuring the barbarian from Cimmeria. Part of a mythos Howard developed and cultivated over the next few years, Conan lived in an ancient Europa during what Howard described as the Hyborian Age, a period soon after the sinking of Atlantis.
One of the great joys of reading the original Conan stories is seeing Howard’s use of ancient territorial names and people groups. The other is Howard’s command of the language. A colorful writer, his words and action pop off the page. Most of the plots involved a princess in dire need, a magical villain, and a level of intelligence and chivalry surprising those around the barbarian. A typical ending involves Conan getting the girl and slaying the bad guy.
Somehow, Conan surpassed the short life of his creator. Wikipedia lists 17 stories sold to Weird Tales, a handful of others created and either not sold while he lived or that remained incomplete, and other errata such as poems and essays and some content sold elsewhere.
Conan was resurrected for the comics in later years, and gained mainstream attention in a 1982 movie starring a young Arnold Schwarzenegger in his breakout role. Other movies followed, though none as commercially successful.
Multiple television series have featured him, both animation and live action, with another show reportedly in the works in this current era of streaming content. Card, board, role-playing and video games have also featured the hero down through the decades.
Two lessons can be gleaned from studying Howard and Conan. First, authors will never know how durable a character or a story may become. So, intellectual property is important. When IP gains legendary status, it becomes even more important, especially for heirs to an author’s estate.
Second, when a publisher makes a request for revisions, always comply. Good things can happen to stories that are polished and resubmitted.
This week Solomon’s Compass debuts on Thursday, June 8. You can pre-order it now for a special price. This is the third book in the Steam & Aether series. It follows the adventures of a futuristic soldier and his experiences in a steampunk alternative Victorian era.
I used to love and watch the TV series, and of course watched Arnold’s version of the film 2/3 times. There was this female MC in a TV series in Conan style after that, I don’t remember her character’s name, I think it began with a Z..it was a fun show too.
Book-3 is preordered. I’m reading book-2, and have yet to post a review, although I’ve already rated it with a well deserved 5 ⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️⭐️! I enjoyed reading it a lot! I don’t remember well, but I think it’s my first venture into steampunk genre, although I do have other steampunk genre books in my TBR pile.
Thank you, Jaxon. Have a lovely weekend! Stay well.
Meenaz. 🧡🌟