That feeling that normally comes with youthful optimism. The probability that we will reach the stars. That humankind will master the universe, mortality, disease, war. Sense of wonder was the key ingredient in science fiction. Particularly early science fiction. Forget Roddenberry. Forget Lucas. Forget Galactica. One name signifies the sense of wonder more than any other. That name is...

Jack Williamson!

Forgive the exclamation points. I know they're goofy, but I can't help it. When it comes to Jack Williamson, I think in exclamation points.

I won't bullshit you and make the claim that Jack Williamson was the greatest science fiction writer of all time. I'm sure that some hold that opinion, but I never thought that Williamson was the equal to Alfred Bester, Theodore Sturgeon, Arthur C. Clarke and a few others. Heinlein's books often had the quote on them, "The Dean of Science Fiction Writers", I don't think that is or was ever the truth. Jack Williamson, whose writing career went from the late 1920's to the mid 00's, will always be the Dean to me.

Maybe not the best, but Jack Williamson always gave his readers their money's worth. His work was consistantly entertaining, as well as rewarding. His novels and stories never failed to captivate me.

I'll never forget the wonder, the awe, the thrill it was to read The Legion of Space when I was young. Originally printed in pulp magazines, The Legion of Space was published in book form in 1934. It, more than any other piece of writing that I am aware of, captured that wonder. It stirred my heart and I knew that if everyone would only slow down and read science fiction, all of the world's troubles would end. I was a naive kid, sure, but that is the way I felt.

I mentioned George Lucas earlier. His massively overrated Star Wars movies effectively set science fiction back nearly half a century. Williamson had done it and so much better with The Legion of Space. I can't say for sure, but I'd be damned surprised to learn that Lucas never read The Legion of Space and its sequels. It sure looks like he borrowed liberally from it.

Anyway, moving on...Jack Williamson was a trailblazer. He was one in the science fiction field and he was in his own life. He and his family traveled across Texas to New Mexico in a covered wagon. In the penniless Great Depression, he took boat trips to meet other science fiction enthusiasts. Jack was an early professional in the weather forecasting field. Jack was raised on a ranch/farm, and yet he gradually advanced his education, eventually getting a PHD.

And his fiction...well, it's legendary. His stories charted unknown territories and he was the first writer of fiction to use the term 'Genetic Engineering'. He coined the word, 'Terraform'. You hear about cliches in SF...well Jack was one of the ones that invented them. He published a classic werewolf novel in 1948 called Darker Than You Think, but in typical Williamson fashion he used science to explain the lycanthropy, rather than folklore.

Jack Williamson, unlike far too many others, continued to evolve as the years went by. Changing his style and subject matter as the decades went on. He managed to come across as fresh and youthful, despite his advancing age.

If you read science fiction, fantasy, horror; or if you even watch it in movies or on TV, you have seen Jack Williamson's influence. Whether you are aware of it or not.

Jack died on November 10th, 2006, at the age of 98. This was just one year after the publication of his final novel, The Stonehenge Gate. He had an astonishing career that is without parallel. Within or outside the science fiction genre.

Which brings me to Haffner Press. Haffner is a publisher that is bringing classic SF works back into print in deluxe editions. There have been some collections by Edmund Hamilton and Leigh Bracket, but Haffner appears to be specializing in reprinting Jack Williamson. There is an ambitious eight volume set of short stories in the process of being published. Sadly, I can't afford to jump on that particular train. Haffner has also published a mammoth retrospective of Williamson's work in honor of his 25th Anniversary as a published writer. I do own a copy of this one and it is a stunning book.

I mentioned that Jack Williamson died on November tenth of last year. His passing left a hole in the SF genre that can never be filled. It really was the end of an era.

There is also a replication of the first piece of writing Jack Williamson sold. It is a nonfiction essay that appeared in Hugo Gernsbeck's Amazing Stories Quarterly called Scientificion: Searchlight of Science. This piece clearly shows Jack's infectious enthusiasm and optimism. I love this line, "Science is the doorway to the future; scientifiction, the golden key". By the way, some early SF people liked the term, scientifiction. I always thought it was awkward and I'm glad that it never caught on.

There are two pieces of fiction in In Memory of Wonder's Child. One is a very early effort called Nonstop to Mars. It's a fun piece and I believe that I had read it years ago. The real selling point of this book is Jack's very last short story. It's called The Mists of Time and I wouldn't have dreamed that it had been written by a man in his upper 90's. The Mists of Time still features that awe and wonder that was always the showcase of Jack Williamson's fiction.

This brief (108 pages) book also has a sample of Jack Williamson's 50's comic strip called Beyond Mars, some nice photos and an essay by Jack about Julius Schwartz and The Justice League of America.

Coming away from In Memory of Wonder's Child, I feel that I've grown a bit closer to the man I never had the opportunity to actually meet: Jack Williamson. It's an intimate view into a man's life from those that loved him.

Gorezone is now nine years old. I'm not talking about the magazine or the real-life gore site, but ARCVILE's Daily News site. In addition to news, Gorezone features reviews and a spirited community. I knew it well once upon a time, as I moderated the Book Forum there. I met some of you in those days.

I miss it sometimes and I still hate that I left in a fuss of anger and controversy, but I still and always will maintain that I, and my board, did absolutely nothing wrong. Others disagreed with that and instead of fighting, I just left. It was then that I co-founded the Shocklines Message Board with Matt Schwartz and man did THAT turn into a wild place. Many wonderful people are at Shocklines, but it's so big that it became impossible to keep my sanity there.

The Gorezone Book Forum was, in my not-so-humble opinion, the best Goddamn horror lit MB of all time. Everyone was great and it got insanely popular. Not like Shocklines did, thank God, but a lot of people came and coexisted in harmony there.

Heck, we even did our own anthology...edited by none other than the talented Kealan Patrick Burke, with an awesome cover by Deena Warner and an Introduction by Yours Very Truly. Some guy named Keene wrote a Forward. And a bunch of really nice people with serious writing chops contributed short stories. Copies of it are almost gone and Shocklines has long sold out. But Clarkesworld has a few left, I believe.

But I don't want to go on about me and my old forum too much. I want to take this time to salute ARCVILE, who is a passionate, dedicated, very funny guy that has held down the Gorezone ship for almost a decade.

This is an anniversary for me too. I went online right at almost the exact time that Gorezone was launched. I found the site and chose it as my own home on the web. Big things happened for me because of ARC and Gorezone and I'll always be grateful and respectful. To him at least. There are a few others that were there that I'll always feel hostile toward.

But enough of that. Congratulations to ARCVILE for Nine Big Ones, with best wishes for many more to come. I still visit the news page at Gorezone every day, and you should too.

Of course, like everyone (or most everyone) else, my main concern is for Mr. Matt Schwartz and his health and happiness. This had to be a tough decision, but I know he thought it out and is taking the right course for himself.


I have been loyal to Shocklines and I gave 99% of my business to Matt. I felt good about it, but the more I thought about it, the more I began to question that loyalty. And the feedback I got from various sources had something to do with it too. I'm close friends with a small press publisher or two and one confided to me that it was really killing them to sell so much through a secondary seller. Now, this individual was most certainly not knocking Matt or anything, but the financial reality of the situation was grim. I think we should give a lot more support direct to the publication source.


The store will be gravely missed, but others are out there and someone else will probably start one up soon. Thinking back to some of the dubious service I've gotten from various bookstores in the past gives me the heebie jeebies. It was really hard to find a reliable, safe trustworthy source for genre books. But heck, we can always fall back on Amazon.


And you know what Matt came out of it with? A shitpile of debt. But we're in debt too. Debt to Matt Schwartz, for everything he's done for the genre. I'm not the first to suggest this, but I'll reiterate it. If you care for Matt, if you feel gratitude and if you hate to see the store go...then you should buy a book. Or two or three. He has a huge stockpile of books that need to be sold. Buy one. Buy a few. Even if it's just a mass market PB or a chapbook or something. And buy more next week. If you can't find something on that site that you want, you're either rich and own a crapload of books, or you're a picky son of a bitch. Or maybe you don't read horror fiction.


Of course, the site will go on, just as the message board will. The Shocklines Forum is loved by many, despised by some, but ignored by few that give a damn about horror fiction. Considering all that has gone down there over the last couple of years, I'd say that Matt has done a more than admirable job maintaining it. Some emphatically disagree, but there is no way that anyone can manage a community that size and please everyone. It's impossible. And it didn't become the biggest, most active, explosive, damndest message board in the field for no reason. Matt did things right. His way wasn't everyone's way, but we all view things differently.


The people there can be irritating. They can be infuriating and offensive. They can and will argue, fight, flame, incite and drive any sane person to madness. They can also be possessed of incredible acts of kindness, human decency and damned near Sainthood. I know that at the hour of my greatest trauma, my most personal tragedy, The Shocklines Community were there to ease my suffering. With words, deeds, compassion and extraordinary generosity. I get choked up right now thinking about it.





Photo of Matt Schwartz by John Everson.