Fantasy authors and list making

Portions of this article appeared in Knights of the Dinner Table #150 (April, 2009).

There was a recent snap poll conducted on Twitter by Dr Dimitra Fimi that asked the question, "if I asked you to name the 3 best Fantasy authors of all time EXCLUDING #Tolkien, who would you list?"

She had some very good reasons behind asking the question, and I encourage you to go to her blog to read up on those here. "Best" is a big word, at least in my opinion.  Too many people answer with their favorite authors, but I've always argued there is a big difference between taste and quality. Mostly because there are many extremely well written works that simply are not to my taste.  On top of the quality/taste trap, how do you judge the works value as art? How truthful is it to the human experience? How much does that matter to its artistic merit?  These are long debated questions, and they make answering her question difficult indeed, IMO. 

I didn't try! I was made aware of the poll on John Rateliff's superb blog, Sacnoth's Scriptorium.  In his blog entry on the subject, he asked folks to answer a slightly different question, "Who are your three favorite fantasy authors (excluding Tolkien)? Or, if it's easier to choose, what are your three favorite fantasy books (again excluding Tolkien)?"

That is an easier question, since the only criteria is the readers own personal enjoyment - though I still found it difficult to limit myself to threee!

Of course the striking aspect of the poll is that it starts by excluding Tolkien. There are a few iconoclasts who down play his influence or call him "boring" but at this stage no one who has studied the field at all can deny his overwhelming influence. As Dr Fimi points out, his influence in fact warps discussion of the debate, making it difficult to properly assess other authors in the genre. 

She points out all the different authors mentioned, how often, ect, and Rateliff extrapolates the top 33 for commentary of his own in a second blog post. I was surprised at how many of the top 33 I hadn't read yet, and by how few "sword & sorcery" authors were on the list - I feel like it is a very 21st century list, and it would have looked very different in the 1990s. 

My own answers, to Rateliff's question, of course broke the rules.  

Favorite Author:  1. Susan Cooper   2. Mary Stewart  3. David Eddings (tie) & 3. Lloyd Alexander (tie)

Favorite novels: 1. The Belgariad (its one novel, not a seires, IMO)  2. The Grey King by Susan Cooper  3. The High King by Lloyd Alexander

Favorite Series: 1. Thieves' World series 2. The Dark is Rising series 3. The Merlin trilogy

'Favorite' is the key. These are based on my taste, not on quality.

Such lists are always useful, back when I wrote the book review column, "Off the Shelf" for Knights of the Dinner Table magazine I did a list article myself.  My list was ranked as ‘most important’ because of the literary quality of their work, or their influence upon the genre. "Important" is very different from "best" or "favorite", not that any of these lists are super important, they are a thought exercise, a useful way of thinking about the world. But they are also prone to abuse, some people get so caught up in list placement and definitions they forget these are all great works or authors to start with. 

I've added the list below, with commentary after some entries in italics, I wrote this article in 2009 and I wouldn't make all the same choices today that I made in 2009.  

20. Ed Greenwood

            Ed Greenwood’s writing is far more enthusiastic than it is literary, and he often devolves into pulp clichés… yet he is the creator of what was once the most popular fantasy role-playing and novel setting in America.  The influence of the Forgotten Realms may not have always been benign on the fantasy genre, but no one can argue it was not extensive.  And for sheer fun and gracious openness with fans, no one can top Greenwood. 

 I'm not sure he would make the list if I wrote this today.  I might include Mary Stewart or Mary Renault instead.

19. Lord Dunsany

            His writing is quirky and his plots often feel incomplete, but listing Lord Dunsany as an ‘influence’ has become the fashion for the more pretentious modern day writers of fantasy.  If more of them had actually read his simple yet complex work the fantasy genre would be richer indeed.

Not sure my snarkiness is fair here.  

18. Andrew Offutt

            Offutt is one of the true old guard of the genre, and as fine a sketcher of character as you will find anywhere (read “Shadowspawn” in Thieves’ World).  Yet his influence stems primarily from his role as editor of the long lived Swords Against Darkness anthology series.  He kept alive the sword and sorcery short story for new generations, and for that we owe him profound thanks. 

I think today I might replace him, though I am not quite certain with who. Perhaps Robert Apsrin & Lynn Abbey for creating the shared universe concept. 

17. Terry Brooks

            His first book, Sword of Shannara has been unjustly called a mere Tolkien pastiche; it is more accurately a true homage.  He has moved beyond that to become one of the most consistent best sellers in the genre.  But his work has become more challenging to the reader, not less, over the years.     

I don't really like his work, aside from Elfstones of Shannara, but even as a negative influence hard to ignore him, IMO.  

16. Laurell K. Hamilton

            Many traditional fantasy fans might recoil at including her on the list, but Hamilton’s works have had a large impact on what gets published in the fantasy genre.  No other writer has made the ‘supernatural detective’ motif more popular.  The first four Anita Blake books especially virtually recreated the motif; do not allow the controversy over the later works to prevent you from examining those first four.    

I prefer Jim Butcher's work, but she is more influential, I believe. 

15. Marion Zimmer Bradley

            She brought feminism to fantasy and empowered a new generation of female writers to break down the doors in this famously male dominated genre. Her historical interpretations are usually flat out wrong, but as a work of imaginative fiction the Mists of Avalon is rich, complex, and well worth reading. 

Bradley has been "cancelled" in the years since, IMO for very good reason as she appears to have engaged in and abetted sexual abuse of multiple children.  Still, I would probably keep her on the list, albeit in a lower position. She absolutely was a pioneer in the field. She is a classic case of art versus artist, and many of her tales include problematic themes as well, you can't easily separate her writing from her sins.  

14. Ursula K. Le Guin

            Few writers have mastered the art of saying so much with so few words.  The initial Earthsea trilogy is perhaps a third the size of The Lord of the Rings and yet she packs into that tale as much mythical resonance, personal growth, and spiritual meaning as Tolkien imparts.  Her influence is not as wide as she deserves, few works make you better for having read them, A Wizard of Earthsea is one of them.

Interesting that in Fimi's quick poll she so thoroughly dominated as the best fantasy author excluding Tolkien.  I don't know that I totally agree but her work is unquestionably excellent and I cannot think of anyone BETTER, though there are some I enjoy more personally.  

13. Neil Gaiman

            It’s cliché to argue that comic books are a serious art form, but in the fantasy genre they have seldom been taken seriously as original works; they are perennially adapting from published novels.  Gaiman created serious, thoughtful fantasy tales that make full use of the comic forms possibilities, and limitations.  Few writers since Tolkien have shown they understand Fantasy is Mythology, and how powerful that is.  Gaiman is one such writer. 

I think I'd argue now that he is more influential for what he says about fantasy then for his own writing.   

12. Gary Gygax

            His novels are terrible but few writers have brought fantasy to life as completely as Gary Gygax.  He is the great Marxist of the fantasy genre, taking the stories and giving them lock, stock, and barrel to the fans to twist and turn to their heart’s content.  Thanks to Gygax we can all create worlds and slay dragons. 

I was kinder here then I would have preferred. Many people know me as a rather constant critic of Gygax - I found his Dragon magazine editorials infuriating then and just as arrogant today. And much of the arrogance is undeserved, he is a bad, not merely mediocre but actively bad, fantasy writer, he appeared incapable of sharing credit or taking blame and I think Dungeons and Dragons would have been far better off had he quietly retired around 1982 or so.  But regardless, his influence is undeniable and the influence of Dungeons & Dragons is even more obvious today then it was in 2009.  

11. Robert Jordan

            He doesn’t always match the breadth of his ambition but Robert Jordan dared to examine the full context of the ‘Wheel of Time.’  I find his world too bleak for my taste, but book shelves don’t lie: Jordan dominated fantasy in the ‘90s and the ‘00s.  A large, complex cast that draws his readers in on a personal level while dragging them through cosmic struggles and world wars is the anchor of his style and who can argue with success?

I'd certainly leave him out today.  His influence seems to have disappeared. 

10. Michael Moorcock

            “This sword here by my side don’t act the way it should...” Blue Oyster Cult’s paean to Moorcock’s famously conflicted hero shows how fantasy was beginning, even in the ‘70s, to creep into the broader culture.  Elric of Melnibone is a tragic hero in the true sense.  You may find his doom and gloom annoying, but don’t deny it’s compelling.  He brooded before brooding was hip, and showed us elves could be evil and cruel… and named Melniboneans. 

Moorcock still seems to matter.  He even made Fimi's list.  

9. Fritz Leiber

            Who doesn’t want to be Fafhrd or the Grey Mouser?  Leiber’s terrible twosome are the fantasy genre’s response to historical fiction’s ‘Three Musketeers’ and suffered not at all for being two less. But beyond providing us the greatest fantasy buddy story since Gilgamesh and Enkidu, Leiber also shows us the best city in fantasy fiction.  Every fantasy city after Lankhmar is Lankhmar, with a different name. And his heroes’ tales are presented in some of the finest prose in the genre.  A true great. 

Should be higher on the list. 

8. H. P. Lovecraft

            You can trace his influence through fantasy like a sibilant whisper threading through the cerebral cortex of the genre’s finest minds.  Lovecraft’s impersonal take on horror, his conviction that some things man was not meant to know, and his incredible talent for atmosphere cemented his individual mark on the genre.  Yet he also acted as the center piece to a long-distance group of American ‘Inklings’ who created the sword and sorcery genre in the pages of Weird Tales and similar magazines.  If Cthulhu waits dreaming, he at least found a worthy oracle to keep his memory alive during the wait.

Lovecraft's influence never seems to wane.  

7. C.S. Lewis

            Lewis’ fiction is heavily influenced by his Christianity; it detracts from his writing as much as Lovecraft’s atheism detracts from his work.  But solid, respectable, accomplished Lewis shows that serious people can and do address serious subjects through fantasy.  If nothing else, the famous theologian has left us a powerful counter-argument to those who attack the genre on religious grounds. 

After last summer's Lewis "deep dive" I'm even more convinced of his influence. At least two fantasy series that have been adapted for the screen, His Dark Materials, and The Magicians basically exist because he infuriated their authors so much they had to write book length replies.  I think his work will long out last their's. 

6. Robert E. Howard

            Dark and tormented, Howard’s work was a primal scream against civilization.  His mighty thewed barbarian is one of the most memorable characters in literature, yet the form of his stories had an even greater impact on the genre.  His prose is powerful and his themes robust, his short stories are powerful sprints compared to the novelistic marathons we are so used to today.  And yet in his few short stories Howard told tales as riveting as any twelve volume genre work available today.  Like Lord Dunsany, he is fashionable to list as an influence. And like Dunsany, the genre would be stronger today if his influence were as pervasive as claimed.

Which is more influential, Howard, or the false image of Howard that so many of his testosterone-poisoned fanboys have? 

5. Edgar Rice Burroughs

            Few writers have exploited their characters as successfully as Burroughs.  His many Tarzan and John Carter of Mars novels highlight the possibility of the serial as a novel form for fantasy fiction.  His work is pulp fiction at its best… and at its worst. 

I think most fantasy genre scholars wouldn't include him in the genre, seeing his work instead as a precursor, but i don't see a meaningful distinction between his works and fantasy.  

4. Bram Stoker

            One novel made Stoker’s reputation, and deservedly so.  He never wrote anything else half as good, but Dracula had a profound impact on both the horror and the fantasy genres.  Indeed, in their mutual fascination with the undead these genres meet.  Dracula is the model of the mystical antagonist.  It is a powerful work that transcends genre and transformed into a true cultural artifact.

Like Lovecraft, he was an even bigger influence on the horror genre but he impacted fantasy writing nonetheless. 

3. J.K. Rowling

            She burst on the scene and has been credited with saving reading and the entire publishing business.  And she deserves it.  Her world building skill is evident in every carefully chosen detail across the seven novels, her understated British humor shines in the carefully crafted names, and her magic system is sublimely logical and rigidly true to itself. And through this detailed, believable world her vivid characters follow a complex, satisfying plot.  Very few writers have dealt with subjects so deep in a satisfying way for children.  It is fashionable to dismiss her work; frankly those who do so only exhibit their own ignorance.  Rowling is the real deal, and quite possibly the greatest fantasy writer since Tolkien.  

Although I stand firmly against her views on transsexuals, I also stand by this view of her work. She and Lucas are the only "authors" whose work has impacted generations of people on the same deep, massive level as Tolkien. Really, the top three stand alone, IMO, on that count. 

2. George Lucas

            Lucas is not a writer of novels or short stories, yet his influence on fantasy has been immense.  Star Wars yanked fantasy into the mainstream by dressing up mythology in the trappings of space opera.  I am a fan of all six movies, others prefer to dismiss the later works but you cannot dismiss the pervasive cultural influence of his creation.   The Force is with him indeed.

I still stand by this.  He is easily dismissed by people who ignore what he was doing with the films, or simply lack the education to recognize it. But set that aside, even if none of that mattered, his influence on the fantasy genre would be immense because he popularized  Joseph Campbell's monomyth, the "Hero's Journey" and made it the template that virtually all fantasy authors have since tried to emulate.  Perhaps that is for the worst, the monomyth has been (properly IMO) slammed by scholarly critics, but regardless, you have to search hard to find a book in the fantasy genre NOT based on that template.  

1. J.R.R. Tolkien

The Professor is the obvious choice for the top position.  No one has come close to exceeding Tolkien’s skills as a world builder; Middle Earth remains the finest example of the art.  It is rich in detail yet broadly conceived with a documented, cohesive history which spans eons.  Yet transcending the detail is the literary quality of his tales.  The style and tone is often at odds with modern tastes, but I say the fault lies in modern taste.  Frodo, Beren, Turin – Tolkien’s characters are indelible archetypes yet heart-breakingly individual. Tolkien’s work feeds the mind and the soul, and then repays repeated, careful readings; that is a rare gift.  Thank goodness for the Oxford Don and his love of elves and hobbits. 

I think I'll end this here.  I have no further comment on Tolkien himself. I'd love to hear what folks think of my choices, and how they might answer the questions themselves.

All views in this blog are my own and represent the views of no other person, organization, or institution.