paizo.com Recent Blog Posts in C. L. Moorepaizo.com Recent Blog Posts in C. L. Moore2011-07-12T21:37:46Z2011-07-12T21:37:46ZSci-Fried: Pucker Uphttps://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo5lamg?SciFried-Pucker-Up2009-11-17T08:00:00Z<table border=0 width=180 align=right><tr><td class=tiny align=center>
<a href="https://paizo.com/image/content/Blog/gobberCrys10_500.jpeg" target="_blank"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/content/Blog/gobberCrys10_180.jpeg" border=0 hspace=9></a><br>
Illustration by Crystal Frasier
</td></tr></table>
<blockquote>
<h1><br> Sci-Fried: Pucker Up</h1>
<p class=date>Tuesday, November 17, 2009</p>
<p>Cave raptors are sated; it's time to blog!</p>
<p>Back when I was a little ankle-chewer in the distant 1980s, there weren't a lot of strong female role models to choose from. Most of the women on TV were simpering damsels in distress or so fashion- and boy-crazy that they triggered my normally resilient goblin gag reflex. Then in 1985, Mattel rolled out She-Ra and my youthful, violent fanaticism found someone to latch onto. She-Ra still had a lot of fashion doll in her, but she had something that no other female character did: a friggin' sword! For a long while, She-Ra was my favorite show, and I still remember it fondly today, even if the series hasn't aged well.</p>
<p>And why in Lamashtu's name have I forced us all down this horrifying stagger through memory lane? So that it will really drive home the point when I say quite plainly: Jirel of Joiry would kick She-Ra's alabaster ass!</p>
<p>For this week's installment of Sci-Fried, I picked up a copy of the Planet Stories collection <a href="https://paizo.com/planetStories/v5748btpy7x8d"><i>Black God's Kiss</i></a>. Last time around, I enjoyed Kuttner's work on <a href=" /planetStories/v5748btpy81tx"><i>The Dark World</i></a>, and in my research (and by research, I mean dumpster-diving in Wikipedia) I discovered that he co-wrote most of his later novels with his wife, C. L. Moore.</p>
</blockquote>
<table border=0 align=left width=180><tr><td align=center class=tiny>
<a href="https://paizo.com/planetStories/v5748btpy7x8d"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO8004_180.jpeg" border=0 hspace=9></a><br>Illustration by Arnold Tsang
</td></tr></table>
<blockquote>
<p>So, major spoilers: C. L. Moore is a woman!</p>
<p>Armed with the knowledge that women can write science fiction, I eagerly dove into <i>Black God's Kiss</i>. And I was not disappointed. The intrusion of pesky adventurers kept me from finishing all six thrilling tales, as their larcenous halfling made off with my copy in the fracas. But the first three short stories were more than enough to whet my appetite and have me picking up a replacement copy today at work.</p>
<p><i>Black God's Kiss</i> collects Moore's six Jirel of Joiry stories into one convenient volume. The original badass, no-excuses warrior woman before Xena and Lara Croft made it cool, Jirel is the military commander (and later queen) of Joiry, a medieval French territory. She's the best swordswoman in the kingdom, the toughest brawler, and supremely focused on whatever her goal might be. She's every bit as violent as I am, but with all the self-confidence and human emotions I usually use my violence to compensate for.</p>
<p>But like an octopus without its legs, a cool character isn't much to look at if the writing is sub par. And Moore is par excellence. Moore's writing is like an expensive meal. You get the nourishing plot, of course, but what you really love is just putting the prose in your mouth and chewing, savoring those flavorful descriptions and the rich balance of analogies. It's like eating a pickle made out of tasty Halfling toes.</p>
<blockquote>
<p> "But the darkness that bandaged her eyes was changed too, indescribably. It was no longer darkness, but void; not an absence of light, but simple nothingness."</p>
</blockquote>
<p>That is art. It combines such simple ingredients to create an elegant whole and makes me understand a concept I could never personally experience without visiting family. It makes me want to backtrack, taste it again, and learn how to cook it myself. Jirel's travels beyond reality are so lip-smackingly vivid that they pull me in, despite the book's glaring minority of cephalopods.</p>
<p><a href="https://paizo.com/planetStories/v5748btpy7x8d"> <i>Black God's Kiss</i></a> is an exciting and fun collection of adventures with the kind of action-adventure hero that anyone can enjoy, and any gamer girl and empathize with. This isn't just a book I enjoy reading, this is a book I'm going to enjoy reading to my daughter some day...</p>
<p>Provided I can override my natural instincts to eat my young.</p>
<p>Well, third time's the charm.</p>
<p>Crystal Frasier
<br>Production Specialist</p>
</blockquote>
<!— tags: Black God's Kiss, C. L. Moore, Jirel of Joiry, Planet Stories, Crystal Frasier, Sci-Fried, Arnold Tsang, monsters, goblins, barbarians —>
<p><a href="https://paizo.comcommunity/blog/tags">Tags</a>: <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/artists/arnoldTsang">Arnold Tsang</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/classes/barbarians">Barbarians</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/blackGodsKiss">Black God's Kiss</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/cLMoore">C. L. Moore</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/artists/crystalFrasier">Crystal Frasier</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/monsters/goblins">Goblins</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/jirelOfJoiry">Jirel of Joiry</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/monsters">Monsters</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories">Planet Stories</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/sciFried">Sci-Fried</a></p><table border=0 width=180 align=right><tr><td class=tiny align=center>
<a href="https://paizo.com/image/content/Blog/gobberCrys10_500.jpeg" target="_blank"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/content/Blog/gobberCrys10_180.jpeg" border=0 hspace=9></a><br>
Illustration by Crystal Frasier
</td></tr></table>
<blockquote>
<h1><br> Sci-Fried: Pucker Up</h1>
<p class=date>Tuesday, November 17, 2009</p>
<p>Cave raptors are sated; it's time to blog!</p>
<p>Back when I was a little ankle-chewer in the distant 1980s, there weren't a lot of strong female role models to choose from. Most of the women on TV were simpering damsels in distress or so fashion- and boy-crazy that they triggered my normally resilient goblin gag reflex. Then in 1985, Mattel rolled out She-Ra and my youthful, violent fanaticism found someone to latch onto. She-Ra still had a lot of fashion doll in her, but she had something that no other female character did: a friggin' sword! For a long while, She-Ra was my favorite show, and I still remember it fondly today, even if the series hasn't aged well.</p>
<p>And why in Lamashtu's name have I forced us all down this horrifying stagger through memory lane? So that it will really drive home the point when I say quite plainly: Jirel of Joiry would kick She-Ra's alabaster ass!</p>
<p>For this week's installment of Sci-Fried, I picked up a copy of the Planet Stories collection <a href="https://paizo.com/planetStories/v5748btpy7x8d"><i>Black God's Kiss</i></a>. Last time around, I enjoyed Kuttner's work on <a href=" /planetStories/v5748btpy81tx"><i>The Dark World</i></a>, and in my research (and by research, I mean dumpster-diving in Wikipedia) I discovered that he co-wrote most of his later novels with his wife, C. L. Moore.</p>
</blockquote>
<table border=0 align=left width=180><tr><td align=center class=tiny>
<a href="https://paizo.com/planetStories/v5748btpy7x8d"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO8004_180.jpeg" border=0 hspace=9></a><br>Illustration by Arnold Tsang
</td></tr></table>
<blockquote>
<p>So, major spoilers: C. L. Moore is a woman!</p>
<p>Armed with the knowledge that women can write science fiction, I eagerly dove into <i>Black God's Kiss</i>. And I was not disappointed. The intrusion of pesky adventurers kept me from finishing all six thrilling tales, as their larcenous halfling made off with my copy in the fracas. But the first three short stories were more than enough to whet my appetite and have me picking up a replacement copy today at work.</p>
<p><i>Black God's Kiss</i> collects Moore's six Jirel of Joiry stories into one convenient volume. The original badass, no-excuses warrior woman before Xena and Lara Croft made it cool, Jirel is the military commander (and later queen) of Joiry, a medieval French territory. She's the best swordswoman in the kingdom, the toughest brawler, and supremely focused on whatever her goal might be. She's every bit as violent as I am, but with all the self-confidence and human emotions I usually use my violence to compensate for.</p>
<p>But like an octopus without its legs, a cool character isn't much to look at if the writing is sub par. And Moore is par excellence. Moore's writing is like an expensive meal. You get the nourishing plot, of course, but what you really love is just putting the prose in your mouth and chewing, savoring those flavorful descriptions and the rich balance of analogies. It's like eating a pickle made out of tasty Halfling toes.</p>
<blockquote>
<p> "But the darkness that bandaged her eyes was changed too, indescribably. It was no longer darkness, but void; not an absence of light, but simple nothingness."</p>
</blockquote>
<p>That is art. It combines such simple ingredients to create an elegant whole and makes me understand a concept I could never personally experience without visiting family. It makes me want to backtrack, taste it again, and learn how to cook it myself. Jirel's travels beyond reality are so lip-smackingly vivid that they pull me in, despite the book's glaring minority of cephalopods.</p>
<p><a href="https://paizo.com/planetStories/v5748btpy7x8d"> <i>Black God's Kiss</i></a> is an exciting and fun collection of adventures with the kind of action-adventure hero that anyone can enjoy, and any gamer girl and empathize with. This isn't just a book I enjoy reading, this is a book I'm going to enjoy reading to my daughter some day...</p>
<p>Provided I can override my natural instincts to eat my young.</p>
<p>Well, third time's the charm.</p>
<p>Crystal Frasier
<br>Production Specialist</p>
</blockquote>
<!— tags: Black God's Kiss, C. L. Moore, Jirel of Joiry, Planet Stories, Crystal Frasier, Sci-Fried, Arnold Tsang, monsters, goblins, barbarians —>
<p><a href="https://paizo.comcommunity/blog/tags">Tags</a>: <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/artists/arnoldTsang">Arnold Tsang</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/classes/barbarians">Barbarians</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/blackGodsKiss">Black God's Kiss</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/cLMoore">C. L. Moore</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/artists/crystalFrasier">Crystal Frasier</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/monsters/goblins">Goblins</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/jirelOfJoiry">Jirel of Joiry</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/monsters">Monsters</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories">Planet Stories</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/sciFried">Sci-Fried</a></p>2009-11-17T08:00:00ZScience Fiction's Original Badasshttps://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo5la29?Science-Fictions-Original-Badass2008-02-05T08:00:00Z<a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7zdo"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO8007_180.jpeg" border=0 hspace=12 align=left></a>
<blockquote>
<h1><br>Science Fiction's Original Badass</h1>
<p class=date>Tuesday, February 5, 2008</p>
<p>I'd edited the thing twice, so I really should have expected it. Still, when Erik dropped our advance copy of <i>Northwest of Earth</i> down in front of me, the resounding "whump" it made was immensely satisfying. You have to understand that this thing is <i>thick</i>—a book measured less in pages than in pounds. And at the same price as all our other Planet Stories installments to date—$12.99—Northwest Smith is a steal for those of us who, like me as a kid especially, strive to make each dollar buy as many words as possible.</p>
<p>Really, though, <i><a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7zdo">Northwest of Earth: The Complete Northwest Smith</a></i> would be worth the price if it were half its size. Decades before Han Solo shot Greedo, thirty years before Captain James Kirk laid eyes on his first seductive alien, there was only Northwest Smith: a hard-bitten spacefarer with a penchant for smuggling and mercenary work, quick with his heat gun and even quicker with his shot glass, Accompanied by his shrewd Venusian sidekick, Northwest paved the way for countless science fiction heroes who chose to operate just outside the bounds of the law. With one broad stroke, C. L. Moore created one of the most cherished archetypes of the genre.</p>
<p>But then, why should we be surprised? After all, C. L. Moore was something of a trailblazer herself. In a time when female authors were marginalized at best, and almost nonexistent in genre fiction, Catherine Lucille Moore kicked down the doors and made the speculative fiction audiences take notice. First published in <i>Weird Tales</i> in 1934, she quickly rose through the ranks of the pulp authors, publishing alongside contemporaries like Robert E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft, continuing to excel even once her gender became widely known. Another of her creations, Jirel of Joiry (whose complete collected stories are available from Planet Stories as <i><a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8d">Black God's Kiss</a></i>), was the first female sword-and-sorcery protagonist, a battle-thirsty, take-no-prisoners sort of warrior who showed the fantasy world that some of those clichéd "damsels in distress" could take care of themselves just fine, thank you very much.</p>
<p><i>Northwest of Earth</i> marks the first-ever complete collection of Northwest Smith stories, including even the rarely-seen "Nymph of Darkness" (a collaboration with Forrest J. Ackerman) and "Quest of the Starstone," a rollicking cross-genre romp in which Moore and husband <a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8e">Henry Kuttner</a> (a groundbreaking SF author in his own right) pair Smith and Jirel together against an evil wizard capable of moving between worlds. </p>
<p>I could talk all day about how important to the genre these stories are, the manner in which they seamlessly blend ray-gun science fiction and cosmic horror, but perhaps you'd rather hear about it from someone more reputable... like, say, H. P. Lovecraft himself? In his personal letters, Lovecraft has this to say about Moore's work:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>"These tales have a peculiar quality of cosmic weirdness, hard to define but easy to recognize, which marks them out as really unique... In these tales there is an indefinable atmosphere of vague outsideness and cosmic dread which marks weird work of the best sort. The distinctive thing about Miss Moore is her ability to devise conditions and sights and phenomena of utter strangeness and originality, and to describe them in a language conveying something of their outre, phantasmagoric, and dread-filled quality."—H. P. Lovecraft</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So there you have it. Even seventy years ago, the authors of the day understood that this C. L. Moore person was a breed apart—someone of imagination and prose far beyond the standard pulp author. We're putting out a lot of great books this year, but it's with distinct and especial pride that we're releasing <i>Northwest of Earth.</i> I hope you enjoy it.</p>
<p>And now, because everyone loves free samples, a teaser:</p>
<blockquote>
<i><p> For a minute—for two minutes—nothing happened. Then, watching the wall, Smith thought he could discern the shape of the symbol that had been traced. Somehow it was becoming clear among the painted characters. Somehow a grayness was spreading within the outlines he had watched his own hands trace, a fogginess that strengthened and grew clearer and clearer, until he could no longer make out the traceries enclosed within its boundaries, and a great, misty symbol stood out vividly across the wall.</p>
<p>He did not understand for a moment. He watched the grayness take on density and grow stronger with each passing moment, but he did not understand until a long curl of fog drifted lazily out into the room, and the grayness began to spill over its own edges and eddy and billow as if that wall were afire. And from very far away, over measureless voids, he caught the first faint impact of a power so great that he knew in one flash the full horror of what he watched.</p>
<p>The name, traced upon that wall with its own metal counterpart, had opened a doorway for the Thing which bore the name to enter. It was coming back to the world it had left millions of years ago. It was oozing through the opened door, and nothing he could do would stop it...</i></p>
</blockquote>
<p> James Sutter <br>
<i>Editor</i>, Planet Stories</p>
</blockquote>
<!— tags: Northwest of Earth, C. L. Moore, H. P. Lovecraft —>
<p><a href="https://paizo.comcommunity/blog/tags">Tags</a>: <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/cLMoore">C. L. Moore</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/hPLovecraft">H. P. Lovecraft</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/northwestOfEarth">Northwest of Earth</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories">Planet Stories</a></p><a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7zdo"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO8007_180.jpeg" border=0 hspace=12 align=left></a>
<blockquote>
<h1><br>Science Fiction's Original Badass</h1>
<p class=date>Tuesday, February 5, 2008</p>
<p>I'd edited the thing twice, so I really should have expected it. Still, when Erik dropped our advance copy of <i>Northwest of Earth</i> down in front of me, the resounding "whump" it made was immensely satisfying. You have to understand that this thing is <i>thick</i>—a book measured less in pages than in pounds. And at the same price as all our other Planet Stories installments to date—$12.99—Northwest Smith is a steal for those of us who, like me as a kid especially, strive to make each dollar buy as many words as possible.</p>
<p>Really, though, <i><a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7zdo">Northwest of Earth: The Complete Northwest Smith</a></i> would be worth the price if it were half its size. Decades before Han Solo shot Greedo, thirty years before Captain James Kirk laid eyes on his first seductive alien, there was only Northwest Smith: a hard-bitten spacefarer with a penchant for smuggling and mercenary work, quick with his heat gun and even quicker with his shot glass, Accompanied by his shrewd Venusian sidekick, Northwest paved the way for countless science fiction heroes who chose to operate just outside the bounds of the law. With one broad stroke, C. L. Moore created one of the most cherished archetypes of the genre.</p>
<p>But then, why should we be surprised? After all, C. L. Moore was something of a trailblazer herself. In a time when female authors were marginalized at best, and almost nonexistent in genre fiction, Catherine Lucille Moore kicked down the doors and made the speculative fiction audiences take notice. First published in <i>Weird Tales</i> in 1934, she quickly rose through the ranks of the pulp authors, publishing alongside contemporaries like Robert E. Howard and H. P. Lovecraft, continuing to excel even once her gender became widely known. Another of her creations, Jirel of Joiry (whose complete collected stories are available from Planet Stories as <i><a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8d">Black God's Kiss</a></i>), was the first female sword-and-sorcery protagonist, a battle-thirsty, take-no-prisoners sort of warrior who showed the fantasy world that some of those clichéd "damsels in distress" could take care of themselves just fine, thank you very much.</p>
<p><i>Northwest of Earth</i> marks the first-ever complete collection of Northwest Smith stories, including even the rarely-seen "Nymph of Darkness" (a collaboration with Forrest J. Ackerman) and "Quest of the Starstone," a rollicking cross-genre romp in which Moore and husband <a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8e">Henry Kuttner</a> (a groundbreaking SF author in his own right) pair Smith and Jirel together against an evil wizard capable of moving between worlds. </p>
<p>I could talk all day about how important to the genre these stories are, the manner in which they seamlessly blend ray-gun science fiction and cosmic horror, but perhaps you'd rather hear about it from someone more reputable... like, say, H. P. Lovecraft himself? In his personal letters, Lovecraft has this to say about Moore's work:</p>
<blockquote>
<p>"These tales have a peculiar quality of cosmic weirdness, hard to define but easy to recognize, which marks them out as really unique... In these tales there is an indefinable atmosphere of vague outsideness and cosmic dread which marks weird work of the best sort. The distinctive thing about Miss Moore is her ability to devise conditions and sights and phenomena of utter strangeness and originality, and to describe them in a language conveying something of their outre, phantasmagoric, and dread-filled quality."—H. P. Lovecraft</p>
</blockquote>
<p>So there you have it. Even seventy years ago, the authors of the day understood that this C. L. Moore person was a breed apart—someone of imagination and prose far beyond the standard pulp author. We're putting out a lot of great books this year, but it's with distinct and especial pride that we're releasing <i>Northwest of Earth.</i> I hope you enjoy it.</p>
<p>And now, because everyone loves free samples, a teaser:</p>
<blockquote>
<i><p> For a minute—for two minutes—nothing happened. Then, watching the wall, Smith thought he could discern the shape of the symbol that had been traced. Somehow it was becoming clear among the painted characters. Somehow a grayness was spreading within the outlines he had watched his own hands trace, a fogginess that strengthened and grew clearer and clearer, until he could no longer make out the traceries enclosed within its boundaries, and a great, misty symbol stood out vividly across the wall.</p>
<p>He did not understand for a moment. He watched the grayness take on density and grow stronger with each passing moment, but he did not understand until a long curl of fog drifted lazily out into the room, and the grayness began to spill over its own edges and eddy and billow as if that wall were afire. And from very far away, over measureless voids, he caught the first faint impact of a power so great that he knew in one flash the full horror of what he watched.</p>
<p>The name, traced upon that wall with its own metal counterpart, had opened a doorway for the Thing which bore the name to enter. It was coming back to the world it had left millions of years ago. It was oozing through the opened door, and nothing he could do would stop it...</i></p>
</blockquote>
<p> James Sutter <br>
<i>Editor</i>, Planet Stories</p>
</blockquote>
<!— tags: Northwest of Earth, C. L. Moore, H. P. Lovecraft —>
<p><a href="https://paizo.comcommunity/blog/tags">Tags</a>: <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/cLMoore">C. L. Moore</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/hPLovecraft">H. P. Lovecraft</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/northwestOfEarth">Northwest of Earth</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories">Planet Stories</a></p>2008-02-05T08:00:00ZKicking Down The Doorhttps://paizo.com/community/blog/v5748dyo5la5x?Kicking-Down-The-Door2007-07-26T01:00:00Z<a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8d"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO8004_180.jpeg" align=left hspace=12 border=0></a>
<blockquote>
<h1>Kicking Down The Door</h1>
<p class=date>Wednesday, July 25, 2007</p>
<p>That more people don't know the name C. L. Moore is one of the biggest tragedies in science fiction and fantasy. This October, Planet Stories plans to do everything we can to change that.</p>
<p>First published in <i>Weird Tales</i> in 1934, Catherine Lucille Moore was writing science fiction and fantasy in a time where female authors were rare across the board, and practically unheard of in genre fiction. Abbreviating her name to hide her gender, Moore quickly rose through the ranks of the pulp authors, publishing alongside contemporaries like Robert E. Howard and even earning praise from H. P. Lovecraft himself. (So successful was her disguise, in fact, that she first met fellow SF author Henry Kuttner when he wrote her a fan letter believing her to be a man. The two were married a few years later, and went on to collaborate extensively.) What's more, she continued to excel once her gender became known, and in doing so paved the way for countless female fantasy and science fiction authors to come. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8d"><i>Black God's Kiss</a></i>, we've collected all six Jirel of Joiry stories, in which Moore introduced the world to the first-ever female fantasy protagonist. Where the pulp stories around her were filled with distressed damsels and helpless shrinking violets in need of rescue, Jirel burst onto the scene larger than life. Sword swinging, teeth ready to tear out the throats of her enemies, Jirel ruled her domain in Moore's medieval France analogue with an iron fist, holding it against all comers through the strength of her blade. Moore's moody, illustrative prose was equally anomalous for the time period, and from the hellish landscape beneath Jirel's castle to the fields of alien ghouls in "Quest of the Starstone," Moore's boundless imagination continues to inspire fans and authors to this day.</p>
<p>As noted SF author Suzy McKee Charnas points out in the introduction, C. L. Moore and Jirel of Joiry didn't just open the door for women in science fiction and fantasy—they kicked it down. Male or female, <i>Black God's Kiss</i> is a must-have for any serious fantasy enthusiast.</p>
<p>Come read the stories that started a revolution. You won't be disappointed.</p>
<p>James Sutter
<br>Editor, Planet Stories</p>
</blockquote>
<!— tags: C. L. Moore, Jirel of Joiry, Henry Kuttner, Black God's Kiss, Planet Stories —><p><a href="https://paizo.comcommunity/blog/tags">Tags</a>: <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/blackGodsKiss">Black God's Kiss</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/cLMoore">C. L. Moore</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/henryKuttner">Henry Kuttner</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/jirelOfJoiry">Jirel of Joiry</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories">Planet Stories</a></p><a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8d"><img src="https//paizo.com/image/product/catalog/PZO/PZO8004_180.jpeg" align=left hspace=12 border=0></a>
<blockquote>
<h1>Kicking Down The Door</h1>
<p class=date>Wednesday, July 25, 2007</p>
<p>That more people don't know the name C. L. Moore is one of the biggest tragedies in science fiction and fantasy. This October, Planet Stories plans to do everything we can to change that.</p>
<p>First published in <i>Weird Tales</i> in 1934, Catherine Lucille Moore was writing science fiction and fantasy in a time where female authors were rare across the board, and practically unheard of in genre fiction. Abbreviating her name to hide her gender, Moore quickly rose through the ranks of the pulp authors, publishing alongside contemporaries like Robert E. Howard and even earning praise from H. P. Lovecraft himself. (So successful was her disguise, in fact, that she first met fellow SF author Henry Kuttner when he wrote her a fan letter believing her to be a man. The two were married a few years later, and went on to collaborate extensively.) What's more, she continued to excel once her gender became known, and in doing so paved the way for countless female fantasy and science fiction authors to come. </p>
<p>In <a href="https://paizo.com/store/v5748btpy7x8d"><i>Black God's Kiss</a></i>, we've collected all six Jirel of Joiry stories, in which Moore introduced the world to the first-ever female fantasy protagonist. Where the pulp stories around her were filled with distressed damsels and helpless shrinking violets in need of rescue, Jirel burst onto the scene larger than life. Sword swinging, teeth ready to tear out the throats of her enemies, Jirel ruled her domain in Moore's medieval France analogue with an iron fist, holding it against all comers through the strength of her blade. Moore's moody, illustrative prose was equally anomalous for the time period, and from the hellish landscape beneath Jirel's castle to the fields of alien ghouls in "Quest of the Starstone," Moore's boundless imagination continues to inspire fans and authors to this day.</p>
<p>As noted SF author Suzy McKee Charnas points out in the introduction, C. L. Moore and Jirel of Joiry didn't just open the door for women in science fiction and fantasy—they kicked it down. Male or female, <i>Black God's Kiss</i> is a must-have for any serious fantasy enthusiast.</p>
<p>Come read the stories that started a revolution. You won't be disappointed.</p>
<p>James Sutter
<br>Editor, Planet Stories</p>
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<!— tags: C. L. Moore, Jirel of Joiry, Henry Kuttner, Black God's Kiss, Planet Stories —><p><a href="https://paizo.comcommunity/blog/tags">Tags</a>: <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/blackGodsKiss">Black God's Kiss</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/cLMoore">C. L. Moore</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/people/authors/henryKuttner">Henry Kuttner</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories/jirelOfJoiry">Jirel of Joiry</a>, <a href="https://paizo.com/community/blog/tags/planetStories">Planet Stories</a></p>2007-07-26T01:00:00Z