High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot. High fantasy is set in an alternative, fictional ("secondary") world, rather than the "real" or "primary" world. This secondary world is usually internally consistent, but its rules differ from those of the primary world. By contrast, low fantasy is characterized by being set on Earth, the primary or real world, or a rational and familiar fictional world with the inclusion of magical elements.
Avram Davidson was an American writer of fantasy fiction, science fiction, and crime fiction, as well as the author of many stories that do not fit into a genre niche. He won a Hugo Award and three World Fantasy Awards in the science fiction and fantasy genre, a World Fantasy Life Achievement award, and an Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine short story award and an Edgar Award in the mystery genre. Davidson edited The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction from 1962 to 1964. His last novel The Boss in the Wall: A Treatise on the House Devil was completed by Grania Davis and was a Nebula Award finalist in 1998. The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction says "he is perhaps sf's most explicitly literary author".
Karl Edward Wagner was an American writer, poet, editor, and publisher of horror, science fiction, and heroic fantasy, who was born in Knoxville, Tennessee and originally trained as a psychiatrist. He wrote numerous dark fantasy and horror stories. As an editor, he created a three-volume set of Robert E. Howard's Conan the Barbarian fiction restored to its original form as written, and edited the long-running and genre-defining The Year's Best Horror Stories series for DAW Books. His Carcosa publishing company issued four volumes of the best stories by some of the major authors of the so-called Golden Age pulp magazines. He is possibly best known for his creation of a series of stories featuring the character Kane, the Mystic Swordsman.
Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers: The Makers of Heroic Fantasy is a work of collective biography on the formative authors of the heroic fantasy genre by L. Sprague de Camp (1907–2000), first published in 1976 by Arkham House in an edition of 5,431 copies. Nine chapters (2–10) are revisions from a series of ten articles, also titled "Literary Swordsmen and Sorcerers," that initially appeared in the magazine Fantastic and the fanzine Amra between 1971 and 1976. A French edition was issued in May 2010 under the title Les pionniers de la fantasy, and an ebook edition was issued in June 2014 by Gateway/Orion.
Jessica Amanda Salmonson is an American author and editor of fantasy and horror fiction and poetry. She lives on Puget Sound with her partner, artist and editor Rhonda Boothe.
Michael Raymond Donald Ashley is a British bibliographer, author and editor of science fiction, mystery, and fantasy.
Flashing Swords! #1 is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by the American writer Lin Carter. It was first published in hardcover by Nelson Doubleday in April 1973 as a selection in its Science Fiction Book Club, and in paperback by Dell Books in July the same year. The first British edition was issued by Mayflower in 1974.
Flashing Swords! #2 is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by American writer Lin Carter. It was first published in hardcover by Nelson Doubleday in 1973 as a selection in its Science Fiction Book Club and in paperback by Dell Books in February 1974. The first British edition was issued by Mayflower in February 1975.
Flashing Swords! #3: Warriors and Wizards is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by American writer Lin Carter. It was first published in paperback by Dell Books in August 1976. The first German edition was issued by Pabel in November 1978.
Flashing Swords! #4: Barbarians and Black Magicians is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Lin Carter. It was first published in hardcover by Nelson Doubleday in May 1977 as a selection in its Science Fiction Book Club, and in paperback by Dell Books in November 1977.
Flashing Swords! #5: Demons and Daggers is an American anthology of fantasy stories, edited by American writer Lin Carter. It was first published in hardcover by Nelson Doubleday in December 1981 as a selection in its Science Fiction Book Club, and in paperback by Dell Books simultaneously.
Nebula Winners Twelve is an anthology of science fiction short stories edited by Gordon R. Dickson. It was first published in hardcover by Harper & Row in February 1978, and reprinted in December of the same year. A paperback edition followed from Bantam Books in April 1979.
Dark Matter is an anthology series of science fiction, fantasy, and horror stories and essays produced by people of African descent. The editor of the series is Sheree Thomas. The first book in the series, Dark Matter: A Century of Speculative Fiction from the African Diaspora (2000), won the 2001 World Fantasy Award for Best Anthology. The second book in the Dark Matter series, Dark Matter: Reading the Bones (2004), won the World Fantasy Award for Best Anthology in 2005. A forthcoming third book in the series is tentatively named Dark Matter: Africa Rising. This was finally published at the end of 2022 under the title Africa Risen: A New Era of Speculative Fiction, from Tor Books.
Lore of the Witch World is a collection of science fantasy short stories by American writer Andre Norton, forming part of her Witch World series. It was first published in paperback by DAW Books in September 1980, and has been reprinted numerous times since. Early printings had cover art by Michael Whelan and a frontispiece by Jack Gaughan.
Julius Henry ("Hank") Reinhardt was an American author, editor, science fiction fan, and noted armorer and authority on medieval weaponry. He wrote as Hank Reinhardt, the nickname by which he was widely known. He was the husband of editor Toni Weisskopf, formerly married to publisher Jim Baen, whom she succeeded as publisher of Baen Books.
Wizards' Worlds is a collection of science fantasy short stories by American writer Andre Norton. It was first published in hardcover by Tor Books in September 1989, with a limited edition, also in hardcover, following in December of the same year from Easton Press as part of its "Signed First Editions of Science Fiction" series. The book was reprinted in paperback by Tor in July 1990.
William Scott Home is the pen name of an American author, poet and biologist principally known for writing horror and dark fantasy. Best known for a short story that appeared in 1978 in The Year's Best Horror Stories, Home was most prolific during the 1970s and 80s when his poetry and fiction was published in a wide range of media. Part of a circle of Science Fiction, Fantasy and Horror writers that paid homage to M. P. Shiel and H. P. Lovecraft, Home is considered by many to be a unique talent in his own right. His range of styles and control of language and suspense is well-demonstrated in his published collection: Hollow Faces, Merciless Moons. While he has published little since the 1980s, Home is still writing and currently lives in the Dyea Valley, west of Skagway, Alaska.
Nebula Awards 32 is an anthology of science fiction short works edited by Jack Dann. It was first published in hardcover and trade paperback by Harcourt Brace in April 1998.
Nebula Award Stories 4 is an anthology of award-winning science fiction short works edited by Poul Anderson. It was first published in the United Kingdom in hardcover by Gollancz in November 1969. The first American edition was published by Doubleday in December of the same year. Paperback editions followed from Pocket Books in the U.S. in January 1971, and Panther in the U.K. in December 1971. The American editions bore the variant title Nebula Award Stories Four.
Nebula Awards Showcase 2002 is an anthology of award-winning science fiction short works edited by Kim Stanley Robinson. It was first published in trade paperback by Roc/New American Library in April 2002.
