Donald Allen Wollheim was an American science fiction editor, publisher, writer, and fan. As an author, he published under his own name as well as under pseudonyms, including David Grinnell, Martin Pearson, and Darrell G. Raynor. A founding member of the Futurians, he was a leading influence on science fiction development and fandom in the 20th-century United States. Ursula K. Le Guin called Wollheim "the tough, reliable editor of Ace Books, in the Late Pulpalignean Era, 1966 and '67", which is when he published her first two novels in Ace Double editions.
Ballantine Books is a major book publisher located in the United States, founded in 1952 by Ian Ballantine with his wife, Betty Ballantine. It was acquired by Random House in 1973, which in turn was acquired by Bertelsmann in 1998 and remains part of that company today. Ballantine's original logo was a pair of mirrored letter Bs back to back, while its current logo is two Bs stacked to form an elaborate gate. The firm's early editors were Stanley Kauffmann and Bernard Shir-Cliff.
Witch World is a speculative fiction project of American writer Andre Norton, inaugurated by her 1963 novel Witch World and continuing more than four decades. Beginning in the mid-1980s, when she was about 75 years old, Norton recruited other writers to the project, and some books were published only after her death in 2005. The Witch World is a planet in a parallel universe where magic long ago superseded science; early in the fictional history, it is performed exclusively by women. The series began as a hybrid of science fiction and sword and sorcery, but for the most part it combines the latter with high fantasy.
Conan of Aquilonia is a collection of four linked fantasy short stories by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. The stories were originally published in Fantastic in August 1972, July 1973, July 1974, and February 1975. The collected stories were intended for book publication by Lancer Books, but this edition never appeared due to Lancer's bankruptcy, and the first book edition was issued in paperback by Ace Books in paperback in May 1977. It was reprinted by Ace in July 1981, April 1982, November 1982, August 1983, July 1984, 1986, June 1991, and April 1994. The first British edition was published by Sphere Books in October 1978, and reprinted in July 1988. The book has also been translated into French.
Conan of Cimmeria is a collection of eight fantasy short stories written by Robert E. Howard, L. Sprague de Camp, and Lin Carter and featuring Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. Most of the stories were originally published in various fantasy magazines. Lancer Books first published the paperback collection in 1969, and reprinted the book in 1970, 1972, and 1973. After Lancer's bankruptcy, Ace Books took over publication. Ace published its first edition in May 1977 and reprinted it in August 1977, 1979, 1980, 1982 (twice), 1984, 1985, 1990, and 1993. Sphere Books published the first British edition in 1974 and reprinted that edition in 1976 and 1987. The book has also been translated into German, Japanese, Spanish, Dutch, Swedish and Italian. It was gathered together with Conan and Conan the Freebooter into the omnibus collection The Conan Chronicles.
Conan the Swordsman is a collection of seven fantasy short stories and associated pieces by writers L. Sprague de Camp, Lin Carter and Björn Nyberg featuring Robert E. Howard's sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian. It was first published in paperback by Bantam Books in August 1978, and reprinted in 1981. Later paperback editions were issued by Ace Books. The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in December 2002. The first British edition was issued by Sphere Books in 1978. The book has also been translated into Italian and French. It was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan.
These works were written or edited by the American fiction writer Andre Norton. Before 1960 she used the pen name Andrew North several times and, jointly with Grace Allen Hogarth, Allen Weston once.
Swords and Deviltry is a fantasy short story collection, first published 1970, by Fritz Leiber, featuring his sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. It is chronologically the first volume of the complete seven volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. The book was first published in paperback form during 1970 by Ace Books company, which reprinted the title numerous times through November 1985; later paperback editions were issued by ibooks (2003) and Dark Horse (2006). It has been published in the United Kingdom by New English Library (1971), Mayflower Books (1979) and Grafton. The first hardcover edition was issued by Gregg Press during December 1977. The book has also been gathered together with others in the series into various omnibus editions; The Three of Swords (1989), Ill Met in Lankhmar (1995), The First Book of Lankhmar (2001), and Lankhmar (2008).
Spell of the Witch World is a collection of science fantasy short fiction by American writer Andre Norton, forming part of her Witch World series. It was first published in paperback by DAW Books in April 1972, and has been reprinted numerous times since. It has the distinction of being the first book released by that publisher. Early printings had cover art and a frontispiece by artist Jack Gaughan; later printings replaced the cover art with new art by Michael Whelan. The first hardcover edition was a photographic reprint of the DAW edition published by Gregg Press in 1977. It featured a new frontispiece by Alice D. Phalen and endpaper maps of the Witch World by Barbi Johnson.
"Black Tears" is a short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It was first published by Lancer Books in the paperback collection Conan the Wanderer (1968), which was reprinted several times, first by Lancer and later by Ace Books through 1982. It has since been published by Orbit Books in the omnibus paperback collection The Conan Chronicles 2 (1990).
Swords Against Death is a fantasy short story collection by American writer Fritz Leiber, first published in 1970 and featuring his sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. It is chronologically the second volume of the complete seven volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. It is an expansion of Leiber's earlier collection Two Sought Adventure, issued by Gnome Press during 1957. The earlier collection contained seven of the ten stories of Swords Against Death, plus an "Induction" omitted from the expanded edition, which was instead republished in its companion volume, Swords and Deviltry (1970). Swords Against Death was first published in paperback during 1970 by Ace Books, which reprinted the title numerous times through August 1990; later paperback editions were issued by ibooks (2003) and Dark Horse (2007). It has been published in the United Kingdom by New English Library (1972), Mayflower Books (1979) and Grafton (1986). The first hardcover edition was issued by Gregg Press during December 1977. The book has also been gathered together with others of the series into various omnibus editions; The Three of Swords (1989), Ill Met in Lankhmar (1995), The First Book of Lankhmar (2001), and Lankhmar (2008).
Swords in the Mist is a fantasy short story collection, first published in 1968, by American writer Fritz Leiber, featuring his sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. It is chronologically the third volume of the complete seven volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. It was first published in paperback format during 1968 by Ace Books company, which reprinted the title numerous times through September 1990; later paperback editions were issued by ibooks (2003) and Dark Horse (2007). It has been published in the United Kingdom by Mayflower Books (1979) and Grafton. The first hardcover edition was issued by Gregg Press during December 1977. The book has also been gathered together with others in the series into various omnibus editions; The Three of Swords (1989), Lean Times in Lankhmar (1996), The First Book of Lankhmar (2001), and Lankhmar (2008).
Swords Against Wizardry is a fantasy short story collection, first published 1968, by Fritz Leiber and Harry Fischer, featuring their sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. Fischer's contribution was limited to ten thousand words of The Lords of Quarmall. The book is chronologically the fourth volume of the complete seven-volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. It was first published in paperback format during 1968 by Ace Books company, which reprinted the title numerous times up to October 1990; later paperback editions were issued by ibooks (2003) and Dark Horse (2007). It has been published in the United Kingdom by Grafton (1986). The first hardcover edition was issued by Gregg Press during December 1977.
The Swords of Lankhmar is a fantasy novel, first published 1968, by Fritz Leiber, featuring his sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. It is chronologically the fifth volume of the complete seven volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. The book is an expansion of Leiber's earlier novella "Scylla's Daughter", which was published originally in the magazine Fantastic Stories of Imagination for May 1961. The full novel first published in paperback format during 1968 by Ace Books company, which reprinted the title numerous times through 1986; a later paperback edition was issued by Dark Horse (2008). It has been published in the United Kingdom by Mayflower Books (1970) and Grafton. The first hardcover edition was issued by Rupert Hart-Davis during June 1969; a later hardcover edition was issued by Gregg Press during December 1977. The book has also been gathered together with others in the series into various omnibus editions; Swords' Masters (1990), Return to Lankhmar (1997), and The Second Book of Lankhmar (2001).
Swords and Ice Magic is a fantasy short story collection, first published in 1977, by American writer Fritz Leiber, featuring his sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. It is chronologically the sixth volume of the complete seven volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. It was first published in paperback format during July 1977 by Ace Books company, which reprinted the title numerous times through 1990; a later paperback edition was issued by Dark Horse (2007). It has been published in the United Kingdom by Mayflower Books and Grafton. The first hardcover edition was issued by Gregg Press during December 1977. The book has also been gathered together with others in the series into various omnibus editions; Swords' Masters (1990), Return to Lankhmar (1997), and The Second Book of Lankhmar (2001).
The Knight and Knave of Swords is a fantasy short story collection by American writer Fritz Leiber, first published in 1988, featuring his sword and sorcery heroes Fafhrd and the Gray Mouser. It is chronologically the seventh and last volume of the complete seven volume edition of the collected stories devoted to the characters. It was first published in hardcover format during December 1988 by William Morrow and Company, and in paperback format during February 1990 by Ace Books company; it was later reissued with the title Farewell to Lankhmar in both hardcover and paperback formats by White Wolf company ; the most recent later paperback edition, from Dark Horse (2008), reverted to the original title. It has been published in the United Kingdom by Grafton and Gollancz (2000); the latter adopted the title used by the White Wolf editions. The book has also been gathered together with others in the series into the omnibus edition The Second Book of Lankhmar (2001).
"The People of the Summit" is a short story by Swedish writer Björn Nyberg, subsequently revised by L. Sprague de Camp, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. Nyberg's version of the story was first published by Lancer Books in the paperback anthology The Mighty Swordsmen in December 1970. The revised version was first published by Bantam Books in the paperback collection Conan the Swordsman in August 1978. Later paperback editions of the collection were issued by Ace Books. The first hardcover edition was published by Tor Books in 2002. The book has also been translated into Italian. It was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan.
"The Gem in the Tower" is a short story by American writers L. Sprague de Camp and Lin Carter, featuring the fictional sword and sorcery hero Conan the Barbarian created by Robert E. Howard. It is a rewritten version of "Black Moonlight", an earlier story by Carter alone featuring his own sword and sorcery character Thongor. The Conan version was first published by Bantam Books in the paperback collection Conan the Swordsman in August 1978, and was reprinted in the anthology The Year's Best Fantasy Stories: 5 and later editions of Conan the Swordsman. The collection was later gathered together with Conan the Liberator and Conan and the Spider God into the omnibus collection Sagas of Conan. The story has also been translated into Italian and French.
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.
Moon Mirror is a collection of short stories by science fiction and fantasy author Andre Norton, and illustrator Anne Yvonne Gilbert. It was first published in hardcover by Tor Books in December 1988, and reprinted in paperback by the same publisher in August 1989 and August 1994.
