The Sword and Sorceress series is a series of fantasy anthologies originally edited by American writer Marion Zimmer Bradley, and originally published by DAW Books. As she explained in the foreword to the first volume, she created the anthology to redress the lack of strong female protagonists in the subgenre of sword and sorcery. At the time, most female characters in sword and sorcery were little more than stock damsels in distress, or pawns who were distributed at the conclusion of the story as "bad-conduct prizes" (Bradley's term) for the male protagonists. Many of the early sword-and-sorcery works featured attitudes toward women that Bradley considered appalling.
As the Sword and Sorceress series grew in popularity with readers, she began to receive increasing numbers of excellent submissions. As a result, she had to become more selective, and to shorten her reading periods accordingly. For the eighteenth volume, which she was editing at the time of her death, she had enough material for three volumes. After her death, it was decided to take as many as possible of the stories she had tentatively chosen and publish them in three annual volumes, thus extending the series. After volume twenty was published, the publisher decided to extend an invitation for an additional volume under Diana L. Paxson, an editor who had worked with Bradley, with the possibility of additional volumes being published if it became a success.
The Sword and Sorceress series is noteworthy not only for its introduction of strong female protagonists into a subgenre previously dominated by male characters, but for its financial success. Unlike most anthologies of original fantasy short fiction, they routinely earned out their advances and continued to pay their authors royalties for years afterward, often on foreign sales. In addition, many authors who made their first professional sales in the Sword and Sorceress anthologies subsequently enjoyed successful careers as novelists.
In February 2007, the Marion Zimmer Bradley Literary Works Trust, which holds her copyrights, negotiated a contract with Norilana Books to publish a new volume and proceed to elicit submissions. [1] The book was published in November, and the editor was Elisabeth Waters. Norilana Books has published four more books of the series, also edited by Elisabeth Waters. From 2012 to 2019 the Marion Zimmer Bradley Literary Works Trust published the Sword and Sorceress anthologies.
Marion Eleanor Zimmer Bradley was an American author of fantasy, historical fantasy, science fiction, and science fantasy novels, and is best known for the Arthurian fiction novel The Mists of Avalon and the Darkover series. Noted for the feminist perspective in her writing, her reputation has been posthumously marred by multiple accusations of child sexual abuse by her daughter Moira Greyland, and for allegedly assisting her second husband, convicted child abuser Walter Breen, in sexually abusing multiple unrelated children.
Thieves' World is a shared world fantasy series created by Robert Lynn Asprin in 1978. The original series comprised twelve anthologies, including stories by science fiction authors Poul Anderson, John Brunner, Andrew J. Offutt, C. J. Cherryh, Janet Morris, and Chris Morris.
The Darkover series is a collection of science fiction-fantasy novels and short stories written by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The series is set on the planet of Darkover, where a group of humans have been stranded and have developed their own unique culture and society. The books focus on the conflicts between the human settlers and the native population of Darkover, as well as the struggles of the various factions on the planet. The series is known for its complex world-building and exploration of themes such as gender, sexuality, and mental illness. Occasionally, Bradley collaborated with other authors, and she also edited and published Darkover stories by other authors in a series of anthologies. After Bradley's death, the series was continued, mostly by Deborah J. Ross with the permission of the Marion Zimmer Bradley Literary Works Trust.
The Forest House is a fantasy novel by American writers Marion Zimmer Bradley and Diana L. Paxson, though the latter is uncredited by the publisher. It is a prequel to Bradley's Arthurian novel The Mists of Avalon.
Stephanie Diane Shaver is an American fantasy writer and video game developer.
Diana Lucile Paxson is an American author, primarily in the fields of Paganism and Heathenism. Her published works include fantasy and historical fiction novels, as well as numerous short stories. More recently she has also published books about Pagan and Heathen religions and practices. She is a founder of the Society for Creative Anachronism, where she is known as Diana the Listmaker.
Norilana Books is an independent publishing company, founded in August 2006 and based in the United States. It is operated and owned by Vera Nazarian. Norilana publishes reprints of previously published Science Fiction and Fantasy works, including the novels of Modean Moon. More recently, Norilana has been publishing several series of original anthologies, including Clockwork Phoenix, edited by Mike Allen, Warrior Wisewoman, edited by Roby James, and Lace and Blade edited by Deborah J. Ross. The company was selected to continue the publication of Marion Zimmer Bradley's Sword and Sorceress series of short story anthologies, edited by Elisabeth Waters. Norilana Books also publishes classics of world literature under the Norilana Books Classics imprint and works of genre fiction including young adult fantasy under the YA Angst imprint. Other imprints include: Curiosities, Leda, and TaLeKa, which is dedicated to author Tanith Lee.
Deborah J. Ross, is an American science fiction and fantasy author.
This is a list of books by Mercedes Lackey, arranged by collection.
The Keeper's Price and Other Stories is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in February, 1980. Many of the stories first appeared in the magazine Starstone.
Sword of Chaos and Other Stories is an anthology of sword and planet short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's fictional world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in April, 1982.
Free Amazons of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in December, 1985.
Red Sun of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in November, 1987.
Four Moons of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in November, 1988.
Domains of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in March 1990.
Renunciates of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in March, 1991.
Leroni of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by American writer Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in November, 1991.
Towers of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by American writer Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in July, 1993.
Snows of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories edited by American writer Marion Zimmer Bradley. The stories are set in Bradley's world of Darkover. The book was first published by DAW Books in April 1994.
Music of Darkover is an anthology of fantasy and science fiction short stories and poems edited by American writer Elisabeth Waters. The stories are set in Marion Zimmer Bradley's world of Darkover. This book focuses on the music of Darkover.