Before television and comics there was Pulp fiction.
Anyone who was of a reading age before or during the war will remember the cleverly illustrated covers of sensational stories told in these magazines.
There were many different genres the magazines covered such as hard boiled detective and spicy detective, fantasy, science fiction, tales from the orient, weird tales, westerns, sea and air adventures etc.
The standard novels pre 1920 gave way to the fantastic imaginations of pulp writers.
It was a whole new and exciting era for writers and readers alike.
As many as one million copies a month could fly off the shelves for those hungry for a sensational story.
Although the pulps were printed on cheap paper it boasted prominent writers such as Isaac Asimov, Dashiell Hammett, Agatha Christie, Arthur C.
Clark, Robert A.
Heinlein, H.
P.
Lovecraft, Rudyard Kipling and L.
Ron Hubbard to name a few.
These writers have influenced our society in ways they may not have dreamed of at the time and we owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude.
Some of our most beloved characters were born out of the pulps such as; Tarzan, Zorro, Indiana Jones, Spider-Man, Buck Rogers, Batman, Doc Savage and The Shadow etc.
These and many more characters live on in movies and television and have helped to give creative license to new aspiring writers and artists.
The pulps were the precursor to the comic book era which followed along the same successful line of the pulps in that they were also generally printed on cheap paper.
The formats of the comics were different in that the story was told in the form of pictures and short sentences.
The influence of the pulps on comics however cannot be denied.
The comic book era continued to develop the super heroes and villains we so love to read about.
Because the pulps were printed on such cheap paper collectors find it difficult to find these wonderful old stories.
Many are however still available.
Fortunately there are publishers that are reprinting some of these classic stories such as Galaxy Press.
Not only are the novels being reprinted with the cover illustrations in the flavor of the early pulps but also as audio books which have become popular of late.
With technology advancing as it has, the audio books are state of the art cinematic quality which also has the flavor of old time radio.
Historians of any subject have noted and often agreed that what is considered old comes back in style to be new again.
And so it is with the pulps.
About sixty years after the pulps went out of style, like a sleeping giant it arises and awakens to a new set of readers to enjoy.
The writers of old that endeared us their stories can now do so for a new generation.
The young may be pleasantly surprised to find the roots of the super heroes they so love and the older generation can re-experience the nostalgia of what was good in literature that entertained them so well.
Anyone who was of a reading age before or during the war will remember the cleverly illustrated covers of sensational stories told in these magazines.
There were many different genres the magazines covered such as hard boiled detective and spicy detective, fantasy, science fiction, tales from the orient, weird tales, westerns, sea and air adventures etc.
The standard novels pre 1920 gave way to the fantastic imaginations of pulp writers.
It was a whole new and exciting era for writers and readers alike.
As many as one million copies a month could fly off the shelves for those hungry for a sensational story.
Although the pulps were printed on cheap paper it boasted prominent writers such as Isaac Asimov, Dashiell Hammett, Agatha Christie, Arthur C.
Clark, Robert A.
Heinlein, H.
P.
Lovecraft, Rudyard Kipling and L.
Ron Hubbard to name a few.
These writers have influenced our society in ways they may not have dreamed of at the time and we owe them a tremendous debt of gratitude.
Some of our most beloved characters were born out of the pulps such as; Tarzan, Zorro, Indiana Jones, Spider-Man, Buck Rogers, Batman, Doc Savage and The Shadow etc.
These and many more characters live on in movies and television and have helped to give creative license to new aspiring writers and artists.
The pulps were the precursor to the comic book era which followed along the same successful line of the pulps in that they were also generally printed on cheap paper.
The formats of the comics were different in that the story was told in the form of pictures and short sentences.
The influence of the pulps on comics however cannot be denied.
The comic book era continued to develop the super heroes and villains we so love to read about.
Because the pulps were printed on such cheap paper collectors find it difficult to find these wonderful old stories.
Many are however still available.
Fortunately there are publishers that are reprinting some of these classic stories such as Galaxy Press.
Not only are the novels being reprinted with the cover illustrations in the flavor of the early pulps but also as audio books which have become popular of late.
With technology advancing as it has, the audio books are state of the art cinematic quality which also has the flavor of old time radio.
Historians of any subject have noted and often agreed that what is considered old comes back in style to be new again.
And so it is with the pulps.
About sixty years after the pulps went out of style, like a sleeping giant it arises and awakens to a new set of readers to enjoy.
The writers of old that endeared us their stories can now do so for a new generation.
The young may be pleasantly surprised to find the roots of the super heroes they so love and the older generation can re-experience the nostalgia of what was good in literature that entertained them so well.
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