John Norman Introduces Volumes 4-6 of His Bestselling Gorean Saga

The concept of an unknown planet in our system, of a particular and interesting sort, rather unlike other planets, perhaps a mysterious sister or visitor to more familiar worlds, is quite an old concept.
The expression in Greek, transliterated into English letters, is “Antichthon,” which we may translate as “Counter-Earth.”
The Greeks, you see, had the concept of another Earth, a different Earth, a “Counter-Earth.”
It is interesting to speculate on these matters, to wonder, for example, from whence came this ancient, provocative concept. Had they evidence we do not...?

To read the complete essay, click here.

- RC

John Norman Introduces Volumes 1-3 of His Bestselling Gorean Saga

Introduction to The Gorean Saga Volumes 1-3
By John Norman
#1 Tarnsman of Gor
#2 Outlaw of Gor
#3 Priest-Kings of Gor

The Gorean series, to the best of my knowledge, is the longest, most complex, most carefully worked out single-world series in the history of science fiction, or, if you prefer, adventure fantasy. On the other hand, the Gorean series has grown, like a forest, in “foreign lands.” It is not really science fiction, as that genre is normally understood, nor is it adventure fantasy, in the usual way that genre is understood. It transcends genres and its ships beach on unusual shores. For better or for worse it is an “Original,” and it bears all the interest of a new literary form, and risks all the perils of the same.

To read John Norman's complete essay, click here.

Are John Norman's Gors "Boy-Books"?

I’m proud to say that all 25 of the original novels in John Norman’s Gorean saga are together for the first time in decades, plus his 26th and penultimate novel, WITNESS OF GOR. The journey of the series from Blockbuster to Can’t Give Them Away and back to Blockbuster (they are among E-Reads’ biggest sellers) is a saga in itself and sheds some interesting sociological light on the publishing industry.

The first novel, TARNSMAN OF GOR, was released by Ballantine in 1966, and over the next fifteen years or so another 24 were published by Ballantine and then DAW. The books were enormously popular and sales were tremendous – until, one day it all ground to a halt, mysteriously, like that scene at the end of War of the Worlds where a seemingly invincible alien catches cold and drops dead. What happened? Tastes in reading habits change but usually they evolve rather than fall off a cliff as Gor did.

The answer may lie not in what readers like to read but what editors like to edit. The Gorean Saga’s epic sales were fueled by the kind of red-blooded male readers that consumed cowboy books, Executioner and Destroyer action-adventure, Spillane-type thrillers and space operas by the carton. And many of the editors who acquired them were red-blooded males themselves (with notable exceptions like Judy-Lynn Del Rey, the diminutive titan who gave her name to Random House’s science fiction line).

Then came the Feminist movement, and with it a revolution in editorial viewpoint. And Feminists had a lot to say about the morality practiced by the masters of Gor on their female slave subjects. As Feminists occupied more and more significant editorial positions at major publishers including the science fiction and fantasy divisions, hard-line Feminist thinking influenced decisions on all kinds of books, especially the kind that guys cherished. A lot of Feminist ire focused on Gor – many female editors passionately hated Norman’s world and all the decadent male chauvinism it seemed to stand for. (Not surprisingly, the author takes a very different view of all of this!) In any event, yes, by the 1990's you couldn’t give Gor away.

The books were all out of print when I started E-Reads around 2000, but I discovered something very interesting when I went online. Not only was there a huge cult revolving around Gor (some of his hard to get editions sell in the used book market for well over $100), but many of those involved in Gorean role-playing games were women who were into fantasy slavery or simply took the stories in with a large dose of good humor.

Gor is once again alive and thriving on E-Reads, I’m happy to report. And as for Feminism in the publishing industry, I’m also happy to report that it’s here to stay. But it still unnerves me when female editors refer to the literature men like to read as “Boy-books.”

Readers and fans interested in learning more about John Norman and his Gorean world can visit John Norman's Chronicles of Gor.

- Richard Curtis

The Gorean Saga by John Norman

The entire Gorean Saga of novels by John Norman is now available in all ebook formats and will be available in September in trade paperback at Amazon.com.

When John Norman’s Gor series started appearing in 1967, the books were originally seen as being in the planetary adventure tradition of books like Edgar Rice Burroughs’s legendary John Carter of Mars series combined with alternate historical heroic fantasy series like Robert E. Howard’s Conan. The books developed a wide and enthusiastic readership over the course of original publication of the series, which ended in 1988.

However, one particular aspect of the society on Norman’s invented world both caught the imagination of the readership and, ultimately, provoked a storm of controversy as the popularity of the books grew. In the universe of Gor, women are invariably regarded as slaves and chattel property of men—and the women wholeheartedly believe that this is the way things should be and everyone is happy with the situation.

Given that the publication of the series coincided with the first phases of development of the feminist social movement in America, perhaps it shouldn’t be surprising that a major controversy developed. Nonetheless, the near-disappearance of the entire series from public view was a surprising and baffling result—popular books with an established audience and a successful track record of steady and growing sales became inexplicably unavailable. Norman himself has suggested the possibility of a conspiracy to suppress his work and has, in turn, been accused of paranoia and having a persecution complex. But even those who don’t see conspiracies everywhere are brought to wonder how this series of books defied all publishing expectations and became “lost” to the general public for a period of many years.

In any case, readers no longer have to haunt dusty used bookstores and back alleys to get their full fix of the wonderfulness that is Gor and E-Reads and Fictionwise are proudly making available the entire run of the series in downloadable file formats for all versions of the online reading experience.

A courageous and daring print publisher (Dark Horse) is beginning the process of bringing the earliest books back into availability in mass market omnibus form as well—but why wait when you can have them all on your reading device Right Now? Start at the beginning with Tarnsman of Gor or just buy the whole set right away. You won’t regret the investment and you’ll have a splendid opportunity to learn what the fuss is all about and make up your own mind about Gor.

Are you game?

Readers and fans interested in learning more about John Norman and his Gorean world can visit John Norman's Chronicles of Gor.

- Richard Curtis