Weird fiction

[Redfire]

I've read all of Lovecraft many times, and will continue to do so, but I'd like to read some other weird fiction authors as well. I've already read all of Poe too. So what's next? I've read some Hodgson and it was kind of slow.

 

[Rook]

The discworld series, while not weird in the ways of Lovecraft, offer a humorously pseudo-scientific scientific interpretation of existence and all the other bits.

A world existent upon the backs of four elephants careening through a universe on the back of Great A'Tuin the space turtle.

It's more satirical fantasy than high fantasy, so may not be the weirdness you are seeking.
(Bit hard to confine it to a genre though......vaguely comparable to HHGTTG)

 

[Ex-User (9086)]

Philip K. Dick was very wild at times (certainly straying off a beaten path, even as far as being imaginative is concerned), I'd recommend his Ubik for a weird fiction piece.

Douglas Adams and Terry Pratchett were two british writers of comical fiction that you could check out.

Lovecraft is a bit of a deliberate "weirdo", he created an occult themed universe and capitalised on that, in a sense he aimed to create a pop-medium and in many places his quality was lacking imo.

Poe is similar to Lovecraft, variations on a stylistic theme of mystery, though Poe was veritably crazy and not pretending. He was very confined in his style, similarly to L.

Based on those two authors you shared as an example, I suspect that you'd be more interested in "weirdo" authors with great pacing, rather than specifically in fiction, because what made their strange and mysterious books so good wasn't the fictional component but the innate madness or strangeness that could be felt on every step.

 

[Sinny91]

Try to dig up the Shaver Mysteries if you can.. They're weird.

 

[Semantics]

I haven't actually read any of Lovecraft so take my suggestions with a grain of salt.

The Vorrh is some strange fantasy; it's as if the author has had no exposure to the genre and the accompanying tropes. The prose is almost poetic and the general atmosphere created is something to behold.

The Illuminatus Trilogy is also out of the ordinary to say the least. It's a kaleidoscopic conspiracy romp that rewards careful reading and knowledge of political and historical figures (this isn't a requirement however since I myself have little such knowledge.) I'm only part way through the trilogy and i don't know whether to love it or hate it but it certainly is eccentric.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Redfire]

Ok, so I meant this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weird_fiction
But thanks for the suggestions anyhow.

Based on those two authors you shared as an example, I suspect that you'd be more interested in "weirdo" authors with great pacing, rather than specifically in fiction, because what made their strange and mysterious books so good wasn't the fictional component but the innate madness or strangeness that could be felt on every step.

Yes, it's mostly about atmosphere, not plot.

 

[Mineman214]

Sea of glass - Barry B. Longyear

My favourite fiction book ever. first edition was in 1986

dont know a lot about the author, but there was definitely something messed up with his head, if you read the book you'll get what i mean

Spoiler

it's about a kid called tommy, but anyway, there's a scene in the book where there's a riot at the orphanage and he hammers a wooden post up a guards ass, then proceeds to lose sanity for something like 4 or 5 years, and so it's like two chapters detailing what's going on in his head and shit, it's a unique book and i love it

 

[Apoptosis]

If you aren't familiar with his work, Thomas Ligotti is the literary successor to Lovecraft, as the latter once was to Poe.

I would suggest starting with either Teatro Grottesco or his recently re-published collection of short stories, Songs of a Dead Dreamer and Grimscribe (Michael W. Clune wrote an incredibly insightful review of the work roughly a week ago, which you could find through your preferred search engine, as I likely can't yet post links to offsite material). Though I'm personally most fond of his deeply pessimistic non-fiction offering, The Conspiracy Against the Human Race.

 

[Redfire]

I do know Ligotti. I've read The Conspiracy Against the Human Race, which I liked aesthetically but don't really empathize with (I like life, I like living), and My Work Here is Not Yet Done.

 

[Brontosaurie]

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nohow_On

 

[Puffy]

Ok, so I meant this: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Weird_fiction

Algernon Blackwood and M.R. James, in addition to Lovecraft and Poe, are typically the names that come up most frequently in the genre. I prefer Blackwood & James so I'd recommend them both. Blackwood's 'The Willows' and James' 'Oh, Whistle and I'll come to you, my Lad' are good introductions.

I enjoyed the genre a lot years back but haven't read it for a while. I agree with Blarraun describing them as confined, as their stories are largely variations on similar patterns, themes, stylistic tendencies, but I think that's also the case with a lot of writers. There's a certain bias towards genre-writers, when really even someone considered 'high art' like Kafka is just as confined.

 

[Pizzabeak]

PKD wasn't wild or weird, just strange and stooped in reality. He did drugs, only acid like twice from what I've read, as he was mainly into stimulants like amphetamines. Try William S. Burroughs for wild fiction, it's not just that he was a weirdo, his plots and storylines are out there as well. Lovekraft wasn't a good writer and couldn't implement dialogue realistically, Poe was also dark and macabre, but less supernatural, with more focus on theme.

If you're gonna read Dick don't do Ubik, it's mostly sci-fi and is only moderately mind bending. Most of his stuff takes place in either 60's or futuristic California, granted the whole "paranoid sci-fi computer programming" thing gets kind of trite after a while. The world isn't as helpless as it might seem, like Randolph Cater searching for the lost city of his dreams and never being able to find it or reach it. Just jump straight into the Exegesis to see what his platform and background was for his stuff. Because MITHC wasn't really awkward or as strange, it's mostly just sci-fi.