Date: Wed, 15 May 2002 10:02:39 -0700
From: Michael Andre-Driussi 
Subject: RE: (urth) OT: further possible examples of story suites

Blattid wrote:

>but if I recall correctly TDE would be more
>of a fix-up in the classic sense -- similar to (say) van Vogt's
>VOYAGE OF THE SPACE BEAGLE or Asimov's original three
>"Foundation" books. That is, the stories were clearly written
>for more or less independent publication and, while they build
>on each other, don't totally alter each others' "meaning" the
>way the stories of 5HC and ICEHENGE do -- the "story suite," as
>I am understanding the term, is more closely linked by meaning,
>not just sequentiality, than the classic fix-up.

Okay, granted the greater degree of pieces altering each other's meaning.
Neither one is likely to be a story suite . . . but the final word would
have to come from Le Guin. :)

OTOH, while I'm not certain about the publication history of CANNERY ROW
(did sections appear in magazines, etc.), my understanding of THE DYING
EARTH is that it is 6 stories, and only one of them was published in
magazine form--that was the same year (1950) that the book came out, and as
such amounts to a publicity release (just as "The Tale of the Student and
His Son" and "The Armiger's Daughter," two tales from TBOTNS, appeared in
magazines).  Or so it seems to me.

So fix-up "in the classic sense of van Vogt," well hmmm.  Divining Vance's
(probable) intentions rather than the publishing record (making TDE a
"failed" van Vogt fix-up?). Ah well, such quibbles!  Look, blattid said
"more of a fix-up," not "exactly a fix-up," so there's no quibble, even.

=mantis=



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