In the early decades of the twentieth century in America, pulp magazines developed into prime real estate for genre fiction such as westerns, science fiction and fantasy, horror, mysteries, and adventure stories. Specific magazines catered to specific tastes, and readers of Weird Tales (1923-1954) were looking for horror and dark fantasy.

Unfortunately, because of their paper materials, the pulp magazines were not built to last and are difficult to find now. And, because they offered portable entertainment to the general public, for the most part, the stories were not incorporated into academic classrooms. Ultimately, the fiction and names of many pioneering writers of genre fiction who wrote for the pulps have faded into history. Many of the surviving works are by men. Today, for example, H. P. Lovecraft is often connected to Weird Tales. This, however, does not mean that women were not involved in the production of the pulp magazines. They were in positions ranging from cover artists to editors to writers. Scholars of history and literature have been working to unearth their names and recent studies and collections are bringing them and their fiction to light.

This lecture will explore how women were involved in the production of the pulps with a focus on Weird Tales. In the course of this exploration, we also will discuss a few of the women writers and their works. These women’s stories fit into a larger tradition of horror and dark fiction by connecting the legacy of women writing horror prior to the twentieth century to later generations.

Please note this is a live broadcast event – the class cannot be watched later, so please be sure you are available at the date and time the class is being offered in before registering. All sales are final, and we will not give refunds for any reason other than class cancellation. Classes curated by Miskatonic Los Angeles are in Pacific Time.