"I was certainly disappointed to hear that the Necronomicon, Book of Eibon, and the Nameless Cults had no existence except in the fertile imaginations of Lovecraft, Smith, and Howard. That's not illusion of reality. Anyone could quote books and authors that never existed. To me, it is plain fabrication. According to Joseph McCabe, the monks of the middle ages were adepts at it. I must say, however, that it was quite a help in giving an illusion of reality to Lovecraft's stories, and Smith's. It won't be now, though, because the cat is out of the bag. But what about 'Yog Sothoth' and 'Sattaquo' and 'Thule.' Surely, there must be a legend of some sort to account for them, or does their ancientness go no farther than 1924? Were they born about the same time as Weird Tales? I notice that the Illusion of reality has much more force at night than in the daytime."—Carl J. Smith
It is only an A-1 author that can make you believe that a thing exists when it really doesn't. Perhaps the cat is out of the bag, at you say, but we don't believe that it detracts from Smith's, Lovecraft's, or Howard's stories one bit. However, weird fans will probably not be satisfied until the aforesaid "fabricators" write up the books in toto that they have created in their minds. Smith is now working on a chapter of "The Book of Eibon."
"I was pleased to receive your clever little 'Fantasy Fan' and consider it highly entertaining and useful and well worth the dollar I enclose for a year's subscription. From time to time I noticed in the reader's columns the uprise of little pamphlets, but never gave them serious thought. This one you have sent me startled me into appreciating that the fantasy fans are an energetic lot.
"My eulogies and praises to the incomparable Clark Ashton Smith for his 'Kingdom of the Worm.' He has the magic of words that makes great writers. We like to honor the memory of Poe as the father of the short story and the fantastic type of fiction, but Smith surpasses him.
"Enclosed you will find a little story of mine that I tender you gratis—let us say as a Christmas present, for use in TFF. I wrote it on the spur of the moment one day, as the idea popped into my mind and refused to depart."—Eando Binder
We thank Mr. Binder, an author of note, for his excellent story. It will appear in an early issue of TFF. The theme used is a brand new one, and we believe will make a big hit with all lovers of weird fiction.
"The November issue was a gem all the way through, and I am certainly learning a lot of facts about fantastic fiction that are quite new to me. It answers numerous questions that I have had in mind for a long time. I think the comments by the readers constitute a most absorbing part of your magazine, especially when they are by contributors and old fans that know the 'ropes' well. Understand that I am a comparative beginner in the absorbing game of chasing fantastic literature. It is quite noticeable that the trend is turning even more toward the fantastic than the pure science fiction, which, it would seen, has been on the wane for some time. I am not a science fiction crank, however, and have several good tales in my collection. They are not interplanetary, though, but ones approaching closer to the fantastic.
"The poem by Clark Ashton Smith was enormous; yet, more than that. I do not think one could describe it. 'The Other Gods' by H. P. Lovecraft added just the right atmosphere to TFF. The mention of Ulthar in this story recalled a story by the same author named 'The Cats of Ulthar.'
"As Mr. Ackerman's collection continues to pile up, it seems that in spite of mania to judge literature, he certainly does a thing up right when he starts.
"The discovery that the now famous book 'Necronomicon' is entirely fictitious was a considerable shock. Too bad that such a volume is not available to all lovers of fiction pertaining to the black arts and kindred subjects. I had even thought seriously of sending to the State College Library in quest of a copy in English! I wondered at the time if it had yet been translated. Why not have Lovecraft write such a book? I am sure it would sell well. I enjoy reading the denouncement of Mr. Ackerman."—Duane W. Rime