A Matter of Timing

by Steve Lazarowitz

I have a confession to make. I haven't read much Asimov, Bradbury or Heinlein. Some of you will no doubt wonder why that is a confession, while others will stare in stunned silence at the screen. In the science fiction world, ancenstor worship is mandatory. You can say anything you want about Robert Jordan, but one bad word about the Masters of old at a convention, will surely invite a lynch mob.

I did read Asmiov's Foundation Trilogy and quite enjoyed it. I read Farenheit 451 and The Martian Chronicles by Ray Bradbury. And I read Farnham's Freehold by Heinlein and Stranger in a Strange Land, the latter of which I quite enjoyed. That is my limited experience with the three best known SF writers of all time.

I also managed to read a book by Poul Anderson and another by AE Van Vogt. Never did get to read EE Doc Smith's Lensman or Skylark. Never made it through Dune, though I did start it once, but I did read Frank Herbert's Helstrom's Hive. And while I enjoyed Ring World, I enjoyed much more the works Larry Niven had written with Jerry Pournelle, particlarly The Mote in God's Eye and Lucifer's Hammer.

By contrast, I have read well over twenty Roger Zelazny books, close to the same number of Jack Chalker books, quite a few Piers Anthony series and more than my share of Stephen Donaldson. I have read many books by Keith Laumer that I quite liked (even if I can't remember them). I have also read (and I'm not bragging about this), many of Kenneth Robeson's Doc Savage books, sixteen of the Gor books by John Norman and quite a few of Donald Hamilton's Matt Helm books, though they are not, of course, science fiction or fantasy.

Zelazny's Amber books remain my favorite. As a side note, I was pleasantly surprised by the newest Amber book, Dawn of Amber by John Gregory Betancourt. When Roger Zelazny passed away, I did not think I would ever return to Amber again. I was wrong. In addition, I greatly enjoyed Jack of Shadows, Creatures of Light and Darkness, A Night in the Lonesome October, Catspaw, I could go on and on (but won't). Suffice to say, I love Roger Zelazny's work.

My favorite Jack Chalker series was Soulrider, but of course I loved The Well of Souls and Four Lords of the Diamond as well. There were others, but you get the idea.

Piers Anthony's Incarnations of Immortality series completely blew me away. I also enjoyed Bio of a Space Tyrant, The Aprentice/Adept Series and quite a few others. If you were wondering why Xanth has not been included it's because I never really got into Xanth, but that's a whole different article.

This situation came to my attention recently, while riding along in a car with Samandi Adams, my friend and long time editor. I had recently started reading a book called Sci-fi Private eye, an anthology of science fiction crime stories. The cover boasts "Isaac Asimov, Larry Niven, Poul Anderson" with the words "and 6 others" in smaller print, just below. I was much gratified to find that three of the six others were, Philip Jose Farmer, Robert Silverberg and Philip K. Dick. I found the book at large store with table after table of discount books. I purchased it recently for three dollars and I have not, so far, regretted it.

I made a point of mentioning to Samandi that I liked the three authors they didn't mention, as much or more than the ones listed on the cover. She responded by saying she really loved Asimov's work. My reply was that I hadn't read much of it, but I did like the Foundation Trilogy when I read it. She was a bit taken aback. This admission apparently surprised her. The rest of the conversation went something like this.

"Which Star Trek is your favorite?" I asked. I was aware she had watched all five television series, fairly regularly.

"The original."

"Mine too. But why? The writing and acting are certainly better in the Next Generation. So were the special effects."

"Well, yes, but I liked the interplay between Kirk, Spock and McCoy."

I shook my head. "I think you're wrong. That's not the reason you like the original Star Trek best."

She looked at me. I smiled. She knew better than to ask, so I told her anyway.

"You grew up on the original Star Trek. The rest of it didn't come till much later. Like me, you are keenly aware that the Next Generation could not have existed without the original. Sure it's a great show, but look at the Universe it was building on. Without that preamble, it couldn't have been as good. That's the problem with science fiction and me. I started reading SF and fantasy in the seventies. Try to remember when the seventies started, I was only eight years old.

"People that started watching The Next Generation and were later exposed to the original Trek, think it's hokey and badly acted and sorta corny, all of which is true. Most of them never really understand what the big deal about the original series was in the first place, because they weren't there.

"Admittedly, I liked the books I've read by Asimov, Bradbury and Heinlein, but in truth, how can they be better than that books written by those that came after them? How can you stand taller, than the guy on your shoulders? It's simply a matter of timing."

This got me thinking about my own work, which I consider to be rather good. I thought about this and then about Roger Zelazny. I love Zelazny in the way one loves a god. I can not express this sentiment deeply enough. And yet, were I to continue my writing career and become famous, at some point, someone might read my books and feel about Zelazny the same way I feel about Asimov. The thought chilled me in the same way some fans might feel about how causally I toss about the names of the Masters.

All art is progressive. Acting improves. Writing improves. Even painting improves. New techniques, new materials, new information, more freedom to express. Artists and authors stand upon the shoulders of the great men and women that have preceded them.

And so I must pay homage to Asimov, Bradbury and Heinlein, as well as Zelazny, Anthony and Chalker, for they are the gods of my gods. The ancestors without which my world would be dimmer. And I suppose we all owe a moment of silence to HG Wells and Jules Verne, who came before them all.

The lesson here, if there indeed is one, is one of perspective. A book isn't a stand alone item independent of the words and wordsmiths that have come before it. It is only the last step of a very long staircase. And if some of the steps toward the bottom are worn, or not as solid as they once were, where is the surprise in that? The fact remains without them, I wouldn't be standing where I am today.

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