The Eldritch Dark

The Sanctum of Clark Ashton Smith

Clark Ashton Smith (1893-1961), perhaps best known today for his association with H.P Lovecraft and the Cthulhu Mythos, is in his own right a unique master of fantasy, horror and science-fiction. Highly imaginative, his genre-spanning visions of worlds beyond, combined with his profound understanding of the English language, have inspired an ever -increasing legion of fans and admirers.

For most of his life, he lived in physical and intellectual isolation in Auburn, California (USA). Predominantly self-educated with no formal education after grammar school, Smith wore out his local library and delved so deeply into the dictionary that his richly embellished, yet precise, prose leaves one with the sense that they are in the company of a true master of language.

Though Smith primarily considered himself a poet, having turned to prose for the meager financial sum it rewarded, his prose might best be appreciated as a "fleshed" out poetry. In this light, plot and characters are subservient to the milieu of work: a setting of cold quiet reality, which, mixed with the erotic and the exotic, places his work within its own unique, phantasmagoric genre. While he also experimented in painting, sculpture, and translation, it is in his written work that his legacy persists.

During his lifetime, Smith's work appeared commonly in the pulps alongside other masters such H.P. Lovecraft, Robert E. Howard, August Derleth, and E. Hoffmann Price and like many great artists, recognition and appreciation have come posthumously. In recent decades though, a resurgence of interest in his works has lead to numerous reprintings as well as scholarly critiques.

The Eldritch Dark is a site to facilitate both scholars and fans in their appreciation and study of Clark Ashton Smith and his works.

Last 5 Eldritch Words Discussion Forum posts:

18 Apr, 2025 4:35PM by GreenFedora

“Glad I could help.… ”

17 Apr, 2025 11:41AM by Knygatin

“Thank you very much for pointing me to that.… ”

16 Apr, 2025 11:08PM by GreenFedora

“I have located the two pages: they are on pages 233 and 234 of the Hippocampus book and are an addenda to a letter dated "early September 1930." This appears to be the correct placement, since Smith mentions receiving a post card from HPL from his Quebec trip, which HPL mentions in a previous letter.… ”

7 Apr, 2025 4:12PM by Knygatin

“Kipling, thanks for the tip. Thank you also for the details about Poe's "Eureka" earlier in the thread.

I am probably not anxious enough about those illustrations to invest in another volume. But I admit being quite curious. The cover of the Hippocampus Press book The House of Sounds shows part of an illustration for The… ”

7 Apr, 2025 12:20PM by Kipling

“Knygatin Wrote:

> I have read a handful of his short stories, the
> most famous ones. I have enjoyed them well enough,
> especially liking their artistic intensity.
> "Huguenin's Wife" is a favorite. I may agree that
> his stories "rely on twists and turns in the plots
> too much"; Poe is perhaps more natural and organic
>… ”


Top of Page