Jack Vance Info Guestbook

Thank you for visiting the Vance Info pages. Your are invited to Add yourself to this guestbook.

I kinda like it. Thanks!
Cherrie Nelson <cnelson12@aimultimedia.com>
Tacoma, WA USA - Friday, November 16, 2001 at 14:12:02 (PST)

Its a cool web over here. Nice.
Elaine Parask <elainep@yahoo.com>
Edinburg, TX USA - Wednesday, November 07, 2001 at 21:19:41 (PST)

I like this site. Keep it up!
Leanne Collins <l.collins@btinternet.com>
Oakville, ON Canada - Monday, November 05, 2001 at 16:31:24 (PST)

I misspelled my email address on my last mail to you. Anyways, keep the site up!
Eldon Barclay <eldonba@mtaonline.net>
Collegedale, CA USA - Tuesday, October 16, 2001 at 23:33:54 (PDT)

Good job! Thanks!
Gary Shafer <jdb183@radar.com>
Naches, NY USA - Tuesday, October 16, 2001 at 17:13:50 (PDT)

A mine of information on the greatest fantasy author of the 20th century
aldiboronti <aldiboronti@aol.com>
Portsmouth, UK - Friday, October 12, 2001 at 17:47:22 (PDT)

Very nice site! Your site is interesting!Very Good Site!
Petter Pen <ab_mayers_45r@yahoo.com>
Dalles, TX United States - Wednesday, October 10, 2001 at 11:59:50 (PDT)

Wonderful site. Thanks
britney spears
New York, NY USA - Saturday, October 06, 2001 at 02:13:02 (PDT)

love this site
tony <tonyfran@webtv.net>
San Clemente, CA USA - Thursday, October 04, 2001 at 17:12:54 (PDT)

Very nice and interesting.
Mechanical Engineering <robertwilly@yahoo.com>
Salem, USA - Tuesday, October 02, 2001 at 21:58:15 (PDT)

Like so many, i stumbled on Jack Vance's work, and now can't read much anything else.
Simon A. <cometary@yahoo.com>
NYC, NY USA - Monday, September 17, 2001 at 20:01:31 (PDT)

I have read, and read, all of Jack Vance's books available to me, read them again, and still am fascinated by his bestiary and uncommon skill at writing such imaginative works. Along with John Brunner, simply the best!
L. A. Sheperd <cresteddirdir@icqmail.com>
Canada - Sunday, September 09, 2001 at 18:25:55 (PDT)

Interesting & enjoyable website! However I was looking to sign up on a chat page that discusses the Author and his works.
Allan A. Smith <allasmit@hotmail.com>
Oak Park, Mi. USA - Saturday, September 08, 2001 at 12:34:03 (PDT)

Liked the site. Thanks!
Felicia Boutin <tex2309@cfl.rr.com>
Toronto, ON Canada - Thursday, September 06, 2001 at 14:32:45 (PDT)

Good site! Thanks!
Rosa Alex <rosa.alex@canada.com>
USA - Wednesday, August 29, 2001 at 23:14:03 (PDT)

Cool site.
Art Bell
USA - Thursday, August 23, 2001 at 18:30:50 (PDT)

I am very sorry that i ever read a word by jack vance, whose dialogue i cannot convincingly imitate. I can't agree that all his work is great, but i like the planet of adventure, the lyonesse, the alastor and the demon princes series best, and night lamp least. I am touched by the indispensability of his son john.
mark palmer <amarkpalmer@yahoo.com>
new zealand - Saturday, August 18, 2001 at 17:59:26 (PDT)

Ever since I read DURDANE, the three volumes, I fell in love with the work of this original writer. His choice of words is unique and to be enjoyed as much as the plots. In all candor, as he is so fond of saying, I treasure his work in the same level of Thomas Mann, my other bedside constant companion.
Gustavo Coronel <ppcvicep@telcel.net.ve>
Margarita Island, Venezuela - Friday, August 17, 2001 at 14:30:29 (PDT)

As a young man I read a lot of sci fi by a lot of different authors. Now the only sci fi I read (when I do read sci fi, is Jack Vance, all the others have no appeal for me anymore.
John Ashton <jainnz@hotmail.com>
New Zealand - Thursday, August 16, 2001 at 01:54:40 (PDT)

Nice site...
clipart <biivlcu@friendsfan.com>
USA - Wednesday, August 15, 2001 at 14:54:55 (PDT)

It is very satisfying to note the increasing recognition Jack is receiving. Simply put,he is the unquestioned master of the field. Jack and I met in 1977 at a writer's conference, and his friendship and guidance have been much valued.It was he that,with a right word in the right place, secured me my first job in the film industry on Return of the Jedi, thus launching my career. As a human being he is extraordinary; his depth of spirit is the source of his incredible imagination. On top of all of that, he's just the man to hoist a few beers with!
david russell <ozmaproductions>
sydney, nsw australia - Friday, August 10, 2001 at 02:13:06 (PDT)

I include many Vance novels in my large SF collection, and he is undoubtedly one of my favourite writers. He manipulates the English language with a masters' hand; a true poet in a field not well known for them. I have never been disappointed with one of his works, and I am on the constant lookout for Vance material I have not yet read. One of a few artists whose work I will re-read many times; I envy those discovering him for the first time!
Geoff Gaudet <paddle_rat@yahoo.com>
Trail, BC Canada - Saturday, August 04, 2001 at 18:00:18 (PDT)

Jack Vance ruined the genre for me. I can't read anything by anyone else.
Grant Skeggs
Australia - Saturday, August 04, 2001 at 04:27:16 (PDT)

Very Interesting & will have to read more
Denise Meier (Vance) <d.k.meier@home.com>
Saskatoon, Sk. - Saturday, July 28, 2001 at 19:15:51 (PDT)

I am overwhelmed: after 30 years of reading Jack Vance, and trying to explain to others why he is my favorite writer, I come across this website and think 'here's a chance to spread the word widely'... no need, any sentiments I could express are already here, (and probably expressed better than I could), I love you all.Thanks Jack Vance, your the best.
Mike Bacon <themikebacon@hotmail.com>
Cheltenham, Uk - Thursday, July 26, 2001 at 13:52:52 (PDT)

this is probably the only time in my life that i will ever praise an artist in a public forum, but really, this man is THE master and truly deserves it for the many hours of sheer enjoyment we all find in his works. thanks jack, and may you live forever, as you certainly will for all your fans.
mike chapman <mike.chapman@rcc.org>
cincinnati, oh USA - Wednesday, July 25, 2001 at 07:52:36 (PDT)

"Where there is Marriage without Love, there will be Love without Marriage." -Benjamin Franklin
Jenny Simpson
Hoboken, NJ USA - Monday, July 23, 2001 at 09:59:57 (PDT)

Hi !I have a website in french and i wanted to know if you will interested by exchange a banner or a link with me ?(Sorry fo my bad english...)Bye,Aurore Barea.
Aurore <aurore@barea.org>
Paris, France - Friday, July 20, 2001 at 00:57:48 (PDT)

Like most of us I grope helplessly for the sources of J.V's. literary inspiration. Well read in the great Victorian novelists,(all that time hanging about on Merchant Ships!) with a generous dash of Gibbon, there's also that sardonicism peculiar to North American writers. (Poe, Hawthorne and, above all, Mark Twain) I can only conclude that I don't know where he got his style but I'm glad he did!
Glyyn Palmer <palmerglynp@aol.com>
Hinckley, Leics United Kingdom - Wednesday, July 18, 2001 at 00:19:03 (PDT)

Jack Vance has been my inspiration for the past 40 years since I first read Dragon Masters.I have read and re-read his Dying Earth sagas etc so many times I practically Know them by heart but I never grow tired of them. His use of the english language is unsurpassed and never will be in my opinion.Thanks Jack for all the pleasure you have bruoght me.
david barker <davidbarker001@lineone.net>
stoke on trent, england - Thursday, July 12, 2001 at 14:02:09 (PDT)

I am a professional writer because of Jack Vance. I owe to him my love of bizarre names and my intoxication with the flamboyant and surreal. Every once in a while I will pick up one of his volumes, and I am always the better for it. Vance is, well, simply the best. It pleases me greatly to see that he has a substantial following around the world and is finally getting some of the recognition due him.
Leonard C. Pflanz <pflanz@presys.com>
Reedsport, OR USA - Sunday, July 08, 2001 at 23:45:00 (PDT)

I met Jack Vance briefly some years ago when he was signing books at the old "Change of Hobbitt" bookstore in Santa Monica. AS he signed my copy of "Lyonesse " I asked him if he had any plans to expand on the adventures of Marmaduke, the Avatar's Apprentice, who appeared in several books' footnotes. Jack laughed. "no, I just created Marmaduke to have some fun with when the real writing got tedious. No plans for anything featuring him." I was disappointed. Here Jack had created for no reason but his own amusement a character which most writers would have given their left gonad to have created. And Marmaduke sits, forlorn,in a big waiting room, patiently hoping his number will be called. The Elegant gentleman sitting next to him, also clutching a number, is Baron Bodissey...
David Johnson <DJDESIGN@USA COM>
Hermosa Beach, CA USA - Tuesday, July 03, 2001 at 00:56:25 (PDT)

Vance is the most "writer" of science fiction writers. By that I mean that SF writers have always been peed on by the straight fiction literati--but this is something that just wont wash when tried on Vance's work. It is REAL literature, REAL imagery, REAL plotting and characterization. I have no favorite SF writer, but I do have about forty-one of his books; that says something. THANX
Joseph Hunter <SGTMANDELLA.WEBTV.COM>
Eugene, OR USA - Tuesday, June 19, 2001 at 17:46:51 (PDT)

I have adored Jack Vance's writing for more than 30 years. I own about 36 titles, most in paperback. His use of words, his humor, his imagination ... unrivaled! Jack Vance's greatest books are true sagas, with delightful whirling turns of plot and characters that can leave me breathless -- and heartbroken when each book ends. Oddly, I rarely read other science fiction authors, and don't collect any other author's works. I am a closet Jack Vance fan and this is the first time I have ever put into words what I think of him. Most people I speak with don't know of him. I know this guestbook entry is sounding sappy, like I have a crush on him or something, but I just have to marvel at this man's mind. I am thankful for Jack Vance.
Mary Agnes Mullowney <mamullow@mit.edu>
Arlington, MA USA - Friday, May 25, 2001 at 16:46:13 (PDT)

I started reading Jack Vance's books when I was fifteen and have been a fan ever since. His satirical humor and vivid imagination has impacted my vocabulary and life in many positive ways. Thank you Mr. Vance
Forest Berg <Bosqueya@yahoo.com>
Bend, ore USA - Thursday, May 17, 2001 at 19:12:24 (PDT)

Hurlothrumbo, a word found in The Killing Machine, will eventually get into the Oxford English Dictionary, care of, erm, me! I researched this word, having read it in the Demon Prince book, and tracked it down to a truely appalling play written in 1729 by Samuel Johnson (not THE S. Johnson.). Afterwards the word was mentioned by John Byrom in his diary as meaning an inconsequential thing; in a 1750s dictionary as a noisy orator; and the 1911 Roget as a bogeyman, the sense Vance uses. I persuaded the OED to put the word in their new update. So a new word enters the "official" Englisg language, thanks to Jack Vance. I'm not on the web, alas, having only sporadic use of the company's computer!
Nick Flowers
Chichester, UK - Thursday, May 10, 2001 at 07:03:44 (PDT)

Jack Vance: A rare, even unique talent with words and atmosphere, standing out like Richard Feynman did in Physics. One of my favourite writers, ever since 'The Planet of Adventure', 20 years ago. Thanx so far, and many years!
Edwin K. <EdwinK@casema.net>
Delft, the Netherlands - Sunday, May 06, 2001 at 17:03:54 (PDT)

I've never read a Jack Vance book. I just stumbled across this site and thought I would stop by. I felt I had to sign it since my last name is Vance. God Bless!
Jill Vance <j.d.vance@bubbs.biola.edu>
USA - Saturday, April 28, 2001 at 00:49:30 (PDT)

My father introduced me to Jack Vance books 20 years ago when I was about 15. He has been a big fan since the late 50's and in the 60's he was living in CA (going to school) and found his phone number (under his real name) in a phone directory. My father was studying ceramics and knew Vance was interested in such things so he called him thinking he might be able to meet him and talk about his art. So my father called him and Vance admitted that he was, indeed, the author, but was not eager to meet my father. One of my father's friends (smoking pot in another room) got on another line and began to make barking noises which quickly ended the call.
David Gilhooly <david_gilhooly@hp.com>
Davis, CA USA - Wednesday, April 25, 2001 at 11:03:10 (PDT)

I have been reading Jack Vance for over 3 decades, and I never cease to be amazed at his wonderful use of language, his sense of how peculiar we humans can be when given the chance, and last but not least, his wonderful cast of characters. Having just finished Ports of Call, it is reassuring to see that his powers of creation are as good now as they have ever been. Long may he continue! It's also great to see that so many people around the world are also moved by this great writer. Like others have said before, I do not think he has been fully accorded the reputation that he so richly deserves within the genre. There is truely only one Jack Vance.
Lee Werrin <leewerrin@hotmail.com>
Fareham, Hants UK - Monday, April 16, 2001 at 14:31:35 (PDT)

I have only just discovered Jack Vance's rich and beautiful styled writings. I mentioned my liking of Frank Herbert (whose Dune is the best book I have ever read, though Night Lamp may overshadow it, I'm not sure) and Ray Bradbury to a bookshop owner and she suggested Vance. I began Night Lamp one evening and I read for so long and with such fascinated detachment that I lost all track of time! When a finally freed myself from this hypnosis I crawled, bleary-eyed, from the small nest I had made in the setee and went straight out to look for more of his works. Criminally, he seems fiendishly hard to find, but despite this I returned satisfied with a copy of Showboat World. The small nest in the setee is going to become my permanent home!
Joe Freiesleben
U.K - Wednesday, April 11, 2001 at 06:28:00 (PDT)

I read The Dragonmasters in my early teens and read every Vance book I could get my hands on after that. I have worked all over the West in numerous trades. I have had many loves and just as many heartbreaks. I have followed changes in music and fashion. I have changed political alignment and changed back again. The one constant has been an enduring fondness for my favorite author, Jack Vance. I have read his books during class in junior high and high school in Idaho, in the mudshed of a drilling rig in Oklahoma, in the cab of a fertilizer truck in Oregon, by generator powered light in a remote cabin in the Montana mountains, while laid up from a construction injury in Washington State, on a gas plant crew bus in Wyoming, and sitting on an Indian Ocean beach in Western Australia. I once completely read Marune aloud to a young lady who was ill and bedridden. Anyone who ever called me friend has been introduced to Jack's writing by me, if they had not already discovered him. Jack Vance, I salute you!
August Metz <chilke@hotmail.com>
Creston, WA USA - Saturday, March 31, 2001 at 15:44:37 (PST)

First read Plant of Adventure 30 years ago Just re read it again :Lost in a world of Fantasy that I dont want to return to Should be made into a film Mr Spielberg
Alan Dyer <alandyerlordofthering@hotmail.com>
Chichester, England - Saturday, March 31, 2001 at 11:37:50 (PST)

Monsieur Vance, continuez a nous faire rever et penser.Et bravo a tous ceux qui vous font mieux apprecier sur le net.A quand Lurullu ?
Christian Gitton <eesti@club-internet.fr>
Paris, France - Friday, March 30, 2001 at 09:47:59 (PST)

I started wuth Lyonese, when I order it by accident. After reading it, I have went on to collect every Jack Vance book I could get my hands on. Everytime I would get in a writing block in college (writing major) I would grab Cugel's Saga and randomly flip to a page. I realized I wanted to write so that I could entertain people the way Jack does in his stories. They are so great. Everytime I re-read one it feels like the first time because his style is so fresh and inviting. Jack, if you read this ever, you have inspired and kept me going through many years. Thanks!!!
el mako <mark@internet-exploiter.com>
portland, OR USA - Wednesday, March 21, 2001 at 15:54:37 (PST)

In the sixties I was confronted with the Tschai trilogy x since then I collected every book of Vance be it in english or dutch xI even went to the USA only because a new book had come out which was not obtainable in Holland at that time x may he live another 100 years and write another 50 books!
rene smit <a_lim@dds.nl>
amstelveen, holland - Saturday, March 10, 2001 at 14:11:25 (PST)

Wow, are there really so many Vance fans? I thought I was the only person so completely enthusiastic about his work. I want to thank Mr. Vance for so many worlds I have utterly fallen in love with and , might I add, had difficulty leaving.
Tara C. Cropp
USA - Sunday, February 04, 2001 at 11:59:45 (PST)

First stumbled across Cugel's Sage in a library when I was 13. That was 18 years ago and think the only JV book I don't have is "Lurulu". Most of them were bought from secondhand book shops - I've lost count how many times I have re-read them. It's the turn of the Demon Princes this week.PS Any Patrick O'Brian fans out there? Completely different topic but he weaves magic with his words in a similar way...
Simon Brown <simon_brown@veritasdgc.co.uk>
Sussex, UK - Thursday, January 25, 2001 at 04:48:57 (PST)

Jack has been by far my favourite author since I read my first book of his (The Blue World), when I was fourteen or so. One I have now learnt: I never, ever lend a Jack Vance book to anybody, because I know I won't get it back. Must have lost forty or so, struggling hard to replace my collection.
Anthony Thompson <wyvern_ant@hotmail.com>
Canberra, ACT Australia - Tuesday, January 16, 2001 at 19:38:35 (PST)

Jack Vance, in some ways, retells the same story in many of his books, but it never gets dull. Much is due to his brilliant language and wry humour. Often I let the book sink into my lap and just repeat to myself a particularly delicious sentence. He is one of the few writers whose books I like to read over and over again.
Lars Sydolf <lasse.sydolf@telia.com>
Stockholm, Sweden - Wednesday, January 10, 2001 at 13:09:12 (PST)

i find that after reading JACK VANCE i get a dull aching feeling and a parched throat as if i had drunk some exceptionally fine wine.....may he live forever....
s.khalid <kosmostarr@aol.com>
glasgow, uk - Tuesday, January 09, 2001 at 11:38:47 (PST)

Not much I can add. I just reread THE DYING EARTH and EYES OF THE OVERWORLD for the first time in 20 years. Staggering!
Dave ("Pete") Kurzman <kurzman@earthlink.net>
Richmond, Va USA - Sunday, December 31, 2000 at 17:34:22 (PST)

Thank you.
Mac McInnis
Laurinburg, NC USA - Wednesday, December 27, 2000 at 11:36:01 (PST)

Ahh! Mr. Vance! I was first dazzled by your work when I was about 13 years old. Now I am 51. I have lived an exotic, sometimes dangerous life in a decadent world. I never really wanted to do anything else. Hmmm.
Tom Davis <atdavis@scrtc.com>
Tompkinsville, KY USA - Tuesday, December 19, 2000 at 04:23:43 (PST)

I am a long-time fan of Vance's work. I recently persuaded my wife to read the first book of the Lyonesse series, and she loved it. Now I find out he is a banjo player! I fantasize sitting down with him, pulling our my fiddle, and having a few tunes together. Life is wonderful.
Edward Baggott <eabaggot@hiwaay.net>
Huntsville, AL USA - Wednesday, December 13, 2000 at 14:03:42 (PST)

The Net has finally enabled us to commune and share our reverence for this great National Treasure of a writer! At age 10, a copy of The Palace of Love fell into my hands, and I have never been the same since, dreaming of the endless re-cloning of Jheral Tinzy and her cyclically repeated rejection of the importunate Vogel Filschner, the white-eyed man, Drusilla amid winking orange lights, drinking with the mad Navarth, the fluttering of the Demon Prince's robes as he plunges from the air-car.... Vance strums the strings of life itself in all his works, and I am already saving for a sub to the Vance Integral Edition - what a dream! In 1985, at the WorldCon in Austin, I had a chance to briefly speak to the Master - summmoning up my suddenly vapid courage, I approached him (he happened to be clad in Utter Black, like the Connatic) and briefly discussed the Languages of Pao and the Sapir-Whorf hypothesis. Believe me, in person he is everything you would think, grave, wise, and yet lighthearted. I even met Norma, his wonderful helpmeet! Later I saw him laughing at table with R.A Lafferty, truly a tableau for the ages.... I read and re-read my tattered volumes, savoring the rich cheesecake of his prose, the wit that never wears out. The ultimate pleasure is a new Vance book, and Lurulu now my only desire. (other than joining the Szintarre Hussade Association) Thanks for making this site, and remember, Vance prefers his stories to stand on their own, without too much analysis or writing about the writing. Sip the cup while we can, and THANK YOU MR. VANCE! "With silver prong I guide along The squeaking oyster to his doom...." -Navarth
Steve Ryan <sryan@io.com>
Houston, TX USA - Tuesday, November 28, 2000 at 16:38:07 (PST)

Dear mr Vance and all fans, when are we making movies of these stories, and lett the whole world know what a great writer he is!!!!!!!!!!
jack croes <jackiecroes@hotmail.com>
amsterdam, netherlands - Saturday, November 25, 2000 at 08:21:54 (PST)

All his books are great, but the first book I got was Tschjai so this is my favourite. All the books you read of him are in-depth, wise and creates such a world that It becomes a part of you. It sort of gives you a new perspective of things in time of worry. thank you very much mr . Vance, you inspire minds!!!!
jack croes <jackiecroes@hotmail.com>
amsterdam, netherlands - Saturday, November 25, 2000 at 08:05:39 (PST)

All I know is I would be less the person I am now If I had never had the priviledge of knowing the thought's and ideas which this man was able to put in print. Thank you Jack Vance! Sincerely John Barrie
john torrance barrie <john.t.barrie@home.com>
vancouver, bc canada - Thursday, November 23, 2000 at 21:15:06 (PST)

An influence on me right from the start along with the rest of the greats. I go back to his books time and time again.
Neal Asher <nealasher@lineone.net>
Chelmsford, Britain - Wednesday, November 22, 2000 at 14:15:19 (PST)

I discovered Jack Vance's extraordinary fiction around 1965 (when I was 17, for God's sake!). I kept coming across references to this Hugo winning Novella(?) called, "The Dragon Masters" and I thought that it looked intriguing. Unfortunately, hardly any of Mr Vance's fiction was available, in the UK, at the time. Near to my home town, of Peterborough, was the small Fenland Market town of Wisbech and, for some reason, this had (as far as I know) the only SF shop in provincial England. On one of my visits to this shop I managed to obtain 3 Vance Ace Doubles, including, "The Dragon Masters/The Three Gold Bands" ; these books almost blew my head off! I couldn't believe how good they were and I became an instant Vance Fan, and still am. I also remember another visit to the same shop on which I spotted a copy of the Lancer edition of, "The Dying Earth" at the bottom of a pile of paperbacks - needless to say, the other books went flying! My 5 favourite Vance titles are :"To Live Forever", "The Eyes of The Overworld", "Emphyrio", "Lyonesse" and "Night Lamp" - which, I think covers a major chunk of Mr Vance's career. I am delighted to see that Mr Vance is still writing and eagerly await his next book. My Very Best Regards to my favourite writer, David Bishop.
David Bishop <david@bishop5.fsnet.co.uk>
USA - Tuesday, November 21, 2000 at 11:41:11 (PST)

I am very lucky on several fronts. Number 1 - I discovered Jack Vance a long time ago, so I've had a long time to enjoy his fantastic and very rewarding work. Number 2 - I have a bad memory, so I get a great deal of pleasure from rereading my favourite volumes again and again. Number 3 - Personally, I think Mr. Vance just gets better and better all the time. Number 4 - I think that Jack is criminarly underappreciated even by genre fans never mind the world at large, why is that lucky? Well it's not for Jack, obviously, but for me, I get a glow from knowing about something so special that others don't have a clue about - like it's out secret. Naturally I'd trade that to see Jack recognised alongside the Asimovs and Clarks of this universe. Thank you for decorating the walls in my head, Big J.
Robin Duncan <Robinski34@hotmail.com>
Glasgow, Scotland - Sunday, October 22, 2000 at 07:46:03 (PDT)

While I don't have between my 5 favorite sf books any of Vance , I'd like to announce that he is my favourite author(with maybe Gene Wolfe at the same level). If it only think of Tschai , Araminta ,Cugel or the demon princes I get nostalgic.
Alexandru Adam <a2adam@uwaterloo.ca>
waterloo, Canada - Wednesday, October 04, 2000 at 15:24:23 (PDT)

Every time I visit a second-hand bookshop I am always on the look out for Vance that I haven't read. Trouble is, I think I must have virtually everything that is available in the UK by now (I have 43 books in total), and it's getting harder to find unread material. However, like others have said in this guestbook, I still have the old ones to fall back on � I mean, I must have read The Dying Earth, The Eyes of Overworld, and Cugel's Saga about thirty times by now, Lyonesse about twenty, The Planet of Adventure also about twenty... If I was religious, I'd thank God for the existance of Jack Vance � the SF/Fantasy world would be considerably duller without his contributions to it.
Chun the Unavoidable <chun.the_unavoidable@ic24.net>
Wigan, Lancashire UK - Saturday, September 30, 2000 at 02:38:16 (PDT)

Twenty years ago, I was helping an in-law move to a new flat. Packing away her generously-proportioned sci-fi library, I came across some books by an author previously unknown to me. Mildly curious about the books - the "Tschai" trilogy, "The Languages of Pao", "The Dying Earth" and many others - they came out of the packing-box and home with me for what I thought would be a forgettable few nights of pulp reading. Those books never made it back to my in-law's library, and Jack Vance has been my favourite sci-fi author ever since.
K. von Tschirnhaus <chrns@cs.com>
Idaho Falls, ID USA - Wednesday, September 20, 2000 at 15:10:30 (PDT)

As a 14yr old I had my first encounter with Vance-books, never stopped reading them since. One just can't help reading them over and over again. Just love those books.
Arjan <awing@quickonline.nl>
Capelle a/d IJssel, Netherlands - Monday, September 18, 2000 at 02:29:33 (PDT)

It is amazing to see not only how many others across the world share the Jack Vance phenomenon, but how similar our experiences have been. Like many others, I discovered Jack in the late 60s and 30 years later, I remain in awe at his virtuosity. I can also honestly say that my skills with the English language have been shaped and enhanced by a lifetime of exposure to his Churchillian excellence. I even dedicated a large slice of a holiday in Bali to a then-new Vance (it was one of the Araminta Station series I think). For me, Jack is streets ahead of all other authors, not just for his linguistic talent, but the magnificence of his vision and imagination. I think I may have read all of his books, but my problem is that I have re-read them all so often, many of them are limp and disintegrating, and are getting harder to replace. From The Dying Earth to Ports of Call, we have witnessed a lifetime of genius the like of which we will be unlikely to see again. I close with a quote from a newspaper review I saw years ago..."One cannot return from a visit to Jack Vance's world without a tinge of regret." That sums it up for me. Hello to all my fellow Vance admirers around the world.
Robin Shaw <roshaw@workcover.com>
Adelaide, SA Australia - Sunday, September 17, 2000 at 22:56:03 (PDT)

I have been reading and re-reading Jack Vance for thirty years. I was introduced to this author by my ex-husband. All members of my family have collected these books over the years. I have kept a list for many years of the books that I am missing. I look in every used book store for books that I may not have read yet. My favorite character is Magnus Ridolph and my favorite short story is the one about the Moon Moth Mask. All the books are so enjoyable, however, that I have read them over and over. I agree that Jack Vance has not been recognized as he should have been. I was pleased to note that my friend Tex Windom, a fine jazz musician and ragtime pianist and vocalist, has a world named after him. I could tell from reading these books that Mr. Vance shares some of my own favorite pleasures - sailing and jazz.
Julia E. Riley <thejuls@pacbell.net>
Auburn, CA USA - Friday, September 08, 2000 at 19:29:30 (PDT)

I first read Jack Vance's stories in high school in the 50's... I think "Big Planet" may have been the first. I've read probably 80 to 90% of his books, including his mystery novels. To list my favorites would take all day. But I must single out the amazing short story, "Noise," the beautiful "Emphyrio," "Eyes of the Overworld," "Nopalgarth," and the hysterically funny yet dead on target "Dodkin's Job." I hope I have that title right. Jack Vance has been an immensely important part of my life for 45 years. I love the "Cadwael" trilogy. My most recent read has been "Night Lamp," a true classic. Thank you, Mr. Vance, for enriching my life so very, very much.
Jim Hoerr <jjhoerr@aol.com>
Cincinnati, OH USA - Tuesday, September 05, 2000 at 10:54:40 (PDT)

greetings to my friends in the COSMOPOLIS
ric foster <ricfoster@msn.com>
USA - Sunday, September 03, 2000 at 19:35:30 (PDT)

Hi, from one Vance (Diane Charlene Vance, 9-21-1947) to another. My Dad was Norwood Taylor Vance (1-13-1914), Mom, Angela Mae Sandrene Vance (5-25-1919).
Diane Charlene Vance <dvance@kidsstuff.net>
Akron, OH USA - Wednesday, August 30, 2000 at 11:25:43 (PDT)

Reading JVance's Rialto the Marvelous sent me into a dream that I had before finishing the book. I took it upon myself to clean out -human pools- that were filled around a marble warehouse built under a pink flesh sky. There was a human head once in a while that would get caught in the net as well as some water schooters. The heads I lined up in a row and eventually named them all by letters in an alphabet I didn't know at which point their eyes would pop open and reveal dirt and deteriorated horrors. They were hooked up to an air pump with my assistant serverette and some of them had swollen toungues that could only struggle to make sounds. It was a horrible occasion, fortunately I woke up. If you read that Rialto book dont fall asleep ever.
Balle Bunterean <emourusque@hooked.net>
Prados, MN USA - Thursday, August 17, 2000 at 13:34:57 (PDT)

In 1963, a 12 yr old boy rode his bicycle up to a pile of books next to a trash can. One of those books became a lifetime treasure. The Dying Earth. Over 25 years later, this 'boy' read it to his 3 wide eyed children. Thank you Jack Vance for all the years of enjoyment that you have given. I have laughed and cried and cheered along with you through so many of your wonderful tales. You have shown me from the dawn to the most dim future and from the place next door to the farthest reaches of the galaxy, and from the most alien psyche to deep inside myself and it feels as though you are my oldest friend. I have read and reread many of your books and they never lose anything- on the contrary- they grow as if the stories are so rich as to have taken on the essence of humanity. Your writing has transcended word to become the most vivid landscape with the richest symphony accompanyment (jazz of course!)If there is to be a Curator of the Museum of Man it must be Jack Vance. Thank You!
Vinny Colletti <vjcolletti@netscape.net>
Oneonta, NY USA - Monday, August 07, 2000 at 20:25:51 (PDT)

Thank God there are Jack Vance's books to read over and over and to help you make it through this valley of tears which sometimes may be life. Thanks for cheering me up when I'm down and generally taking my mind off everyday problems. An infinite number of worlds and races and different customs is all around the universe as well as on earth. Varieties of habits, beautifully told. Thanks, Mr Vance!
Sergio Radice <radice@terra.com.br>
Piracicaba, SP Brazil - Monday, August 07, 2000 at 09:03:32 (PDT)

I read the entire 42 pages of this guest book over the last couple of days and was amazed to see the number of people that share my feelings about this exceptional writer. As a collector and dealer who specializes in Underwood Miller editions I have had the rare opportunity to put together virtually everything written by this author and this exceptional publishing team. Not only do I read the books over and over again, always learning something new, I even enjoy holding them. I can not imagine another author who would pocess such power over me.
Scott Heilbrunn <trent032@aol.com>
Baltimore, MD USA - Wednesday, August 02, 2000 at 16:48:04 (PDT)

Almost forgot- do you like the Cugel stories? If this is so, I have a suggestion and a question- the suggestion is that you search for "A quest for Simbilis" which is a novel written by Michael Shea which takes place immediately after the first cugel novel. It is not as good as Vance, and only in the very end do I feel that he has something of the language down. However, the story is good and while the language used is not Vance, the ideas are, and you may therefore enjoy it. My question is this- since the book The Laughing Magician is coming out- is it the third Cugel book? I sincerely hope so, butknow nothing about it but for the name and that its publishing is continualy delayed. PLease let me know.
Andrew <broklynite@aol.com>
new york, ny USA - Tuesday, August 01, 2000 at 17:32:05 (PDT)

Long have I admired the writings of Jack Vance as my father did before me. Both in the stories themselves, their plots, charectors, problems and solutions, etc. The language used is also very unique. I always enjoy Vance, yet reading some of his books- especially those of the Dying Earth series, I pause to wonder at his style. I find it vaguely reminiscent of that of a Grimms Fairy tale- the origional sort, not the prettied up kind. I have expressed this once to my father who is, as aforestated, alsop a fan of Vance, who claims that Vance was once an anthropologist specialising in ancient China. If this is so, it would explain much. I am curious for those of you out there if you would care to affirm or to deny such statements, and allow me to pleasurably view that which you may comment upon my message.
Andrew <broklynite@aol.com>
nyc, ny USA - Tuesday, August 01, 2000 at 17:25:18 (PDT)

TEH BEST WRITER OF THE BIG WORDL OF FANTASY
FLAVIO BERTOLDO <berfla@libero.it>
CIRIE', ITALY - Saturday, July 29, 2000 at 13:40:45 (PDT)

When in doubt pick Jack Vance.He's so prolific you can find things you haven't read. He's easily the equal of Philip K Dick or HP Lovecraft. All his characteristic flourishes : expansive circumlocution, worldscapes , anthropological observations, transcend the role of device.Plus it's really fun to read!! :)
Matthew Trotter <metalmanco@mediaone.net>
Arlington, MA USA - Sunday, July 23, 2000 at 07:29:21 (PDT)

I have read Vance since the 1950's and have quoted him as the best example of a man of English letters ahead of Dickens and the rest of the "classic" cotery. I have never come across another living human who had heard of him...no suprise in this strange day and age...so it was with great relief that I came across your web page. Like all truely great artists he will be most widely appreciated when he has gone, but I don't want to be in a world without Jack Vance. May he outlive us all.
Tony Austen <antony.austen@wanadoo.fr>
Le Bas Champorain, St. Denis de Gastines 53500 France - Monday, July 17, 2000 at 02:33:07 (PDT)

I wonder... Has anyone proposed or suggested or hinted at the use of Characters, World, or events of the story Dragonmasters as a game Graphic or Board Game, or Pbem?? Is there one or can I get an address to talk to someone about design or Art for Same ?? Commercial agent or literary rights management. Basic to termagant....
j victor McMackin <mcmackin_john@hotmail.com>
Chico, Ca USA - Friday, July 14, 2000 at 13:35:18 (PDT)

Your stories are wonderful - and from this page alone many people agree. I have just finished reading the two Araminta Station books again. The lyonesse series I have read 3 times. I could list so many of your books that I have red and re-read - since my first Jack Vance book - The Dragon Masters (in the late 60s) - I have known that I can't go wrong with one of your books. I even named one of my compositions "Sudrun's Garden". And now, on a flight of whimsy, I find this website and discover books I had not even heard of. Yet more of your books to look forward to :)
Ken Guntar <freedom@oz.org>
Sydney, NSW Australia - Friday, July 14, 2000 at 00:32:17 (PDT)

Jack Vance is the most fanatstic writer i Know . Since 25 years i'm reading almost every month a book of Jack . Some works i've read more than 5 times . Sometimes i have the impression he's living in my mind .
Paulussen Willem <willem.paulussen@pandora.be>
Oud Turnhout, Belgium - Monday, July 10, 2000 at 00:28:32 (PDT)

Hoi Mr Vance, You,re the greatest.May you write forever.I love all your books and hope for a 3rd Cugel. I,m 64 and when I read one of your books I,m 16 again. The 2nd of juli I go to the U.S.A. from Colorado-Nw Mexico-Texas and Luisiana,visiting family and friends and hope to find some 2nd hand,hard to get,Vances along the way. When you were born,Mr Vance,you must,ve been in the front row to collect all that fanasy most others are missing.
Wolf.Korper. <wkorper@chello.nl>
Amsterdam, Netherlands - Thursday, June 22, 2000 at 05:46:49 (PDT)

I have been a Jack Vance fan for many years. I am disheartened to see that few, if indeed any, high-street book shops sell his books ( at least in Glasgow ). It seems to me that over the years his popularity has waxed and waned. Currently, he does not appear to be over popular.
kenneth hill <katemerryn.fsnet.co.uk>
glasgow, uk - Tuesday, June 20, 2000 at 14:32:49 (PDT)

Haven't posted anything here in a couple of years and wanted to sign on again from a new address. It is great to see how this guestbook has grown. I discovered Jack Vance as a teenager in the 1960's, a delivery boy killing a lunch hour in a public library, when I chanced upon a collection of short stories - "Eight Fantasms and Magics", I think. I was hooked by the characters, dialogue, place names that seemed so strange yet so familiar at the same time. From then on I read everyting by Jack Vance I could find. And now that I'm rapidly closing in on middle age, Jack Vance's work has lost none of it's magic for me. I read "Ports of Call" just a couple of weeks ago in just about one sitting - I could not put it down. Many of the things I liked as a teenager haven't really stood the test of time for me. For example, I've learned to avoid picking up CD's of favorite records from the '60's and '70's. They almost never live up to my memory, or I play them once and then they collect dust. But Jack Vance is like one of the half-dozen or so friends who have remained constants in my life for the past 30+ years. Whenever you encounter him he makes you feel welcome and comfortable, but without losing his ability to surprise you or teach you something new. Thank you Mr. Vance.
Mike Arsham <mikearsham@aol.com>
New York, NY USA - Tuesday, May 30, 2000 at 20:07:45 (PDT)

Top guy ! I'll never forget the shock I had when I read Planet of Adventure years ago, in Italian, ignoring the sun and the beach of a glorious summer for a good few days. Since then, I have been hooked. Even my wife is a fan now. Any Vance fan in Manchester reading this, contact me for a chat.
Yuri <marune@yahoo.com>
Manchester, UK - Friday, April 28, 2000 at 09:53:03 (PDT)

Jack Vance is a literary great. His work is dazzling, whether in the genre of fantasy, science fiction, or mystery. I believe that I have all of his books, except for his mystery The Man in the Cage. Few other authors can be reread so many times, and still provide wonder, excitement, and such wry insight into the human condition. At a guess, I've probably read each of his books at least three times over, since the late sixties. Favorites would include Marune:Alastor 933, the Dying Earth series, Showboat World, and the Lyonesse Trilogy... but as you all know, each of his books is magical, entertaining and rewarding in its own way. I also recommend The Jack Vance Lexicon, by Dan Temianka, to those of you who can't get enough of Vance's exotic names for places and things. Let us join together and say, thank you, Mr. John Holbrook Vance, for creating your wonderful worlds and characters, thereby providing your lucky readers with endless entertainment, inspiration, and magic.
Bob Van Dyke <BobVDyke@AOL.com>
Ringwood, NJ USA - Friday, April 21, 2000 at 21:12:08 (PDT)

Great site! Keep up the good work!! Check out some of my writing when you have a chance. . . ;)
Michael <michael@lubys.net>
IL USA - Friday, April 21, 2000 at 15:22:24 (PDT)

After having read Tchai at 14 yrs.of age I haven't stopped looking for more books by the master. I'm now 41 and hope to read many more for the next 27 years or so... Between adventure and daredevil plots Jack Vance brings out the best and worst in all of the characters he depicts and shows us our "human nature" when confronted with alien cultures but maybe even more when confronting us with ourselves. More than just a writer mr.Vance is a true artist in the broad sense of this word.
Adriano Destilo <Holkerwoyd@mail.com>
The Hague, The Netherlands - Sunday, April 16, 2000 at 07:22:14 (PDT)

Oh, the wonders of imagination! Jack Vance has provided us with so many different ways of viewing the universe that one never tires. Alastor, The Dying Earth, Big Planet and my person favorites, the Demon Prince series, all bring about a new perspective on the lives we actually live every time one of his domains is entered. Jack Vance ranks on equal stature with the greats of SciFi/Fantasy. May his works never be forgotten.
Trevor Haviland <TrvrH@Aol.Com>
Woodlyn, Pa USA - Saturday, April 15, 2000 at 15:08:49 (PDT)

No writer had a greater sense of adventurous expectancy, irony, and perception than Jack Vance, and no writer could be more original. He writes for those who want to meet the unexpected.
Norman Epstein
New York, NY USA - Tuesday, April 11, 2000 at 20:55:00 (PDT)

I just read about the VIE production and it seems like a really great idea to express appreciation to Mr. Vance. I do think he should get a free one, though! (Paid for by adding a little to the price of everyone else's)
John Corso <jcorso@bendcable.com>
Bend, OR USA - Friday, April 07, 2000 at 22:17:01 (PDT)

Does anyone have any idea how to possibly to repay Mr. Vance, in a meaningful way, for his contributions to our lives? I'll bet he's probably tired of praise by now. This web page is a very welcome tribute, but the balance of the Cosmos still feels to me like we're in deep debt to this wonderful storyteller. My selfish wish is that he could live and write forever. Any ideas?
John Corso <jcorso@bendcable.com>
Bend, OR USA - Thursday, April 06, 2000 at 20:32:55 (PDT)

live (and write) forever
lesley vanmechelen <lesley.vanmechelen@lin.vlaanderen.be>
Menen, belgium - Wednesday, March 29, 2000 at 23:53:07 (PST)

Vance books are the only thing I collect--meaning seek out and treasure--as opposed to the rest of my stuff, which just accumulates.
Lynn Joiner <NRecs@aol.com>
Saxonville, MA USA - Wednesday, March 29, 2000 at 05:31:50 (PST)

VANCE Thank goodness for Jack Vance--who I first read in the Ace Double Novels (both sides Vance): what a bargain. From Vance I learned the "and-less" series--a series which doesn't have a final 'and': "Zake looked across the square and saw walking towards him a colorful group, playing pipes and eating thorp seeds. Looking through his eye scope, he could make out zeeks, myriads, kroaks, oranges, dilps." My favorite single creation of his was the planetary system with arbitrary names starting with the letters of the English alphabet. In the �Star Kings" series the hero has only one ambition, one total obsession, tracking down the interstellar criminals who killed his parents (probably their village, too, and without even knowing his parents were there; nor do the villains know that he exists.) The villains are interesting in that in some strange way they are no more immoral than the hero. The Parrish-like atmosphere of turn of the century futility, which also appears in a passing episode of the story of the thief, is characteristic and increasingly sad. The psychology is startling and fresh and wonderfully idiosyncratic, punctuated with images frozen as if by a flash of lightning. One of the "Star Kings" ends his days when, fleeing across an alien terrain, he is grabbed by some sort of strange life and turned into a tree--forever. Characters, including the villains, get even with the snobs and social superiors who tormented them. All of Vance's dislikes and crotchets must have been poured into the books. The series reached a climax in the book in which that book's villain--he hardly seems a villain anymore--is taken away by the "avatars"--the fictional heros of his childhood reading and imagination. The sense of loss and sadness is overwhelming. In other books, Vance's ideas are equally striking: The society in which the heroic elders, as they age, become pathologically suspicious and paranoid, a sort of exaggeration of Vance's usual characters� hard edged personalities, maybe Vance's own character; The arbitrary mix of human and animal in the �Dragon Masters�; The invisible alien life force which takes possession of the human race (this book until the last pages is set entirely in a normal, even dull, industrial urban setting) and which turns out to be the immaterial manifestation stretching across the cosmos of -- a tiny and insignificant vine on a distant world, which can be squashed under your (very material) foot; The people who live inside trees; The society where people can't eat in front of each other; The society in which individuals take on different personalities, viewed as a normal option. This was written at a time when the pop psychology, including �uplifting� books, exalted integrated, well-rounded personalities; The abrupt disasters and cruel jokes of the story of the thief, including the startling ending which returns everything to the beginning (I can never remember whether "Eyes of the Overworld" is the thief story or the one about the extraterrestrial little vines.) Many of these were Ace Double Books--what a bargain, and with Vance's exceptional writing style. Most science-fiction was written in a very clumsy manner. Vance was deft, clever. Vance's heros always just "were", just did things--very little psychologizing. In this they owed something, perhaps, to Gide's hero Lafcadio in "The Caves of the Vatican." What a breath of fresh air. And often startling, since this allowed his characters to do things that the then-version of "politically correctness" would not even imagine or allow. And of course, the glittering prose-poetry wine-drenched atmosphere of the "Dying Earth", a derivation of Lord Dunsunay and Arthur Machen, and that aspect of Lovecraft influenced by Dunsunay and Machen. The �Dragon Masters� continued this atmosphere. Perhaps because Vance was (apparently) in the merchant marine, and had seen many people and cultures, his stories were the most anthropological of any I had read in science fiction (or fantasy.) That is, he constantly presented "other cultures" with other ideas, other outlooks, other choices, and simply dropped them in our laps (and the character's laps) with no opportunity for moralizing or psychologizing; it was suggested that "other ways" were simply a fact. In this, he continued a major theme and insight of Kipling. It is this that I hope to be continuing, carrying out, in my "Woods" books and some of my other writing. And of course, Vance could do this in a strikingly funny way. In "Space Opera" (in which an operatic troupe traveled around from planet to planet) a group of small alien creatures gather worshipfully around a tiny electronic cube playing a symphony. The human members of the opera troupe comment on the "universal nature of music." It turns out the music resembles the sound of the alien's favorite food, some variety of insect, and the aliens think there are insects inside the musical box. One should also mention Vance's insistence on describing the clothes of characters and cultures. What a great writer, one of the true originals and masters of the age of science fiction. As a friend mentioned to me last year, Vance combines a deep sympathy for human nature and the individual, with a keen and often satirical awareness of the deceits of which human nature is possible.
Byron Marshall <bmarsh@iamerica.net>
Pineville, LA USA - Tuesday, March 28, 2000 at 15:37:35 (PST)

By far my favorite author. I think that I have all his works, but could be wrong. I applaud the VIE and hope to purchase the set, if only to replace my paperbacks. His later works (Araminta Station on) seem to ramble a bit, but still are great reads.l
Park Combest <combescp@bp.com>
houston, tx USA - Monday, March 27, 2000 at 10:52:11 (PST)

Maybe the human race won't wake up in time before she has destroyed herself & everything around her, but meanwhile I will enjoy the true fruits of life. Let's make a quiet revolution & refuse the commercial crap way of life that is forced upon us! Let the use of exhaust-spewing machines, and even the kicking down of a flower be regarded as a crime. We need to get back the reverence for Nature the Ancients had, and blend instead of enforce. (Life around a star is bound to seek connection to other stars, but let us not try to go there leaving a wake of destruction behind us. There are energy-sources hidden right before our eyes that will carry us in a natural way, if we only quiet down and be patient. This last century we have been just running lunatics and ravaged everything around us.) Let's hear it for more Internet and Electric Cars! And for mind- and sense-expanding culture like that of Jack Vance! And for time spent in Nature without leaving tracks.
Michael Jaquays <michaeljaquays@netscape.net>
USA - Saturday, March 25, 2000 at 05:19:27 (PST)

I'm sorry to say that I think the lack of popularity of Jack Vance's work really says something bad about this world. Is it ignorance or just plain stupidity? Based on what I have seen in life, I believe it is mass stupidity and that there is very little hope for the human race.
Jay M. Sherman <jsherma3@hotmail.com>
Fairmont, WV USA - Wednesday, March 15, 2000 at 11:39:00 (PST)

I've read Vance since '77 and picked up a copy of Marune/Alastor# in england '80 and must say that would make a great movie as it is wonderfully illustrated in description. The chewing behind the napkin point of manners is taken to an extreme!!!!!! Very funny. I have recently reread it and enjoyed it very much. If he continued the Alastor stories I would certainly flip flop around the house like a lobotomized fish. Here's some other titles and prices for future consideration that might be worked on: Buffoons of the Fleashe Belt...................$4.85 Shunque and Bol Hauteur........................$5.95 The Septic Clomp...............................$5.95 The Hinder Booms...............................$4.95 A Reduction of Hrotuel Maer....................$6.25 Periodicals of the Gaen Faceless...............$10.00 Ilubrugge's Panic at Hemmorage Point...........$4.95 The Burr Czar..................................$5.85 Rhomboid House near the Pleidmonque Slum.......$6.35 Peppercramp Nets...............................$10.00 Dictum from the Eunich.........................$4.95 Satorial Technologist..........................$5.85 Counting the Jaudl.............................$4.25 Disorder in HrAngleatte........................$5.35 If these titles get used send me a copy, reach me at my email. Thanks for the good writing!!
guerutten-blanks <gbgbbanks@hotmail.com>
hayward, ca USA - Monday, March 13, 2000 at 11:11:40 (PST)

Although I haven't read or even known of any new Jack Vance books lately, I was an avid fan for many years. I somehow assumed that when he moved to Ireland that he quit writing. I'm very glad to learn that is not the case. My favorite book is "Future Tense", which I have read and reread many times.
Richard C Baker <rcnph@alltel.net>
Douglas, GA USA - Wednesday, March 01, 2000 at 09:42:12 (PST)

How To Increase The Joy of Reading Vance and of Life In General. Here's what I do: I study Nature, both in books and from long meditative walks among Its wonders, to get a deeper understanding of how It works. I draw the plants and animals and also use clay, and study their anatomy, to get a richer appreciation of their forms and colors and activities. This increases my own imagination and ability to visualize alien and fairy life. I study the heavens in the middle of the chill night. At first I saw only light-dots on a black background, but having acquired a bit of knowledge about the stars and nebulae I now feel the depths of space and activity of masses. With the help of a small telescope I can reach far out and get in contact with the stirring of life there. Oh, it's fantastic! Similar to being for a walk in the countryside.
Jolin
Middle Age Earth - Friday, February 25, 2000 at 14:16:20 (PST)

Although the void may claim you, dear John, an aspect of your personality will live on forever in the hearts and minds of those who've read your work, since I believe that "what a person IS, is reflected in what he/she does". This is certainly true when it comes to writing: the novels are a reflection of the writer's personality and experiences. I'm sure you have figured THAT out yourself a long time ago, but still you have my sympathy. May time be kind to you, your no.1 fan Rowin.
Rowin S. Timmermans
Rotterdam, Netherlands - Tuesday, February 22, 2000 at 07:03:02 (PST)

Jack Vance: every year I reread all your books and every time they are as fresh as the first time. My favourite books? The Demon Princes. Pity that there are only five! Thank you for all these fantastic books! Jan Hendriks
Jan Hendriks <jamaphi@wxs.nl>
landsmeer, netrherlands - Friday, February 18, 2000 at 05:21:01 (PST)

Dear mister jack vance, Finnaly i get the chance to thank you for writting such magnificent books. You are a great part of my life because i read your books many times.I would love to hear from you in more books or an email. Your friend for ever Laurie.
laurie hagen <lau_hagen@zonnet.nl>
amsterdam, netherlands - Wednesday, February 16, 2000 at 11:31:53 (PST)

vance rules
mindglow <mindglow@SPAM_STINKShotmail.com>
Arnhem, NL - Sunday, February 13, 2000 at 11:56:57 (PST)

I was driven to find and reread The Moon moth, it is the best understanding of the use and mindset of internet user names.
Thomas Rogers <rogert@home.com>
Tigard, ORThe USA - Thursday, February 10, 2000 at 19:57:24 (PST)

One of the great things about the internet is sites like this. It's very nice to know that there are others out there would not pull a blank stare when i mention the name of my favorite author. I would be interested from hearing from other fans in the Chicago area
Clifford Abrams <cliffabrams@yahoo.com>
Evanston, IL USA - Sunday, February 06, 2000 at 09:25:19 (PST)

Hi out there all you vance fans greetings from the koala capitol of New South Wales.This is my first internet communication and i think it is fitting that it is directed to Mr Vance and all the people in the world who enjoy his writings as much as i do.I have been reading the great mans books for about twenty two years and never tire of his dry ironic wit,his lightning bolt vivid descriptive powers not to mention his baffling command of the english langauge which sometimes demands a quick trip to the dictionary.It always seems a long time between books and when i have that crisp new book in my hands i have to ration myself or i will read it in a sitting and then it is back to the desert of anticipation.Thank you Mr Vance and thank you Matt Wright for the opportunity of expressing my gratitude.
matt smith <corwins@hunterlink.net.au>
lemon tree passage, new south wales australia - Saturday, February 05, 2000 at 00:26:01 (PST)

Do you laugh out loud when you read "...a portly matron...took Ildefonse off to the ball-room, where they danced three gallops, a triple-polka, and a kind of strutting cake-walk where Ildefonse, in order to dance correctly, was obliged to raise one leg high in the air, jerk his elbows, throw back his head, then repeat the evolution with all briskness..." (Rhialto the Marvellous)? I love so many things about Vances books, the colour, the imagination, the wonderful worlds and societies, the pompous antagonists and the wry protagonists, the intricate problem solving and ingenuity, the subtle and surprisingly deep philosophising (e.g., "Since any number of conjectures can be formed, the denominator of an probability-ratio is variable and the entire concept becomes meaningless" - The Dragon Masters), the sheer beauty of his conceptualisations, and the startling ideas, and the competence of the heros. But above all, Jack Vance makes me laugh. His ironic dialogues alone would be enough to keep me coming back time and again. Thank you Jack Vance, and thank you for this web-site. I've never met anyone who seems to understand Vance in the way I do, but obviously there are a great many of us in the world, as this web-site shows. It's nice to think of the folk out there in the world who enjoy Vance like I do.
John Adamson <jainnz@yahoo.com>
New Zealand - Monday, January 24, 2000 at 18:27:18 (PST)

Mr Vance. r anybody who sees him;-)...Is there gonna be a third Cugel story. It would be really great...I enjoyed it very very much...
Yoedoe <Yoedoe@hotmail.com>
USA - Friday, January 07, 2000 at 14:57:06 (PST)

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USA - Friday, January 07, 2000 at 14:53:52 (PST)

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USA - Friday, January 07, 2000 at 14:53:29 (PST)

Mister Vance, thank you for all the wonderful howers you haf given me. by the way I named my son Kirth.
Lammens Paul <palam@freegates.be>
Maldegem, Belgium - Wednesday, December 29, 1999 at 13:04:14 (PST)

Its good to see recognition of Jack's work in sites like this one. I have been an avid reader of Vance since I first met him and became friends in about 1983. Though I have not seen him for many years I still eagerly seek out new works and older books which I have not previously read. I count myself lucky to have become familiar with him in a context few are aware of: his love for early jazz music. And I count myself lucky to have discovered his work and gotten to know him very well in the mid-1980s. He is a man of many parts not apparent to his readers: a devotee of classic early jazz; potter; world traveler via wind-powered boat; early adopter of the word processor; musician (trumpet; banjo; washboard; kazoo); and creator of a unique home in the Oakland hills. His wife Norma is also a delight; superb chef; and probably little-appreciated as editor and factotum. His works stand far above the vast majority of recent writers and were it not for literary predjudice against genre fiction he would be honored as a national, no, internatio
Dave Radlauer <dradjazz@aol.com>
San Francisco, CA USA - Sunday, December 26, 1999 at 00:26:08 (PST)

Does Jack Vance really read these? If so, I would like to say that I haunt bookstores looking for old and new Vances. My Tschai and Demon Princes paperback copies are falling apart because I have read them so much. Jack Vance is the only writer I know of whose stories, when I look up from reading, always leave me vaguely surprised to be where I am instead of in the location of the story. Mr. Vance, thank you so much. And my thanks to the creator of this Webpage. Best, Beth
Beth Graham <egraham20@hotmail.com>
San Antonio, TX USA - Thursday, December 23, 1999 at 19:08:20 (PST)

Mr. Vance, Thanks for hour and hours of reading pleasure
Pjotr <lemuria@dds.nl>
USA - Monday, December 20, 1999 at 10:40:33 (PST)

That one book I'd be allowed to take to this uninhibited island would be a Jack Vance, beyond any doubt. But then my troubles would really begin: which one to take? I love 'em all!
Peter Visser <petertatra@freemail.nl>
Holland - Thursday, November 25, 1999 at 14:10:37 (PST)

Well, to complete what I had begun below (and I apologize for wanhking out. . .), the final line was to have ended as, ahem �as to that I can not say. . .� So, there, I have said it.
Neal Umphred <neal_umphred@foxinternet.net>
Bellevue, WA USA - Thursday, November 25, 1999 at 11:01:46 (PST)

Well, to complete what I had begun below (and I apologize for wanhking out. . .), the final line was to have ended as, ahem �as to that I can not say. . .� So, there, I have said i
Neal Umphred <neal_umphred@foxinternet.net>
Bellevue, WA USA - Thursday, November 25, 1999 at 11:00:40 (PST)

Yes, but, all that may be as it may be�or is�but, still, I must admit here that, in the here-and-now, I am one-of-more-than-a-few-but-not-quite-enough Father Umphreds. The problem that I, as a Father Umphred, have is that, I am, at this point in time, although hopefull not in all points in time, ignorant of �Suldren�s Garden�. . . I acknowledge that each and every Umphred, both those detestable and those admirable, set forth upon this dying Earth is of the same stock (kith and kin, that sorta thing) so must request: Where would I find such choice reading? Must I route the musty old libraries? As for my name-bearers�, shall we say, curmudgeonly demeanor, well, as to that, I can n
Neal Umphred <neal_umphred@foxinternet. net>
Bellevue, WA USA - Thursday, November 25, 1999 at 10:49:33 (PST)

Have been visiting the Jack Vance site very often, and I find it very informative. I have ordered the 250ed. Jack Vance publication from Turpin but sofar did not receive anything.Does somebody know by chance what the status of the printing is? Would welcome info.
rene smit <a_lim@dds.nl>
Amstelveen, netherlands - Tuesday, November 09, 1999 at 12:07:28 (PST)

Space Pirate! First read it long, long ago as a teenager. Favourite series The Demon Princes. Of the 300-plus sf paperbacks (and some hard covers) I've collected, Jack Vance has inspired me the most. So now I've retired (from what is relatively unimportant) and I've just finished it! My JV-inspired sf novel! (Well, it's exciting to me!) Thank you Jack (do you really read this stuff?) for the inspiration. I should live long enough to match half of your output . . .
R.A. Bragg <rabragg@thezone.net>
Port aux Basques, NF Canada - Tuesday, October 19, 1999 at 22:50:58 (PDT)

Jack Vance is great! Greetings from Holland.
Arjen Lankhuizen <arjen.lankhuizen@nl.origin-it.com>
Nijmegen, The Netherlands - Sunday, October 17, 1999 at 12:05:02 (PDT)

Sure hope Mr. Vance is working on something good right now. Maybe a sequel to Ports of Call? Kevin B
Kevin R. Bowdler <kbowdler@fuse.net>
Cincinnati, Oh USA - Tuesday, October 05, 1999 at 08:13:30 (PDT)

Always liked reading JV. Durdane (Anome, Brave Free Men, Asutra) is my all-time favourite. However, the last two books I read were disappointing. Nightlamp was absolutely boring and Ports of Call too couldn't impress me at all. Fortunately I still got the oldies to turn to. Over and over again. Thanx for them!
Philemon <philemon@freemail.nl>
Netherlands - Saturday, September 18, 1999 at 12:49:14 (PDT)

I'd like some information about the biographie of Jack Vance. It's for my exam. Please, send it to my e-mail adress. By the way, Jack Vance is a very good sf-writer. Greetings, Johan Schutten
Johan Schutten <edschut@westbrabant.net>
Zwijndrecht, The Netherlands - Wednesday, September 08, 1999 at 00:31:12 (PDT)

I'd like some information about the biographie of Jack Vance. It's for my exam. Please, send it to my e-mail adress. Greetings, Johan Schutten
Johan Schutten <edschut@westbrabant.net>
Zwijndrecht, The Netherlands - Wednesday, September 08, 1999 at 00:30:00 (PDT)

as a musician and woodworker, i must say that empherio and the faceless man trilogy are top notch, also the musical asperations of howard alan treesong are so perfect....i admire the precisionist language and mostly the colors....what great books...
steve wishnevsky <wish@nr.infi.net>
winston salem , nc USA - Sunday, August 08, 1999 at 23:56:14 (PDT)

I have a fairly large collection of JV in paperbacks. Is there a "library" of some sort that I could donate my collection to? I'm not ready to give up the ghost, nor his works at present, but time flies... I started reading him years ago (I'm now 73) and of all the stories that I have read since 1938, Vance and James Schmitz are the only sets that I have held on to through the years.
Don Reaves <karres1@yahoo.com>
Gentry, AR USA - Sunday, August 08, 1999 at 20:54:35 (PDT)

I've read and reread about 30 of Vance's books. It used to be a guilty pleasure, what with the extreme stylization, the repetition of certain phrases from book to book (I used to play a game, counting the pages until a character said, "As to that I can not say."), the nearly identical characterization from book to book, and that comfortable feeling one gets from reading variations on the same themes, settings, and characters over and over. But now I just enjoy it. I thought I was the only reader left. I'm glad to discover with this website that I'm not the only one.
Dave Rankin <thedaverankin@yahoo.com>
San Diego, CA USA - Friday, August 06, 1999 at 16:20:53 (PDT)

Recent vance books seem to be unavailable here, Anyone know hiw I can get them?
John Bourke <john.bourke@oceanfree.net>
Co. Cork, Ireland - Saturday, July 31, 1999 at 04:21:59 (PDT)

Guarana
USA - Tuesday, July 27, 1999 at 07:09:29 (PDT)

I read the Moon Moth in '81 at the age of 31 and have been a devoted fan ever since. I have rarely laughed as hard at anything (since 'Bored of the Rings')as I have reading excerts from Bodissey's 'Life' and his critics comments of that worthy's work. It's comforting to know that there are this many fans that feel the same way. Thank You Mr. Vance.
Peter Bondante <pbondante@durrant>
Tucson, AZ USA - Tuesday, July 13, 1999 at 12:41:33 (PDT)

The internet was made for the Vance fan. Vance cognocienti are lucky if they know one or two others personally. As a 30+ year reader, I knew there had to be thousands "out there". More discussion of the mysteries would be of interest. The Sheriff Joe Bain stories, The Madman Theory...and the truly chilling Bad Ronald. How many out there know that Bad Ronald was made into a movie? They had to tone down the disturbing Vancian vision.Tapes exist but have been hard to find.
Ed Winskill < ewinskill@dpearson.com>
Tacoma, wa USA - Thursday, July 01, 1999 at 14:20:14 (PDT)

Dear Jack Vance, Since I read Tschai when I was a boy of fifteen years old, I became a very great admirer of your work. Now at the age of 38 I can tell you that you definitely still are my favorite writer! Each time when I read Durdane, Tschai of the fantastic adventures of Kirth Gersen or other stories, I find myself in a thrilling world of wonder that impresses me over and over. For me personally you have given me so much joy over the years that I get tears in my eyes when I write this down. Nobody ever in the whole world has created such astonishing and convincing fantastic worlds of wonder! Yes, I will keep on reading your books until I die and I as a great great fan I would like to thank you for writing all these wonderful books.
Henk Roos <Henk.Roos@nl.origin-it.com>
Helmond, Netherlands - Wednesday, June 23, 1999 at 17:46:52 (PDT)

How about a JV film fantasy league? How about Ridley Scott to direct the Demon Prince series with; Rod Steiger as Attel Malagate Rutger Hauer as Kokor Hekkus Gary Oldman as Viole Falushe Gerard Depardieu as Lens Larqu Jim Carrey as Howard Alan Treesong Bruce Campbell as Kirth Gersen ........or Tschai with Rowan Atkinson as Ankhe At Afram Anacho and Marlon Brando as Aila Woudiver? - anyone any other suggestions?
Geoff Freeman <geoffrey_freeman@hotmail.com>
Nottingham, UK - Wednesday, June 23, 1999 at 08:21:31 (PDT)

John has inspired me more then I can imagine. His sublime work has helped me through some difficult times; his novels are one of the few things that still can put a smile on my face. My favorites are "The dying Earth" and the books starring Cugel; other favorites are: Tschai, Lyonesse and the five books about Lens Larque and his four sinister companions. I love both fantasy and s.f. The first three books I mentioned are the basis for a roleplaying game I've played with my friends, using the A.D.&D. system. I've tried to use as much material from the three novels as I could and to keep the same atmosfere as in the novels, as not to cheapen the "dying earth": the subtile humor, the impermeable wildlands, filled with semi-intelligent creatures, ego-centered wizards, etc. I also based a world on the three Lyonesse novels, using the same rules. At the moment I'm working on a campaign based on "Tschai". If it's half as succesfull as my previous work, it'll be great roleplayin'. Trough these RPG-sessions I've managed to interest some of my friends to read Vance's novels; they all love it! The only thing that sucks about Vance is that his work reads so fast-I hate the end of a novel-; I've read EVERYTHING I could get my greedy paws on and now I'm dry on Vance. John, I seriously hope you continue to write over the next years, keeping my addiction satisfied. Greetings from your greatest admirer, Rowin S. Timmermans
Rowin S. Timmermans
Rotterdam, Netherlands - Tuesday, June 22, 1999 at 02:59:59 (PDT)

Navarth the mad poet is the greatest poet of all time, and I wish to in some way emulate him.
Ed Rom <hereward@bresnanlink.net>
Mankato , MN USA - Thursday, June 03, 1999 at 20:31:26 (PDT)

Thank you, Jack Vance for your novels en your imagination. My favorite book is Suldrun's garden, but i like many others too (Tscha�, Emphyrio, Kirth Gersen,...)
Emmanuel Alvarez <emmanuel.alvarez@cedas.u-bordeaux2.fr>
Gradignan, France - Friday, May 21, 1999 at 08:11:24 (PDT)

I'm working on an adaptation of Tscha� and searching for maps of the planet...Can anybody help me?
Li An <dmayer.apmep@wanadoo.fr>
FRANCE - Friday, May 21, 1999 at 04:35:17 (PDT)

Co-publisher of Honor to Finuka (early '80s) checking in. Great site!
Martha Koester <eridani@scn.org>
Seattle, WA USA - Thursday, May 13, 1999 at 10:18:30 (PDT)

I had so much fun doing this last year that I decided to add myself again to the Guestbook. Night Lamp : excellent. Ports of Call : more of the same. Eagerly awaiting Lurulu. Must be time for another. So come on Jack ... Once more into the breach and get those fingers pumping lad! I'm an out-of-work word processor so if you need any assistance - just yodel! Gidday to all you special Jack fans out there! Donna
Donna Adams <donna@acid.co.nz>
notonyourlife, New Zealand - Thursday, May 13, 1999 at 04:13:52 (PDT)

To Jolin: Done!
David Pierce <clover@colorado.net>
USA - Wednesday, May 12, 1999 at 20:55:37 (PDT)

Here is a call to all Vance�s fans: Go to Locus Magazine�s homepage (www.locusmag.com/) and vote for Jack Vance at their Online Poll & Survey. This may increase his sales. Let�s give him the support!!
Jolin
USA - Wednesday, May 12, 1999 at 06:27:46 (PDT)

As a dealer in objects from all accessable times and dimensions I consider Jack Vance's ouevre indispensable for surviving in these halcyon times.
Srenlioc Jebsiaan <snocrash@hotmail.com>
Amsterdam, Holland - Wednesday, May 05, 1999 at 19:48:00 (PDT)

Have been a Jack Vance fan (or obsessed with) his work since the 1970's....This is something of a feat in Milwaukee, but I know there is at least one other here in Milwaukee.. I used to have to contend with him (her) at The Turning Page for the Underwood-Miller stuff that Ron could get... Now if I could ever get my hands on "Green Magic".....
Gary W. Bourbonais <gwb@execpc.com>
Milwaukee, WI USA - Monday, May 03, 1999 at 14:31:01 (PDT)

A miniature painting and gaming stylist, I like to create the worlds of Vance visually. I only own eleven of his books but I read them over and over. And no matter how little money I have in my pocket I would always spend it on a book I did not have !
Peter Sochaczewski
Uppsala, Sweden - Monday, April 26, 1999 at 06:43:04 (PDT)

Mister Vance. Thank you for so many hours of sheer pleasure. All your books contain the same magic, even after the third reading. I rarely see them on second hand stalls here in England - very rarely - and I know that's because people don't like to part with them. I'll never part with mine, in fact they have their own shelf. Thanks again. DHB.
Derek Brimstone <brimo1@mcmail.com>
Hemel Hempstead, Herts England - Saturday, April 03, 1999 at 07:47:27 (PST)

I wish to salute Jack Vance as one of the greatest of writers of imaginative literature, and certainly among my personal favorites--maybe *the* favorite, in fact:) Gary
Gary Gygax <ggygax@genevaonline.com>
Lake Geneva, WI USA - Thursday, March 25, 1999 at 09:17:35 (PST)

Hi ! I am desperately in need for the complete dying earth series. It is impossible to find in Germany and I am looking for it since 1993 ! Please Help
Eed <komenda@uni-muenster.de>
USA - Tuesday, March 02, 1999 at 14:24:18 (PST)

Your Vancetastic and I like your books write more and more.
G.J.Klein Middelink <gklmidd@telekabel.nl>
Apeldoorn, Gld Holland - Tuesday, March 02, 1999 at 07:10:03 (PST)

Sincerest thanks to JV for answering his phone in person, and agreeing to sell me the rights to his stories in the language Esperanto. Already translated are: 'Three-legged Joe', 'The Moon Moth' and half of 'Chateau D'If'. Working now to port them over to WordPerfect8 from Excellence! word processor on my antique Amiga 2000. The 1st is very nearly ready. Plans are to establish a web page and publish them all in *.html rather than on paper. I'll loose less money giving them away for free.
Gan Uesli Starling <MisteraSturno@WorldNet.ATT.net>
Kalamazoo, MI USA - Friday, February 26, 1999 at 03:07:38 (PST)

your too cool!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Heather Randall <hellands@prtel>
Fergus Falls, MN USA - Friday, February 19, 1999 at 17:45:16 (PST)

A brief thank you to Jack Vance for years of great pleasure and much laughter.
peveril of the peaks <peveril@themail.co.uk>
uk - Thursday, February 18, 1999 at 15:28:25 (PST)

WARNING, WARNING, WARNING Jack Vance books are dangerously addictive Reading the comments here already has me planning on a major session when I get home But where do I start ? Lyonesse for magic & romance, Planet of Adventure for resourcefulness, Demon Princes for cold hard calculated revenge, Araminta for coming of age, the Connecticut (?) for abnormal social development, the Languages of Pao for sheer brilliance of concept (this is a must for all Vance fans), and our old friend Cugel the opportunist. I'm overwhelmed, and will be uncontactable for the next six months ! Congratulations Mr Vance !
Ian Richardson <irichard@tcf.org.au>
Sydney, NSW Australia - Monday, February 08, 1999 at 19:31:07 (PST)

Vance reader since 1960. Whoever first called him the Shakespeare of Science Fiction had it right. The older I get, the more I appreciate Shakespeare AND Vance. Favorites are The Alastor Cluster novels and his Lyonesse trilogy, but it's all great! Spread the word. You're not an educated SF/Fantasy reader unless you've read Vance.
Byron Tetrick <anjinsan@compuserve.com>
Cincinnati, OH USA - Monday, February 08, 1999 at 15:11:52 (PST)

Hey, Internet is great, after 30 years I finally get to meet(?) the author of my life. Since 3O years I dream of becoming an sf writer. Jack was and is still my absolute mentor. Keep it up and I hope I may send you my first book somewhere next year!
Eric Le Corne de Nantes <basics.vision@planetinternet.be>
Gent, Belgium - Saturday, February 06, 1999 at 09:08:59 (PST)

Every reader addicted to Jack Vance prays for the Master of Fantasy's longevity ; there are not so many authors such as Him on our Small Planet ...
Sylvain CLEMENT <Sylvain.Clement@wanadoo.fr>
Besan�on, France - Friday, February 05, 1999 at 13:51:51 (PST)

As I need hardly mention, Vance is unique in his outlook, imagination, and powers of description.
Robert Atlas <r_atlas@hotmail.com>
Houston, TX USA - Sunday, January 24, 1999 at 18:46:56 (PST)

JV fans that I have met comment how most other SF/F writers become pale and 2 dimensional by comparison. If you've absorbed all the JV SF/F work, check out his mysteries.
skkl <skkl@att.net>
USA - Saturday, January 23, 1999 at 17:41:03 (PST)

JV Rocks!
Ken Jordan <kenj@massmedia.com>
USA - Sunday, January 17, 1999 at 18:38:31 (PST)

Wonderful, really wonderful to see all this appreciation for a man who truly deserves it. Ever since straying across a copy of Lyonesse aged 16 I have been completely enrapt. There is no other storyteller like Vance. Now, if I had my copy of Baron Bodissey's Life to hand I could provide a suitable quote. Favourite books: all of them, no exceptions. Perhaps Emphyrio haunts my memory most of all but taking one title from Vance's work leads on inevitably and on and on.
Jimi Fallows <jimi@fallows102.freeserve.co.uk>
Liverpool, England - Wednesday, January 13, 1999 at 14:54:32 (PST)

I can no longer take the yearly announcements of the Nobel prizes for literature serious unless JV gets one!
pieter otten <otten@niehs.nih.gov>
chapel hill, nc USA - Monday, December 21, 1998 at 16:21:29 (PST)

At the tender age of 13 I discovered Jack Vance, now I'm an old codger of 37 and he's still my favorite. I spent a few years at sea (just like Jack) and I took his books with me. Unlike others, you can read 'em again and again and still extract the same pleasure you had the first time. Nobody is in the same class as Jack Vance.
Jim Gust <TorzJohnson@Yahoo.com>
Milford, CT USA - Friday, December 11, 1998 at 23:19:38 (PST)

After finding your website, my interest in Vance has been renewed. I have just bought four more books from amazon.
Andy Fielder <andrew.fielder@some.ox.ac.uk>
UK - Friday, November 20, 1998 at 11:39:33 (PST)

Twins tend to act like two quantum particles... it doesn't matter how far apart they are, they seem to affect each other, regardless...
Joseph Shumaker <Shoe34@Compuserve.com>
Clarksville, TN USA - Thursday, November 19, 1998 at 23:21:41 (PST)

Congrats, Jack, I've enjoyed your stories for years... Now you can tell Harlan Ellison that he's not all that unique... Shoe
Shoe <Shoe34@compuserve.com>
Clarksville, TN USA - Thursday, November 19, 1998 at 23:12:13 (PST)

It appears that Weamish is dead.
Rod <mcnameer@fish.govt.nz>
Auckland, New Zealand - Wednesday, November 18, 1998 at 19:15:01 (PST)

This is.....I'm just at a loss for words; something that don't happen often, I gotta tell you. Years ago, I ran accross "The Moon Moth" in an anthology and was just blown away. I couldn't believe the complexity yet the logic of the society he had created!!! He threw away plots!!!! So, natch, I had to find out if he had written anything else and if it was as good as this. Hoo Boy!!!!!!! I wound up reading everything I could find and was so fascinated by the names he came up with I made the best one mine: Emphyrio. I have yet to run into anybody on the street or on the web who knows what that is. I can't say that I have a favorite book but Trullion comes awful close....ever try to get up a good game of Hussade???? Wonderful. I talked to Jack on the phone once...he's listed in the damn phone book...just like Stan Laurel was!!!!! I will be a faithful atendee at this site from now on....man, it's great to know there are others who share this lunacy. Thank you fellow humans. Emphyrio
Emphyrio <mikeri19@idt.net>
San Luis Obispo, CA USA - Tuesday, November 17, 1998 at 22:13:50 (PST)

I have been addicted to Patrick O'Brian's Aubrey-Maturin series for several years now. If Jack Vance is in the same league, I intend to get on board. Where should I start? Thanks, John Hunt
John Hunt <jrhmwh@sowega.net>
Cuthbert, GA USA - Thursday, November 12, 1998 at 15:04:03 (PST)

Vance has always inspired me tremendously. The visions he puts to paper have altered , coloured my mind permanently.
Ron Kuiper <rokuiper@hetnet.nl>
Poortugaal, The Netherlands - Thursday, November 12, 1998 at 12:17:06 (PST)

A Jack Vance reader must surely feel like the single crewmember on a one-man submarine. Run, silent, run deep. From a library in the midwest in the late '60's, where I ran across a novel with the curious title "Emphyrio", through used bookstores across the country, I quietly searched for anything written by this man. Once I had the temerity to call him, and he took the time to speak with me. His writing is like no other. Thank you for reading this. It hadn't occurred to me that there might be entire websites devoted to this man's work. But then, you like it as much as I, and that speaks volumns.
John Horan <jhoran@icmarc.org>
Washington, DC USA - Tuesday, November 03, 1998 at 09:47:18 (PST)

Hell everybody. Do you want to know where Vance is ? Wait a few weeks and I'll send you his Pictures. He was great yesterday during the conference where he won the Utopia Prize (Poitiers in France).
Rotaur
France - Saturday, October 31, 1998 at 03:37:19 (PST)

I want to thank Bruno for putting the Tcha� books into my hands over a year ago. Where can I find more english editions in France, and a full bibliography?
Ronan
France - Thursday, October 22, 1998 at 07:32:29 (PDT)

I read a lot of science-fiction but every time when i'm in a (secondhand) bookstore and see a Jack Vance, my hart beats faster. Mostly after that, i'm sad because i've read it already. I like his simplicity in complex things. He has the ability to let people create their own fantasies with little information. May his worlds become the future. ciao.
sonja <sonjadeponja@yahoo.com>
netherlands - Monday, October 12, 1998 at 14:45:30 (PDT)

I had the opportunity to meet Jack at the WorldCon in Orlando. He signed my copy of "Eyes of the Overworld" - the first Vance I ever read way back as a child. It was an important life event for me. I wish Jacka long life and many more books!
John Lisowski <jjlisowski@aol.com>
Philadelphia area, PA USA - Saturday, October 10, 1998 at 08:40:49 (PDT)

I read and re-read all of Jack Vance`s work, I must have read the Lyonnesse series 20 times and I still enjoy every minute of visiting these worlds he creates with word pictures. He can say in a sentence what would take me a paragraph by the sheer choice of words.
Tony Mercer <tony.mercer@btinternet.co.uk>
Lytham, England - Tuesday, October 06, 1998 at 07:53:32 (PDT)

I am overwhelmed. This is great. Jack Vance is my favorite SF author. I have been reading him for the past 30 years. I used to walk around SF convention with a badge which said "Vance Anyone"? I have a brother who ribs me by saying "Jack who" whenever I start talking about one of his stories.
Joe Ormond <ormondjoe@aol.com>
Eureka, CA USA - Saturday, October 03, 1998 at 11:24:32 (PDT)

Excellent stuff. Keep it coming, please. Question: was there a novel that featured aliens who had a religious entity named "Tiggywaugh's Web" ?
Bob Sather <robert.sather@cwcom.net>
UK - Friday, October 02, 1998 at 08:47:07 (PDT)

Gruff here again. My friend (not Deedle) has asked me to mention 'Showboat World', the idea of which fascinates her although she's not a JV/sf fan. At the Royal Melbourne Show one can buy 'showbags' containing goodies; there's a huge range of them and they're on sale all over the showgrounds but especially in one big building, which we've dubbed 'Showbag World' with acknowledgments to JV! Gruff (Mark N)
mark newbrook <mark.newbrook@arts.monash.edu.au>
Clayton, VIC AUSTRALIA - Wednesday, September 09, 1998 at 15:50:18 (PDT)

Don't know if you read these, Jack, but I would like to thank you anyway for the many, many hours of distant worlds, urbane heroes, delightful women, bungling mountebanks and wefkins I have visited and met in the 10 or more years I have been reading your books. I don't believe there is another writer in the world who can describe entrancing scenery, human & alien physiology and personas, ecstatic highs, desperate lows, and exceptional violence in such a concise and gentle manner. I have a comprehensive general library, but I always seem to be waiting for the next Vance book to come out. I trust there are many more in the pipeline. Best regards.
John <glasshopper@bigpond.com.au>
Brisbane, Q Australia - Saturday, September 05, 1998 at 01:47:10 (PDT)

I'm like Vance books. But now in Russia published only 5 novels. Four from Demon Princes serial and House of Izm. Vary intresting reading. Fine blend of sf and detective.
Dmitry Voskresensky <voskd@teleform.ru>
Moscow, Russia - Wednesday, September 02, 1998 at 06:20:38 (PDT)

Been reading JV since the early 70's, when I picked up "The many Worlds of Jack Vance" so I could read something while washing clothes in a laundramat, and have been hooked ever since. Now, I can't pass a book store, especially a used book store, without taking a look. I just found "The Green Pearl" a couple of weeks ago! Thanks, Jack!
Steve McManus
Phila, PA USA - Monday, August 31, 1998 at 13:27:03 (PDT)

Happy 82nd Jack! A mug of Smade's Own and a tot of Blue Ruin await you at the Traveller's Inn in Settra! Well done Jack!
Peter R Booth <azenomei@ticnet.com>
Mesquite, TX USA - Saturday, August 29, 1998 at 02:40:52 (PDT)

Jack Vance: happy birthday, keep up the good work, everybody is waiting for the sequel to Ports of Call
Willem
- Friday, August 28, 1998 at 13:29:10 (PDT)

Dear fellow JV fans I first discovered JV through Maske:Thaery in 1986. I was living in Hong Kong & the 2nd-hand bookshops didn't have many of the earlier works. I plagued my mum in Liverpool (I'm British, though I now live in Oz)& she scoured the shops there. Since then I've tried to keep up. My all-time favourite is Emphyrio but I find the books (and short stories) so impressive that it's actually hard to rank them. As a (socio-)linguist (and fan of Tolkien etc) I'm especially interested in the cultures and the associated language, in The Languages Of Pao with its Whorfian concepts, and in JV's style. I'm always interested (to the extent that my very busy life permits!) in chat about these and other aspects of JV's work - so I welcome contact. Gruff (with side-kick Deedle)
mark newbrook (gruff) <mark.newbrook@arts.monash.edu.au>
Melbourne, VicVVic Australia - Tuesday, August 25, 1998 at 15:48:29 (PDT)

Merci � Jack de nous faire rever.
Jean-Yves
Toulouse, FRANCE - Wednesday, August 19, 1998 at 03:18:26 (PDT)

My first Jack Vance book was Planet of Adventure and I was hooked. To me, he is one of the best science-fiction/fantasy writers I have ever read. Together with Ray Bradbury and Roger Zelazny, he makes up the core of writers I read. He is also a big influence on my style of writing fiction (who isn't a writer nowadays? :). I hope Jack keeps writing for a very long time!
Fred Furtado <fred@ibccf.biof.ufrj.br>
Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brazil - Monday, August 10, 1998 at 08:38:10 (PDT)

Found Jack Vance in college. Entranced by The Dying Earth. No one has ever equaled him for nuance.
Donald A. Stadler <DAStadler@aol.com>
Roanoke, VA USA - Wednesday, July 29, 1998 at 18:48:13 (PDT)

On the recommendation of the great french artist MOEBIUS, I picked up a Jack Vance book some months ago. Now, I must have read about 20 and I can't seem to stop. What a discovery. Such talent at suggesting, hinting, implying, and never overstating the most extraordinary faraway worlds. Not only have I been in the grip of Mister Vance's tales, but I read them with a dictionary nearby... He really is so literate and eloquent, and superb when it comes to describing his cultures and peoples... Isn't it unfortunate that I could find most of his novels only after diligent hunting through second-hand bookstores? The short story MOON MOTH is particularly extraordinary, as are the delightful PLANET OF ADVENTURE books. Who but Jack Vance would ever have a character named ANKH AT AFRAM ANACHO THE DIRDIRMAN ?
Mark Siegel <SteadyQui@aol.com>
Boston, MA USA - Saturday, July 25, 1998 at 16:31:01 (PDT)

I began reading Jack Vance as a teenager in the 1960's. I think his ability to make alien worlds so completely absorbing and believable is second to none. The "Dying Earth" and "Eyes of the Overworld" stories quickly established him as my favorite fantasy and science fiction writer, and since then I've read anything and everything by him which I could get my hands on.
Mike Arsham <marsham@netcns.com>
New York, NY USA - Friday, July 24, 1998 at 11:56:18 (PDT)

Last year I read The Moonmoth-I liked it.Few months ago I read The Dragon Masters-I LOVED it!!! Now I'm reading The Dying Earth-oh my God!I'm speechless!!! I think I'm sarting to admire this man!Please,anyone who wants- e-mail me!!!I'm sure that there's a lot to be said about this great writer!
Vladimir Poleganov <vladi90@hotmail.com>
Sofia, Bulgaria - Wednesday, July 22, 1998 at 00:27:44 (PDT)

Reading all the comments about Jack Vance was almost as interesting as reading Vance himself. I've always known the man was special, but for many, many years I felt like a lone fan. I first read The Dying Earth from the Hillman edition about 1950. The concept of a distant Earth future in which our present time wasn't even hinted at facinated me. And those exotic characters! Over the years I've bought and read just about everything Vance has written. It is grafifying to an old fan to know that so many readers appreciate him as much as I do. Thanks to the internet and this site, I don't feel like the "lone fan" any more. When I'm not so busy being retired, I'm going to go back and reread each novel. It would be nice to hear from other "older" fans of Jack's. Please e-mail.
John B. Ringer <jbringer@frontiernet.net>
Towanda, IL USA - Thursday, July 16, 1998 at 21:18:17 (PDT)

Hello, I am not suprised to see such a large number of JV lovers on the net. I decided Jack was the best sometime in the 70's. The Blue World is one of my favorite Vance books. I have his 60's stories in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction and a 1st ed of Vandals of the Void (paid $1 at a flea market). I contributed a story and a wordsearch puzzle to a Vance fanzine called Honor to Finuka circa 1980. Has anyone seen the comic book version of The Narrow Land in Andromeda #4 (1978)? I also have a cool fanzine called Cosmopolis which Jack Vance himself contributed to! I would be pleased to hear from any of you Vance fans. Regards, Andy Buschmann
Andy Buschmann <aandroid@rocketmail.com>
Batesville, AR USA - Friday, July 10, 1998 at 16:50:20 (PDT)

We love you very much...well..maybe not very much...but we love your stories, the picken's of which have been very slim in the book stores lately. I'm glad to see you have an active web page. I need more.....regards.......Dodkin
John & Lynne Vik <jvik@infonet@tufts.edu>
Westford, Ma USA - Monday, July 06, 1998 at 16:21:52 (PDT)

Dear Jack . I have read and re-read your books many times. I recommend them more strongly than any other. Your prose is a delight. Thank you for the laughter, philosophy and feeling of well being that reading your works always provides me. Live long and proper.
Richard A. Butler <s&rbutler@xtra.co.nz>
christchurch, NZ - Thursday, July 02, 1998 at 19:41:49 (PDT)

Jack, I just live in your books. Whenever I finish one of your books, reality hits me like a hammer. I just bought Ports of Call, can't wait to start!! Thanks for all the wonderfull hours
alex van veen <avee@kempen.nl>
Leiden, Netherlands - Wednesday, June 24, 1998 at 05:22:54 (PDT)

One of the very very few authors whose books I buy in hardback
Lars-�ke Frykholm <frykholm@algonet.se>
Sweden - Saturday, June 20, 1998 at 18:13:43 (PDT)

Jack Vance, the many books of yours that i have collected and read have moved me fiercely. If anyone out there wants to talk about Vance(or, say, zindell) send me e-mail.
jay stupak <mringess@hotmail.com>
monroeville, pa USA - Sunday, June 14, 1998 at 22:54:15 (PDT)

I absolutley love the names that Mr. Vance creates. They seem to be a mix of several languages. They sound english, gaelic, german and from the Netherlands. If you pronounce the names in german (I know that's not what you're supposed to do) they have a wonderful sound.
Thorsten Rueter <thor@deltacity.net>
Ibbenbueren, Germany - Wednesday, June 03, 1998 at 12:58:12 (PDT)

Very neat page. I love reading and collecting old books, and this page was quite a resource.
Jennifer <SweetspotJ@aol.com>
Middlefield, CT USA - Friday, May 29, 1998 at 06:05:31 (PDT)

I was very happy to see a place (even if virtual) dedicated to my favorite writer. I am not sure which was my first book, Maske: Theary or The Dragon Masters, it was 17 years ago and I was 13 then. But ever since I have been meandering through his books, listening to his evocative imagery, enthralled by unseen worlds and illusory people and stricken by what they told about us. Only in Science Fiction may the human condition be stretched, twisted and deformed to show us to ourselves without falling into the ridiculous. In this Mr. Vance is without parallel.
Paulino J. S. de Souza Jr. <pjsouza@hotmail.com>
Rio de Janeiro, RJ Brazil - Wednesday, May 27, 1998 at 22:27:10 (PDT)

My first book I bought from Jack was "Durdane". My addiction began with the second: "Tscha�". Now, I search every novel translated in Dutch... And I keep reading them again and again... Jack is the VERY BEST!
B. Ooms
Herentals, Belgium - Tuesday, May 26, 1998 at 08:54:57 (PDT)

I am now reading Jack Vance's book Lyonesse and I just love it!! I'm plaanning to read all three parts, and after that who knows!!? By the way, if ther's anyone out there could someone please inform me on what books he has written in the fantasy sphere? Thanx!!
Richard Knoppen <972312@ichthus-rdam.nl>
Rotterdam, Netherlands - Monday, May 25, 1998 at 02:20:17 (PDT)

I have come to realize lately that Mr. Vance has had an important part in shaping my character. In my young impressionable hippie days how fortunate I was to become addicted to his brillent prose. What I thought was simply sheer pleasure in escaping to fantastic dreamscapes was actually something quite different. I was learning the value of Mr. Vance's overarching theme: competence! Now an overworked, underloved techie type, I find great satisfaction in doing my job well (computer lighting control). I can only give my heartfelt thanks that Jack Vance chose ( in his ever so subtle way)to bend his talant for beautiful word smithing towards imparting valuable life lessons. we all owe a great deal to you sir.
Casey Simpson <singletracksimp@hotmail.com>
Downey, CA USA - Friday, May 22, 1998 at 16:47:35 (PDT)

i have come to realize lately that Mr. Vance has had a important part in shaping my character. In my young impressionable hippie days how fortunate I was to become addicted to his brillent prose. What I thought was simply sheer pleasure in escaping to fantastic dreamscapes was actually something quite different. I was learning the value of Mr. Vance's overarching theme: competence! Now an overworked, underloved techie type, I find great satisfaction in doing my job well (computer lighting control). I can only give my heartfelt thanks that Jack Vance chose ( in his ever so subtle way)to bend his talant for beautiful word smithing towards imparting valuable life lessons. we all owe a great deal to you sir.
Casey Simpson <singletracksimp@hotmail.com>
Downey, CA USA - Friday, May 22, 1998 at 16:45:13 (PDT)

I'm so happy to have a place to pay homage to a nonpariel. Of course, I speak of Jack Vance. ALL his writings are my favorites, but the one that I took to China was ARAMINTA STATION. The characters are unforgetable, and I will always be grateful for the knowledge that it is OK to live in imaginary worlds. I have just purchased NIGHTLAMP, and look forward to many more readings. THANKS to Mike, and heartfelt thanks, always, Jack Vance!
Pattie McFarland <WalkingCloud@msn.com>
Escondido, CA USA - Friday, May 22, 1998 at 09:19:24 (PDT)

Hi there fellow dreamers. I read my first Vance at the age of 13. It was Durdane and after that book I just had to read everything from THE KING of SF I could get my hands on. I cannot name all the books I read and enjoyed, but believe me, I have read a lot of JV in those eleven years and he keeps surprising me. So Jack, if you're ever gonna visit this site, I want to thank you for all the worlds you gave me and keep up that vivid imagination.
Kasper Meerhof <1004542@student.feo.hvu.nl>
Schoonhoven, The Netherlands - Monday, May 18, 1998 at 07:59:10 (PDT)

When I first read The Eyes of the Overworld, it rocked my world! I was stunned at the imagery and ribsplitting ironies. I was astounded that so much wry humor, history and arcane lore could be invested into printed paper. I became immersed in the Dying Earth...it was with exaltation (and relief) that I learned there was MORE! Then I found the Tschai novels. (four) I wonder at so little mention of them here!!! Check these out, people. Also, I would have loved Adam Reith's return to Tschai. The City of the Chasch, the Servants of the Wanhk, the Dirdir, the Pnume. Another favorite: the Many Worlds of Magnus Ridolph. I have sought out Jack Vance novels whenever possible. I am so glad to here there are more. Sir, if it IS true you might get these letters, I must tell you you are possibly the greatest fiction/fantasy/scifi writer of our century. I cannot begin to tell you how much joy you have brought me. This is stuff I would have my children read, as also Mark Twain. You are so eloquent and subtle with your exposure of the greed, small- mindedness, ridiculousness and the noble traits of us human beings. I will never forget the marvelous description of the mad Phung hopping into the pond to forlornly consider his one leg, after a battle with the Dirdir chasing Adam, Anacho and Traz. So many wonderful memories of you books, too numerous to describe. I am currently reading Lyonesse and then the Green Pearl. I have others coming from the library. I can never tell you how much joy you have brought me. You will always be a hero to me, Jack. If I could write like anyone in the vast archive of writers I have enjoyed from every sort of literature I have read for the last 37 years, it would be you. But I know it's not just the ability to paint wild exotic realms with worlds, it's also your seemingly vast life experiences that enable you to create these worlds. Thank you so much! You're a legend to me. John Harrod PS thanks Mike!
John Harrod <Jharrod@oakweb.com>
So. Lake Tahoe, Ca USA - Sunday, May 17, 1998 at 00:01:53 (PDT)

Jack, I understand you occasionally read these comments. That being the case, let me say "Thank You." I never enjoy reading more than when I have one of your works in my hand. You are the best.
Cuthbert Clabbermilque <tcbpfb@pacbell.net>
USA - Friday, May 15, 1998 at 21:38:14 (PDT)

I have been a Jack Vance fan since reading "The Killing Machine" as a teenager. he has been a constant companion since then.....
Geoff Freeman <geoff.freeman@nottinghamcity.gov.uk>
Nottingham, UK - Thursday, May 07, 1998 at 01:38:50 (PDT)

When I was 12 I read the Demon Princes novels (oh what frustration trying to find copies! They always got stolen from the local library) and recently reread them again with great joy, uncovering much deeper layers of meaning at 27 (the Darsh whip act and indeed the entire culture is so much more sinister now). I've recently picked up the Cadwal sequence (the first two at least) and am sure that I have discovered at last a science fiction author in whose works the science interacts but does not interfere with the fiction. Well done.
Justin Moretti <morettit@senet.com.au>
Adelaide, SA Australia - Sunday, April 26, 1998 at 02:56:47 (PDT)

Some years back I was lucky enough to read 'Cugels Saga'. It has since become a firm favorite and I would dearly love to know of the other 'Dying Earth' novels. I *think* I have them all: 'Dying Earth', 'Eyes of the Overworld', 'Cugels Saga', and 'Rhialto the Marvelous', but are there others which I don't know of? Also I heard that another author had written several stories using Cugel as the main character. Is this the case? Any information would be greatly appreciated.
Andrew Williams <andrewW@probe.co.uk>
London, UK - Thursday, April 23, 1998 at 09:54:36 (PDT)

Excerpt of my reply to Brook's Peck's "spoiler" review of "Ports of Call" in Science Fiction Weekly: ...Your review of "Ports of Call" is for the most part accurate, though you place too much emphasis on the importance of a "central plot" (a common fault of literary criticism). Actually, a plot is simply a course of events, like the course plotted for a sailing vessel, and it need be no more than this to yield satifying results. Thus, the title "Ports of Call" precisely characterizes the form of the book -- a fictional travelogue. Remember, Fielding's "Tom Jones" and Cervante's "Don Quixote" lack "central plots," and yet they are among the greatest works of fiction ever penned. "Ports of Call" is more than an excellent read; it is a brilliant jewel, in its own small way as good as anything Jack�s written, (and I should know -- I've read all his works several times). Someday, when all the hype about "who's the best" is over, Vance will be recognized as one of the most talented and important writers of fiction of the Twentieth Century, and an equal of Fielding, Swift, Butler, Dickens.
David Pierce, Jr. <clover@colorado.net>
Silverthorne, CO USA - Wednesday, April 22, 1998 at 16:43:13 (PDT)

What do you say to someone who has given you over 30 years of great reading (let alone visits to other worlds)? Well, I guess, "thanks ever so much." Although I have a number of other reading interests, the first thing I do upon entering a bookstore is quickly head to the SF section and go to the where the letter "V" authors are to see if (hope upon hope) there's a new Vance. Favorite quote (which I'll have do from a balky memory since my Marune is on loan): "Gratuity? You are lucky to have escaped a penalty for criminal ineptitude!" Tell us about yourself?: I'm an advertising copywriter for a musical instrument company and a woodwind/harmonica player. Thanks Matt for giving me the chance to pass on my gratitude to someone who has been a very large part of my life.
Paul Specht <Saxharp@aol.com>
Cheltenham , PA USA - Sunday, April 19, 1998 at 09:21:46 (PDT)

My first sf novell was "slaven van de klau" Dutch translation! Thats Planet of the damned for the rest of the world. After that i read a lot of sf books, but for Years Mister Jack Vance was the KING of SF. and maybe I read more Anne McCaffrey, or Robert Jordan but Jack Vance is something special for me. for me especialy the short stories like "the potters of firsk"
Ronald P. Wubbena <wubbena@xs4all.nl>
Kampen, Holland - Friday, April 17, 1998 at 15:13:04 (PDT)

Is it true that Jack Vance may skim true these comments? Even with his eye condition? Maybe his son or wife reads them to him? If this is so then please Mr. Vance! Write a novel that takes place during Grand Mothalam, and write the story of the female saint who had the three children from being raped by the troll she was trying to convert. And would it be possible to persuade you, please sir, to detail the story of the life of the Great Phandaal? That would be the most sought after story in the history of man!! Could you please write a story that took place during the aeon of the wars between the Wizards and Witches? I really love all of your work but I feel you write science fantasy too well to have neglected it so. Please consider these subjects? Thank you very much!
Muhammad Rasheed <MuRasheed@aol.com>
converse, TX USA - Thursday, April 16, 1998 at 10:52:41 (PDT)

One day I discovered "Mazirian the Magician" in a collection of short stories with a magical theme and it BLEW MY MIND!! When I learned that that beloved story was only one chapter in a DYING EARTH SAGA I almost had a heart attack from pure pleasure. Since then I am proud to consider myself a Jack Vance Fan! I'm pleased to see so many other fans as well (though it does make it hard to complete my collection!) and I wish you all and Master Jack much prosperity! Precisely so!
Muhammad Rasheed <MuRasheed@aol.com>
Converse, TX USA - Wednesday, April 15, 1998 at 10:15:08 (PDT)

It's been a great thing to find this site. Vance was one of the first SF writers i read, and that was almost 20 yeaars ago. Since then i've tried to get all of his books, a problematic thing when you live in Southamerica, since the vance books translated into spanish, are logically edited in Spain. i remember the durdane trilogy (anome), and Emphyrio as some of the best books in SF i've ever read. i hope Mr. Vance is happy to know there is at least one fan of him here in Peru. By.
juan arellano valdivia <jarellano@tvs.com.pe>
iquitos, peru - Saturday, April 11, 1998 at 13:08:44 (PDT)

Great to see this site is in existance. I and a few of my friends have been Vance junkies for years ...10 or more. When I was last in San Francisco, I was lucky to stumble accross an old used book store and picked up some "thrilling wonder stories" origionals...I'd love to have a complete collection. I look forward to bieng updated on all things "Vancian"
Will Ferguson <gargoyle@netwit.net.au>
Orange, NSW Australia - Wednesday, April 08, 1998 at 19:20:01 (PDT)

I WAS OUT LOOKING AROUND TO SEE IF MICHAEL TALLAN HAD GOTTEN ONLINE. I USED TO BUY BOOKS FROM HIM. MY SEARCH HIT YOUR JACK VANCE INTERVIEW. ONE OF MY MOST PRIZED POSSESSIONS IS A SIGNED TOBY "SPACE PIRATES". WITH THE PASSING OF ROGER ZELAZNY, JACK IS THE AUTHOR I WOULD MOST LIKE TO MEET. THANKS FOR SHARING THE INTERVIEW.
GARY LAMB <C_GARY_LAMB@EMAIL.MSN.COM>
OMAHA, NE USA - Thursday, April 02, 1998 at 23:01:31 (PST)

This is such a cool website.I adore Jack Vance's novels and have derived immense pleasure and unforgettable images from his work over the years. I am looking forward to Ports of Call! my best regards to all the other fans out there with such good taste.
Richard Simms <ron.simms@virgin.net>
London, Great Britain - Friday, March 27, 1998 at 16:21:14 (PST)

Just thought I'd add my voice to those of the many Jack Vance fans. I've never been disappointed by a JV book, they're always interesting, exciting and frequently hilarious. Keep them coming. BTW - great site Mike.
Cormac Miller <millerc@phoenix.ie>
Dublin, Ireland - Wednesday, March 25, 1998 at 05:23:43 (PST)

Jack Vance ! Devious & amusing characters, picaresque adventures purple prose . There's no one like him in SF (apart from Clark Ashton Smith, perhaps, who has tthe imagination but not the storytelling ability or humour). From the number of entries on this page I can tell he's more popular than I thought. Is he still writing or has he kicked the bucket? Well done that man.
Paul Humphrey <P.R.Humphrey@acs.hull.ac.uk>
Hull, England - Monday, March 23, 1998 at 09:07:24 (PST)

I just picked up a copy of Night Lamp and am in about the middle of it. As always an excellent work of art. I started out with The Dying Earth as it seems many others have. Since then, I've picked up everything that I can get my hands on that Mr. Vance has written. I find his work to be a cut above what others seem capable of doing. I want you to write maybe a million more books before you decide to retire. 8^)
Paul C. Frederick <pfrede1@prodigy.net>
Summit, NJ USA - Sunday, March 22, 1998 at 21:03:54 (PST)

Flew down to Florida a few years back to my first and only Worldcon - just to finally meet Mr. Vance. I had the added bonus of meeting his son & wonderful wife Norma. It was well worth the trip, if only to thank him for so many years of terrific entertainment. Can't wait to get my hands on a copy of PORTS OF CALL.
Wayne Morris <LYONSPR@AOL.COM>
FRAMINGHAM, MA USA - Tuesday, March 10, 1998 at 17:31:10 (PST)

My husband ALMOST had me convinced my brother and I were crazy for repeatedly reading Vance novels (you can do a lot of re-reads over 20 years) and insisting Vance is the best. Well, thank God everyone else out there helpled prove that once again I was right and he was wrong. Hope those new novels keep on coming!!!
Elena Hufton <shufton@hotmail.com>
Mississauga, ON Canada - Monday, March 09, 1998 at 17:54:58 (PST)

What more can I say? Isn't my E-Mail enough? And Oh! it was such a pleasant surprise to eavesdrop on the conversation of so many devoted JV fans. Thank you for being out there! Suddenly I am not alone any more - there are others who enjoy JV.
Gerry <Emphyrio@Kar.Forthnet.Gr>
Karditsa, Greece - Thursday, March 05, 1998 at 14:28:43 (PST)

It is really great to know there are so many other people out there who enjoy Jack Vance's books as much as I do...reading his work is like drinking luminescent green wine from a glass flute of antique origin, while I sit beneath an ornately wrought pergola of amber and mahogany and watch the melancholy sun descend slowly into the ocean...
James Gary <bucket@earthlink.net>
Brooklyn, NY USA - Friday, February 27, 1998 at 16:41:07 (PST)

Well... I'm speechless ... (almost). 1. Good One Mike! 2. Fans galore! Excellent! - especially fellow Kiwi's! 3. Jack's talent - 'nuff said. 4. Publishers MUST re-publish all out-of-print books, and so say all of us - right? 5. Somebody PLEASE write Jack's biography! When I literally grabbed a JV book from a newsagents many years ago, while waiting for a bus, it took me 4 hours to get home due to a combination of failing to stop a bus and utterly failing to get off at the right stop. I never take Jack's books on buses anymore! JACK, all this adoration must become tedious, but if you ever chance upon this message: 1. Re failing eyesight. If I had the chance to sit beside you and type every word you dictated into a word processor, I would deem it the greatest experience of my life (so far), including giving birth (which is grossly overrated btw). 2. Never mind reproducing Cugel - just make anything up! 3. Please seriously consider being cryogenically frozen (you know when). One thing IS certain. There are obviously millions of beings out there who want you "To Live Forever"... Donna
Donna Adams <donna-adams@geocities.com>
Auckland, New Zealand - Wednesday, February 25, 1998 at 17:35:55 (PST)

Cugel the Clever.....Vance you're a genius
Nick Edwards <koam@Lineone.net>
Southampton, UK - Monday, February 23, 1998 at 10:53:42 (PST)

Last week I found The Man In The Cage by John Holbrook Vance in my local library. It was an original hardcover and all the spinal stitching was coming apart. I read it in two days and was deeply impressed with it (in twenty years I have never read any of his non-sci-fi work). It reaffirmed my belief that he is a serious literary talent. For those who are lucky enough to get a copy of this book, the dialogue between Darrell and Ellen about the nature of Evil in the world is a key passage for the understanding of Vance's moral universe. I've been reading him since 1977 and have always been deeply inspired and moved by his work. I've always wanted to write a screenplay based on NOPALGARTH (a.k.a. The Brains of Earth). A film based on this novella could be a homage to the 1950's science fiction films (i.e. This Island Earth) that I grew up with.
Richard Behrens <behrens@pipeline.com>
East Windsor, NJ USA - Wednesday, February 11, 1998 at 06:19:58 (PST)

Just to state that as far as I'm concerned, Jack Vance is the greatest writer of all time. Thanks to Mike for this site and the bulletin board to which I have subscibed for the past couple of months.
Darren Cooke <Tallguy@BTInternet.com>
Isle of Wight, England - Monday, February 09, 1998 at 13:48:09 (PST)

I've been reading Vance for around forty years, since my teens. For a long time, I thought the first Vance I'd read had been "The Dying Earth" in the early 1960's Lancer edition, but I eventually realized that I'd read "The Potters of Firsk" some years earlier. Vance is my favorite author and I've read his works more times than I can count. I never tire of them. IMHO, Vance's great genius lies in his descriptive powers. His plots are generally quite straightforward and his characters rather two-dimensional, but oh my! the stages on which his characters act out their parts! I've often thought "The Planet of Adventure" would make a marvelous film if done straight from the book in pantomine -- no dialogue necessary, just fabulous scenery and settings and actions. BTW: does anyone reading this have spare copies of the two mysteries he wrote as "Alan Wade" and "Peter Held" in the late 1950's? I've yet to find these in spite of much searching. I'd be happy to swap pb reading copies of his other fiction for them (and we have some uncommon Canajun printings here).
Rodger Whitlock <totototo+jackvance@mail.pacificcoast.net>
Victoria, BC Canada - Wednesday, February 04, 1998 at 12:33:39 (PST)

I've been collecting Jack Vance books for about 6 years now, mostly through second hand bookshops. I'm happy to discover Net pages on them - that his his distinctive universes have attracted so many other people. The fabulous names of people/places - at times I think they are derived from Dutch/Scots Gaelic. But then in a few minutes I change my mind. He's been very influential in my work as an artist and I dedicated a year of my work to creating plant sculptures based on the feeling I get from him ( especially the Houses of Izm). Also fountains - good to get some chlorophyllic juices drip drip dripping. I was trying for otherlandish with a hint of menace in the beauty. Even the smallest side characters in his books - human, alien or vegetable, work from their own personal motivations, no matter how unfathomable. They never seem merely devices to me. Just as in my second favourite author, Jane Austen. I read in one review about two years ago of the 'late' Jack Vance. I'm so glad to hear the rumours of his death were exagerated! If you read this Mr Vance, thanks for getting my brain working in new alien ways and giving me much enjoyment. Sheenagh Antonis.
Sheenagh Antonis <s.antonis@uwic.ac.uk>
Belfast, Northern Ireland - Tuesday, February 03, 1998 at 06:08:42 (PST)

One of my favorite writers of all.Whenever I need solace,humour,enlightenment,or just an escape from everyday stuff,it's invariably a well thumbed volume of Jack's that I turn to.In this part of the world it's hard to track down some of his earlier books,and I would be gratefull to any reader who is able to assist in this.May I humbly suggest the works of George Macdonald Fraser,another favorite,of mine. A quite different genre but a writer of comparable humor and erudition.Both would be on my "all time dream list" of dinner guest's.I would love to hear from anyone who has a similar interest in these authors. Cheers Chris.
chris <ruprecht@adam.com.au>
adelaide, s.a. australia - Saturday, January 24, 1998 at 10:46:45 (PST)

I just wanted to thank Mike Berro for all his efforts to maintain this most informative Jack Vance site -- and probably one of *the* best Vance sites on the web. I personally check the site regularly for the latest updates on Jack Vance's forthcoming novels. Also, through this site I have had the opportunity to meet (via email) noted Vance bibliographer Jerry Hewett. Cheers to all!
Marty Halpern <marty@Inow.com>
San Jose, CA USA - Friday, January 23, 1998 at 09:20:48 (PST)

Thank you for your books Mr Vance,you introduce me in other worlds where probably I don't like to live but I like to know Grazie per i tuoi libri ,solo una definizione sono MAGNIFICI CIAO
masserdotti stefano <connatic@tin.it>
Brescia, Italy - Wednesday, January 21, 1998 at 10:47:28 (PST)

An absorbing way to increase one's education. Jack Vance is one of the few authors whose characters, plots, and settings are near the surface of my mind.
Dick Ricketts <RDRRDRRDR@aol.com>
Lincoln City, OR USA - Sunday, January 18, 1998 at 22:13:41 (PST)

I discovered Jack Vance about the time that the "Magazine of F&SF" began publishing. I had lost track of his writing the last year or two and was delighted to find that he is not only alive and kicking but has a new book coming out! Is it possible to send an e-mail directly to him? I know that he prefers to let his writing stand for itself, but I would very much like to say "Thanks" for all the pleasure he has given me through the years.
Kent Bennett <kenbenprinter@datastar.net>
Picayune, MS USA - Friday, January 16, 1998 at 19:31:49 (PST)

I think it's time to get the entire set of Vance works onto CD ROM media - These litereary masterpieces must absolutely be available to all for generations to come - the thought of not being able to pass on to my children and their children the greatest literary work of this century frightens me. Jack Vance will surely come to be known as one of the greatest writers ever. It's time to band together, form a society, and get universities offering courses based on his writings. Jack could certainly each most professors a thing or two about writing. Anyone Interested in advancing the CD ROM project or The Vance Society please contact me.
Michael Miller <mmiller@info801.com>
Loves Park, IL USA - Sunday, January 11, 1998 at 09:00:34 (PST)

I've been collecting his books since 1973 and have read most of them three or more times. I never grow tired of his work. Simply put, he is "the best!"
Mike Tervooren <www.michaeltee@webtv.net>
Morgan Hill, CA USA - Saturday, December 27, 1997 at 22:13:52 (PST)

When I conceived with Pete "the Spy" Sloman in Los Angeles in the 80's a restaurant to be called The Moon Moth, where only delicacies mentioned in Vance's novels would be served, I half-thought that we might seriously be able to do it. Unfortunately, it never happened . . . but isn't it a great idea? Imagine what you could do with a little food coloring and an insane gourmet chef, like Pete.
Thomas Moore <hendecad@indigo.ie>
Dublin 6, Ireland - Sunday, December 21, 1997 at 02:43:04 (PST)

Glad to finally find a Vance site (or Vanscite). Mmmm, nice, don't missplace yr pervulsions.
iotar <iotar@hotmail.com>
london, UK - Monday, December 15, 1997 at 11:39:02 (PST)

What can I say?After reading the comments above....except to echo them. I am sure that like Iucounu,Jack Vance is sceptical of praise....but how I would love to thank him personally for the hours and years of pleasure that his books have given me!! The first Vance I knowingly read was in the Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction about 1964..it was the story "The Sorcerer Pharesm", part of the "Eyes of the Overworld" and my first intro to my favorite scoundrel,Cugel!!!What a wonderful combination of innocent selfishness, low cunning and wildly varying luck!!A real Mr Bean of the dying earth!! Jack ,if you ever read this ,thanks, and looking forward to "The Laughing Magician"!!!
Brian Kurrle <kelly@trdsv.com.au>
Sydney,, NNnsw Australia - Wednesday, December 10, 1997 at 04:17:24 (PST)

The only thing I regret about reading Mr. Vance's stories is, that I will never be able to visit the places he writes about
Chris Reid <reid.christopher@virgin.com>
Manchester, U.K. - Monday, December 08, 1997 at 12:42:49 (PST)

Jack Vance's Guyal of Sphere (sp?) in the Dying Earth was my first science fiction. (I'm 47). I was afraid he was no longer with us. Thanx, LUKE
Walter Luke Jr. <luke@spectra.net>
Binghamton, NY USA - Tuesday, December 02, 1997 at 20:21:38 (PST)

I've read a lott of books by Jack Vance and and wonder if he ever has a "writer's block", because his imagination never seems to leave him. Can't wait for the new one...
Jos Hindriks
Leeuwarden, Holland - Wednesday, November 26, 1997 at 01:59:45 (PST)

This message is for the Big Man himself. In my stuffy old attic in good old The Hague I have got hidden away in a atomic vault: your books. Your books are great, I do not know how popular you are in the States, but in the Netherlands you are a huge succes. One of your best books was "Trullion". I hope you will write another great book. Can't wait to have it!!! Seventhousand and one regards, Andre Passet (Prince of the Day)
Andre Passet <wm.passet@consunet.nl>
the hague, the Netherlands - Sunday, November 23, 1997 at 09:11:11 (PST)

Dear Mr. Vance, As you may know from my dad, I'm in Japan now and have been for the last couple years. I'm studying Japanese and preparing for the LSAT...I hope to go into international law. I was really happy to find this web page...you look really good in the pictures!!! I hope you and Norma and John are doing well. I can't wait to read your next book! Take care! Love, Kellas P.S. Do you really read this message board?
Kellas Campbell <kellas@rocketmail.com>
Shizuoka, Japan - Sunday, November 16, 1997 at 07:13:57 (PST)

His writings are more than stories. They are works of literary art, several levels of magnitude better by any measure than anything elso I have ever read. My first experience was the Ace paperback "Dying Earth". "The Spell of Forlorn Encystment": what an absolutely terrifing image! Ever since reading that wonderful book, everytime I enter a bookstore I head to the shelf in search of anything written by Mr. Vance. I know that even if I do not like it, it will still be worth reading. (Though I have always liked what he has written, more than any other author's work) Imagine my surprise when I learned that Mr. Vance was the author of the Ellery Queen novels. My family used to gather around the breakfast table, with the AM radio in the morning listening to "The Ellery Queen Minute Mysteries", and try to solve them. He through his work has touched so many in such a positive way - there is no question that his writings raise the standard. One can't wonder that even though our language seems to be devolving into sound bytes and slang that Mr. Vance might not even lament that, as it would seem to parallel so much of the envisioned changes that environments inflict on the subjects in his writings. To be able to say thank you in person would indeed be an honor. For those of you who are interested - highly recommended is "Another Green World", a record album of compositions by Brian Eno. Much of the otherworldly timbres on this album, much of it short instrumentals, remind me of the imagination-scapes of Mr. Vance's settings in his books. "The Big Ship" and "Sky Saw" in particular. I wish all an interesting journey through life. MM.
Michael Miller <mmiller@info801.com>
Loves Park, IL USA - Saturday, November 15, 1997 at 13:03:11 (PST)

Have been a Vance fan for twenty years, and have collected quite a few of those GREAT paperbacks!
Mark J. Straka <evenmark@mailcity.com>
Taipei, ROC - Thursday, November 13, 1997 at 11:18:32 (PST)

I'm a big fan of your books. Like the way you create a whole new world. I'm looking forward for new books in the future.
AM WIEMANS <san&jes@co.nl>
Vlaardingen, zh Netherlands - Tuesday, November 11, 1997 at 15:08:32 (PST)

There are many advantages to living in this part of the beautiful Texas hill country but access to good books and the followship of people that enjoy Mr. Vance's works are greatly missed. I'm glad to have stumbled across this (bookmarked) page. It has inspired me to try to buy some books via the net.
Byron Alexander <jbyron@swbell.net>
New Braunfels, TX USA - Sunday, November 09, 1997 at 10:42:51 (PST)

Thus far I like.
Philip H. Mogul <phmogul@mindspring.com>
Bellmore, NY USA - Monday, November 03, 1997 at 04:25:34 (PST)

If anyone knows of a comprehensive Jack Vance book list, please e-mail to Anna.piercy@xtra.co.nz. Thank you.
Maureen Piercy <Anna.piercy@xtra.co.nz>
Auckland, New Zealand - Saturday, November 01, 1997 at 20:32:50 (PST)

I 'm not the only one! Sorry for that,but my husband thinks i'm really strange for being a Vance fan. Somethimes that feels a bit lonely What i like most about the man are his morals,so Cugel shockt me, i loved it!!! But still,Lionesse will probebly be my all time favorite. So,if you ever read, this dear mister Vance,please,make one more nobel,romantic hero for me and all your other female fans, so we can dream away to an other time,an other place,an other galactie met liefs Miep.
miep <sorry>
beemster, holland - Saturday, October 25, 1997 at 11:11:37 (PDT)

This is great!!!! Thank you, Mr. Vance, for giving me the life-long desire to read. My late mother left a copy of "The Dying Earth laying on a coffee table, about 1951 or so, when I was 10 years old. I picked it up and read it and was forevermore addicted to reading. A wise woman was my mom. My heartfelt thanks to you again, Mr. Vance. I owe you so very much.
Charles M. Cunningham <cmcunnin@cyberhighway.net>
Jackpot, Nv USA - Tuesday, October 21, 1997 at 19:50:26 (PDT)

Keep up the good work! This is the first time I have happenned to look on the net for information about you and your books, I am trying to find out how many books of the dying sun there are, dealing with Cugel in particular. I have never read a more interesting and humorous book than Cugels Saga, unless it would be The Eyes of The Overworld. Could you let me know if there are more books dealing with Cugel? My thanks, and again, keep up the good work!
mark saarinen <marks@getaway.net>
phil campbell, al USA - Saturday, October 18, 1997 at 11:34:26 (PDT)

great site been reading vance for over twenty years, send info, sales etc to m kelly 1859 mason #6 san fran ca 94133
mike kelly
sf, ca USA - Thursday, October 16, 1997 at 15:12:58 (PDT)

I enjoy the parodies of politics and social condition in the works I've read. The settings are so fantastic and the people so real. Continue, please to document so many of the highs and lows of this human condition. And the language pleases so.
Stephen B. Thompson <d150154@hotmail.com>
Euless, tx USA - Thursday, October 16, 1997 at 13:06:25 (PDT)

Dear Mr. Vance! Please, be sure that you have a lot of admirers in Russia. Unfortunately not all of your fans can read your books in English - and we do not have many of them in Russian (and even all they are bootleg). Do you have an interest to publish in official way in Russia? Is it possible somehow to have all your books in English? Your truly fan Alexander Merkulov Vosnesenski pr. 55-47 190068 St.Petersburg Russia
Alexander Merkulov
St.Petersburg, Russia - Monday, October 13, 1997 at 06:45:30 (PDT)

please, mr vance write lots more books and please make sure that they are released in oz.
stephen earle <earlbird@hotmail.com>
melbourne , vic australia - Sunday, October 12, 1997 at 06:26:52 (PDT)

I'm glad to find out that I'm not the only Jack Vance fan in the world. I thougt I was
Stephen Earle <earlbird@hotmail.com>
melbourne, vic australia - Sunday, October 12, 1997 at 06:22:44 (PDT)

When I was a little kid I thought science fiction was boring stuff always explaining every stupid technical detail of any machine used in the story. Then I saw these old books my father was reading again and again... it was the day I took my first Vance-drug, then there was no way back. All the translated books are now read several times... let's buy some originals and enjoy what the big world-thinker Jack gave us.
Joern Lewin <j.lewin@tu-bs.de>
Braunschweig, Germany - Saturday, October 11, 1997 at 13:20:53 (PDT)

dear Mr Vance, Will there ever be more adventures of Cugel. I must have read this book for more then 15 times! Both books! And sometimes I still grab the book from the shelf and read it again in one breath! More adventures of that cunning Cugel the smart one would certainly be great. Ofcourse I have most other books as well, but eyes of the overworld is my favorite!:)
Lorenz <bueren@cistron.nl>
Driebruggen, Netherlands - Friday, October 10, 1997 at 07:34:17 (PDT)

Thank you for all the interesting places to see. I've been a fan for years and devour any new offering or repackaging of older stuff. Jack Vance has given me the courage in my own writings to take chances and mainly have fun. The twists and turns and wierd names are crucial to creating other worlds/spaces/times. In every instance I have entered those worlds completely and still they are a part of my existence. I am always reminded of Cugel's special cusps which see the world through special "eyes" when in daily routines I remember the absurdity of it all and the humor in every situation. I am a musician playing Jazz & Blues. In all of the tunes which we write, there is always the element of the far out or mystical. When I read a Jack Vance selection, I savor it bit by bit. I find now that I am rereading lost pieces and reinserting them into my main memory field. Ah for the timelessness of these humorous awakenings.
Mark Siet <marksiet@fia.net>
San Clemente, CA USA - Thursday, October 09, 1997 at 10:26:44 (PDT)

Mr. Vance, you may be appalled to hear that I have never read a Jack Vance book, but I'm intrigued by the possibility that you may be related to the Jim Vance, wife Olive, for whom my father (Howard C. Randall) worked at Alameda Naval Air Station. I would very much like to know how they are, and their daughter Bess and son Jack. Thanks very much.
K.S.Van Heuit <willapa@aone.com>
Nahcotta, WA USA - Sunday, October 05, 1997 at 20:33:28 (PDT)

Just another guest in an endless list of Vance-lovers. It just shows what his books can do, the magic in the worlds he creates. I have been a Vance-fan for about twenty years now, the first story I ever read were the four Tschai books, it's still one of my favourites. Just keep on writing and we'll keep on reading.
Arjan <awing@tref.nl>
Middelburg, Zeeland The Netherlands - Thursday, September 18, 1997 at 03:30:48 (PDT)

Ports of Call, I am waiting for it for over six months, but nothing has appeared since then. When????? His absolutely best book is Cugel's Saga. Splenid humour and fantastic worlds created in a few chapters, I love it. Hope Jack will write on for many years.
Matthias <devriesr@worldonline.nl>
Harderwijk, Netherlands - Saturday, September 13, 1997 at 12:07:51 (PDT)

Many thanks for sharing with us your Magic World. I'm sure you will never die.
Val�rian ABEL
PARIS, FRANCE - Tuesday, September 09, 1997 at 08:30:13 (PDT)

I read "The Eyes of the Overworld" as a very young boy, and have been fascinated by Mr. Vance's work since then. His use of language has always challenged the reader, never assuming that we are unable to look up the words (assuming of course that the copy of Webster's I have even has his vocabulary in it!). Each time I find a new title, it makes my day. Mr. Vance explores what really matters in speculative fiction - the interface between man's desires and motivations, and a vastly larger world than the one we live in every day. Please, Mr. Vance, never stop writing. You have my thanks.
Thomas D. Hyzy <tomhyzy@aol.com>
Buffalo, NY USA - Thursday, August 28, 1997 at 11:43:42 (PDT)

I find myself returning to the works of Jack Vance, one of the most consistently satisfying authors in his genre. The mordant humor, baroque phraseology, and his ability to instantly evoke entire civilizations in a few well-turned phrases continue to astonish and please. I am especially fond of the "Lyonesse" books as well as "The Dying Earth" and its sequelae.
Jeff Lipton <jfl@panix.com>
New York, NY USA - Sunday, August 24, 1997 at 10:01:51 (PDT)

It's great to see so many people taking interest in the work of Jack Vance. Certainly in this age of no-readers. I'm very glad to have found this site. "Vriendelijke groeten en veel succes" to you all!!
Harm Rood
Nijmegen, The Netherlands - Saturday, August 23, 1997 at 08:28:52 (PDT)

Here's another fan. Searching fot books unread. Hope the untranslated work, wil be translated in Dutch soon
Frans Minkenberg <franmink@pi.net>
Linschoten, Nederland - Sunday, August 17, 1997 at 13:44:28 (PDT)

How absolutely splendid to see a Jack Vance site on the net! I've been a fanatic for more years than I care to remember and I'll be keeping a close eye out so I can get Ports of Call asap. Bye...
Jeremy Pick <harley-davidson.demon.co.uk>
Brackley, No UK - Wednesday, August 13, 1997 at 10:39:47 (PDT)

Jack ... I started reading your works with the Galaxy digest issue of The Dragon Masters and I've been re-reading your unique stories steadily for over 30 years. I am missing only a few hardback mysteries (the really rare ones) in my collection. I collect firsts in jackets of only 3 authors: E.R.Burroughs (they're rare and I like the artwork) Heinlein (he stopped writing the stuff I appreciated about 1965) and Jack Vance. Thank you for out-writing everybody else, and for continuing through decades with new but consistent works. They call it science fiction, but we're looking for more Vance people in strange distant environments, in antique but futuristic settings, besting each other first, other life forms second. And we know you're out there making these stories real on paper. Thank you, Jack.
Leon J. Janzen <etick@earthlink.net>
Santa Clarita, CA USA - Tuesday, August 12, 1997 at 17:26:37 (PDT)

I have been an admirer of Mr. Vance's work since I first read one his novels, "To Live Forever", in its italian translation, "Gli Amaranto", thirty years ago or so. Since then, I have read as much of his work as I could find, for the most part in the original versions. I am especially partial to his SF work, and I believe the imaginary universe Mr. Vance has created in the 5 books of the Demon Princes is exceptionally creative
Graziano C. Carlon <GCCARLON@AOL.COM>
New York, NY USA - Tuesday, August 12, 1997 at 12:11:59 (PDT)

Reading a Vance book eerily brings back the exact memories of where I read the book and under what circumstances. Ursula K. Le Guin said that we become insane when reading books. I am insane when reading Vance. Insane with joy, not wanting the book to finish. I read to live forever just weeks ago and was rendered insane all over again. And to Jack Vance: Money Lost, Little Lost; Honor Lost, Much Lost; Vance lost, all lost.
Ericson Smith <esconsult@juno.com>
Brooklyn, NY USA - Monday, August 11, 1997 at 21:45:29 (PDT)

Great site. I just found it and will now start checking if I've read them all. I'd like to see one thing one or more SF books by Vance as a motion picture but then again which one to choose (Cadwal chronicles maybe) . A television series would be OK.
Jan van Zeggelaar <janz@cadwal.xs4all.nl>
Zoelen, Netherlands - Monday, August 11, 1997 at 01:44:03 (PDT)

It's a nice thing to find fellow dreamers here, on the net! And it's even nicer to learn they enjoyed Jack Vance as much as I did.
Gubler, Jean-Marie <gubler@jerry.iued.uni-heidelberg.de>
Heidelberg, bw Germany - Wednesday, August 06, 1997 at 03:04:04 (PDT)

This site is a great tribute to Jack Vance. The first SF-book that I read was Tschai. Since then I have always loved his work. In Holland Jack is called "the master of SF". And rightly so!
ron van dopperen <actueel@prv.utr.nl>
utrecht, netherlands - Monday, August 04, 1997 at 07:16:58 (PDT)

HI JACK & FELLOW FANS! THIS IS A REAL THRILL FOR ME AS I HAVE ENJOYED MR VANCE FOR MANY YEARS THOUGH ENJOYED IS PROBABLY AN UNDERSTATEMENT. MANY A TIME I HAVE SPOKEN TO SOMEONE WHO ENJOYS SF/FANTASY & THEY SAY "WHO" & I THEN BECOME SAD. THIS IS CERTAINLY UNJUST, I THEN QUICKLY TELL THEM THEY MUST READ ONE OF MY DIRTY & OVER READ COPIES BUT THEN THEY SAY I DONT LIKE THE WRITING " ITS NOT A STORY ITS A CHRONICLE OF EVENTS" OR SOME SUCH DROSS, FOOLS ALL. I HAVE SAVED ALL MY SVU & PLAN TO OPEN A BRANCH OF THE IPCC IN AUSTRALIA. THANKS AGAIN JACK.
RAY CARMODY
SYDNEY, NNSW AUSTRALIA USA - Saturday, August 02, 1997 at 01:17:47 (PDT)

Good day! My favourite author is Jack Vanse. I have translated his DRAGON MASTERS for SEVERO-ZAPAD Publ.House. I,d like to trade Russian editions of Vance's books for his books in English. And does Jack has his own site on the web?
Ungwe <ungwe@geocities.com>
Apatity, RUSSIA - Friday, July 25, 1997 at 10:01:55 (PDT)

The new photos page reveals to me that Jack Vance has powerful arms. That he is an artisan is evident in the set of his broad shoulders, barrel chest, and strong hands -- which no doubt transform clay in much the same way as his mind crafts stories out of visions. Jack might be a worthy arm-wrestling opponent for the proper challenger.
David Pierce <clover@colorado.net>
Silverthorne, CO USA - Tuesday, July 22, 1997 at 23:32:22 (PDT)

Mr Vance's fiction is low on tech, so I'm not sure he'd ever visit this web site himself, but just in case... You're the best Jack. Let's hope you are still writing them well into the millenium. We'll be reading them until the Sun goes out! - Cheers.
Mike Summers <mikes@library.lib.rmit.edu.au>
Melbourne, Vic Australia - Tuesday, July 22, 1997 at 22:27:16 (PDT)

Jack als je dit kan vertalen ben je welkom in oud turnhout
Willem Paulussen <Willem.Paulussen@club.innet.be>
Oud turnhout , belgium - Sunday, July 06, 1997 at 07:24:46 (PDT)

Thank you Jack !! Now I can really dream with a book. You're great!!!!
Stefania <Paolobia@freenet.hut.fi>
Prato, Italy - Tuesday, July 01, 1997 at 08:55:29 (PDT)

Besides being right up in the top ten authors I've read, Vance writes some of the most amusing interchanges between characters. I particularly enjoy the bartering which takes place with innkeepers as they extole their virtues and qualities to the character [who is usually the hero]. The Planet of adventure series as well as "The Green Pearl" have some of the most clever cajoling and wheedling I've read. Perhaps Mr. Vance has had a few experiences with shrewd innkeepers in the past! Its so delightful to see the subtle insults exchanged, I could read endlessly that subject alone.
Carlo D'Anna <dannac@u.washington.edu>
seattle, wa USA - Monday, June 30, 1997 at 23:16:21 (PDT)

I absolutely adore Jack Vance! My dad got me to read some of his stuff and I was an instant fan. I would love to read all of them, but they are out of print--and my dad is missing some of his collection. So if anyone out there has any ideas, let me know! Jack knows his way with words--I love his vocabulary and way of phrasing things--and he knows how to keep his reader interested with jam-packed adventure and sci-fi twists!
Katie Greener <gsc@geology.byu.edu>
Provo, UT USA - Thursday, June 26, 1997 at 14:26:40 (PDT)

It's great to know that others are captured by Jack Vance as I have been. Sharing an appreciation is one of life's great pleasures.
John Corso <John_Corso@bendnet.com>
Bend, OR USA - Thursday, June 19, 1997 at 23:59:41 (PDT)

I was introduced to the works of Jack Vance in the early 70's by a former friend who had the good fortune to visit Jack at his home. My first readings were the Planet of Adventure series (City of the Chasch, Servants of the Wankh, The Dirdir, and The Pnume) which I've probably read at least ten times since. As far as I'm concerned Jack Vance is THE Grand Master of the Science Fiction genre, bar none.
Joe Trice <BETWEEN-HAMMER-AND-ANVIL@msn.com>
Ferdale, MI USA - Wednesday, June 18, 1997 at 08:51:08 (PDT)

Jack Vance is in a class by himself. What distinguishes him from other writers is his unmatched ear for names (characters, places, things), a penchant for dealing with topics like food, science, philosophy and music. Topics, which are conspicuosly absent from most ordinary sf, because I suspect, too many writers, unlike Vance, are not renaissance men. To judge from his writings, Vance is extraordinarily well rounded and superbly intelligent in the true sense of the word. What a pleasure to read and reread any of his short stories and books. May he live in good health and happiness forever! For those who have exhaustively read all of his Vance's works may I recommend another excellent writer who "reminds" me of him. I enthusiastically recommend the "Emancipator Series" by Ray Aldridge. Let's hear other recommendations for books in the Vance tradition.
Dan S. Tong <drdancm@concentric.net>
Chicago, IL USA - Monday, June 16, 1997 at 00:56:06 (PDT)

I had absolutely NO interest in Jack Vance until I saw him in a bit he did for Scifi Buzz.After hearing the man talk about his work, I'm definately interested. He said he writes for the "thinking" person,so how can I not explore his work? I like a good story, but prefer one that stimulates some deeper thought. Any suggestions on where to start?
Alan Hunter <DINSDALE13@aol.com>
Auburn, WA USA - Wednesday, June 11, 1997 at 00:59:49 (PDT)

I'm a big fan of Jack's, so I'm just looking around to find out what's new. When I get connected, I look forward to visiting you all again! Bye for now.
Gert-Jan van Oostenbrugge <not available as of now>
Maarssen, Netherlands - Monday, June 09, 1997 at 06:20:18 (PDT)

THE LYONESS TRILOGY WILL BE A CLASSIC EVEN AS THE DYING SUN WOBBLES AND EBBS. I WOULD HOPE TO SEE SOME FURTHER ADVENTURES OF SHIMROD, MERGEN, AND MADOUC...
PAUL <PAULSJJ@AOL.COM>
CHICAGO HEIGHTS, IL USA - Thursday, June 05, 1997 at 19:59:39 (PDT)

I don't know anything about Jack Vance. I was just searching the Web for my last name and there he was so I decided to see who he was!
Becky Vance <becky169@hotmail.com>
Riverside, CA USA - Monday, May 26, 1997 at 21:12:24 (PDT)

We exulte only in the upper altitudes!
Rod <mcnameer@fish.govt.nz>
Auckland, New Zealand - Wednesday, May 21, 1997 at 01:01:40 (PDT)

There are a lot of great Science Fiction Writers around today (Greg Bear, Sheri S. Tepper or David Zindell, to name a few) but the greatest of them all is still Jack Vance. I loved his latest novel "Nightlamp" which is probably his best since the second Lyonesse book. I am also very happy that he has finally been acknowledged as one of the truly greats in SF by awarding him the "Grand Master-award". Because although he is by far the best selling Sci-Fi author in the Netherlands he is not always getting the credit he deserves in his native country (at least that is what I read). To mister Vance himself I would like to say: "Keep up the good work, I am looking forward to reading the novel you are now working on."
Ger Lindeman <j.g.lindeman@rechten.rug.nl>
Groningen, Netherlands - Thursday, May 15, 1997 at 00:49:12 (PDT)

Excuse me, my english is not good, but i am here, at Bilbao, in the other side of a great ocean, and i have to say: Thank you for your dreams, Mr. Vance. Now, they are mine, too. I love your books. Be happy.
Yolanda D�az de Tuesta <sylka@arrakis.es>
Bilbao, SPAIN - Wednesday, May 14, 1997 at 17:30:28 (PDT)

Jack Vance is one of the few authors who can be excellent in any medium. Whether he's writing sardonically amusing stories about starmenters in the Gaean Reach or sword and sorcery (mostly sorcery) tales at the beginning or end of Earth's time, he can be, nay he is, the best storyteller of my experience. May the powers that be grant him a very long life indeed.
Luke Skarstedt <skarstedt@snip.net>
Newfield, NJ USA - Tuesday, May 06, 1997 at 13:57:05 (PDT)

I can't believe there is a Jack Vance BBS etc. I have been an avid Jack Vance fan for years, even writing to the man and getting a reply nearly 8 years ago. I echo what has been said, he is a Master of science fiction and it is gratifying to note that he has been given recognition at last. I have quite a collection of his work including sign copies of The Last Castle and a first edition signed copy of To Live Forever, but I have just seen the full list and I am looking forward to collecting the rest. Just keep writing them Jack and as I said years ago, I will keep reading them. PS. When I wrote to him, I lived in Wych Hill Park. In Night Lamp, Jack wrote about a place called 'Wyching Hills'. I was thrilled, so don't disillusion me anyone.
Paul Chipperfield <No Idea Yet>
London, England - Thursday, May 01, 1997 at 08:53:33 (PDT)

What can I say that hasn't been said already? Jace Vance's storytelling has been the main reading pleasure in my life, I read a lot of authors but Jack's work are the only ones I keep reading over and over again. The very excellent Durdane Trilogy was my introduction to Mr Vance's work. Thinking about it now maybe I'll pick it up again tonight...
John Williams <john.williams@big-trent.bass-brewers.co.uk>
Lichfield, UK - Thursday, May 01, 1997 at 03:12:30 (PDT)

Excellent intitative
Pierre Beaulne <Beaulne.Pierre@ceq.qc.ca>
Montreal, Canada - Tuesday, April 29, 1997 at 11:43:44 (PDT)

Dear Jack Vance Although your books are no longer carried by the Israel book stores :-( I remain an avid fan, and having found no satisfactory substitute for your writing I have taken to writing S.F. & Fantasy of my own. I hope sometime soon you will decide to continue the "Dying earth" saga.
Oren Bochman <c12005@coop.co.il>
Givataim, Israel - Sunday, April 27, 1997 at 17:52:22 (PDT)

I read Vandels of the Void when in Junior High, and have been a Jack Vance fan ever since. I collect science fiction as a hobby, mostly space travel related stories. Books like Vandels and the other sci fi of the 50s were probably the main influences in my choosing a technical career and working on the space program. Since our local book stores were rather limited I didn't discover the Demon Princes and Dying Eath until college. My roommate was a Vance fan. My first job was on the Lunar Module for the Apollo Program. Presently, I'm the manager of an engineering group working on space program development test.
V. L. Kraut <pp000794@mindspring.com>
Massapequa, NY USA - Saturday, April 26, 1997 at 12:16:45 (PDT)

I cannot explain it. Jack Vance novels are what science fiction and fantasy are supposed to be. I look forward to introducing my children to the incredible worlds this man has crafted over the years. Amazing!!! He's won a fan for life! I can't tell you how much I treasure his work.
David Anthony
Houston, Tx USA - Thursday, April 24, 1997 at 00:29:38 (PDT)

I ran across Jack's work when I was in high school -- TO LIVE FOREVER was the first one, and I was blown away. I've read everything of his I can find ever since, and consider him my favorite living author. Cugel the Clever, from THE EYES OF THE OVERWORLD, is one of the most amusing characters in fiction. I was thrilled to see a notice of a forthcoming book, THE LAUGHING MAGICIAN, which is almost certainly set in the Dying Earth at the same time as the Cugel stories. I now have a mission -- getting a copy of that book ASAP.
Peter J. Heck <peterheck@berlen.bds.com>
Chestertown, MD USA - Monday, April 21, 1997 at 10:14:32 (PDT)

Jack Vance has been the main source of wonder and awe since I started reading Sci-FI at an early age. The novels which I enjoy most is The Planet of Adventure series and Empyrio they create a world where there is still hope for mankind and he surrounds every reader with emotions which evolves into an unreal atmosphere of forlorn hope.
Fred Bull <Fbullmin@aol.com>
Whitehaven, Cumbria, UK - Monday, April 21, 1997 at 09:22:17 (PDT)

Jack's work is the perfect example of what I like in SF! I hope he never stops writing.
Howard Ayee <hayee@pathcom.com>
Toronto, on CANADA - Friday, April 18, 1997 at 14:11:05 (PDT)

Dear Mr. Vance. Thank you for offering the best escape from the mundane, daily routine. Traveling to your worlds, sharing those cultures, and accompaniying the characters, especially Cugel, is an honor and an exquisite experience. I have nothing more to add, I'll let Cugel do so: "Sylphs, nake play with the decanters! Once again to the goblets!. . . Tonight we sit here drinking purple wine!. . . Let the feast proceed!. . . Let tonigh last forever!" (Cugel's Saga)
Miguel A. Garcia <Miguel_Garcia@Brown.edu>
Providence, RI USA - Thursday, April 17, 1997 at 22:05:31 (PDT)

Jack Vance's " The Dragon Masters " was one of the first SF/Fantasy novels I ever read. I can still remember the sense of wonder it aroused in me and the style was like nothing I had read before. Over thirty years later and he still has no peer in the sheer inventiveness of his future human cultures. I have a fairly large collection of SF/Fantasy but the books showing the most wear and tear are all by Jack Vance. I am looking forward with pleasure to reading his latest - " Nightlamp ".
Ed Rafferty <eraf@mailbox.uq.edu.au>
Brisbane, Qld Australia - Thursday, April 17, 1997 at 07:12:17 (PDT)

I started reading books by Jack Vance when I was still in secondary school (16/17 years of age). Infact it was my introduction to science fiction. Dont ask me why I started with a book by Jack Vance ("big Planet"), but I was blown away by the ideas that this man could come up with. Since then I have read anything by the man, certainly what I could get my hands on. His creation and realisation of worlds, political/cultural and populated with a host of flaura and fauna, has been the bench mark for much of my science fiction reading.
GORDON COWAN <ypdst@sol.co.uk>
prestwick, scotland - Tuesday, April 15, 1997 at 10:25:07 (PDT)

I read "The Dying Earth" and became instantly hooked several years ago! Since then I have filled my library with Jack Vance books (most of them purchased "recycled" at the used book store). I would love to have such a boundless imagination. Jack Vance is simply the best author in his genre.
Scott Swindle <swindle@texoma.net>
Collinsville, TX USA - Saturday, April 12, 1997 at 15:27:06 (PDT)

When I pick up a book written by Jack Vance, even one that I've read many times, I'm mesmerized by the subtlety, the humor, the skill and style, the unique manipulation of language. The only problem is that I've read every book & story written by Jack (that I know of), and they have spoiled my ability to appreciate other SF written by persons who have, shall we say, "normal" skills. For 30 years (since I first read "Big Planet") I've been in awe of Jack Vance.
Mark Adams <mark_adams@us.dell.com>
Georgetown, TX USA - Friday, April 11, 1997 at 08:29:47 (PDT)

Even in the Netherlands Jack's very popular.
Arthur Anthonissen <XS2TUUR@freemail.nl>
Roosendaal, NB The Netherlands - Friday, April 11, 1997 at 07:12:45 (PDT)

I have an aversion to writing fan letters, and I suspect Mr. Vance has an aversion to seeking out praise. Still, after browsing this site, it seemed wrong for me to depart without leaving a comment on this guestbook---the comment is this: Thanks for taking us to your worlds, Jack, and for stressing that competence is always as important as a good imagination. It is a valuable lesson to learn.
G. R. Welsh <grwst6+@pitt.edu>
Pittsburgh, PA USA - Thursday, April 10, 1997 at 17:49:01 (PDT)

Greetings to all! As a kid, I read science fiction until I grew tired of it, feeling its usual predictability too keenly. At university, someone suggested that Jack Vance was a writer to try, someone who might bring the old appetite back. And I was loaned one of the Demon Prince books. That did it! I've read him ever since with the very greatest of pleasure. Ribald, inventive, wry, "tasty," joyous, complex, subtle -- anthropological science fiction, it seems to me.... Oz books for the older folks? And in these pages, I've noticed references to his latest (?) book, Nightlamp (?). My bookstore ritual involves looking -- usually in vain -- for anything by Jack Vance. Could I have missed it? Does the NAFTA mean Canadians can't read it? Is it totally sold out? (As perhaps it should be.) Can anyone tell me where I can find it? (I live in Vancouver, Canada.) And, like some other people, I'd be grateful and pleased to learn of anyone who comes even close to Mr. Vance. Any suggestions? Our writer is eighty, I read? I toast him a thousand times! With thanks and great pleasure remembered, Richard Marcuse Vancouver
Richard Marcuse <oxfundbc@web.net>
West Vancouver, BC Canada - Friday, April 04, 1997 at 00:30:10 (PST)

Dear Mr. Vance--back in 1985 I wrote you an adulatory fan letter raving about "Wyst: Alastor 1716" and all my other favorites from you. You were gracious enough to answer my letter with a short account of your European vacation (you didn't wenture south to Italy, although you are fond of it, and you exhorted me to hard work. Well I affixed that letter permantly to the inside front cover of the book club ed. of Lyonesse: Suldren's Garden, although A masterwork of High Fantasy like Lyonesse is necessary for your literary canon, I know (THe trilogy is so beautiful and austere!) but I was afraid you wouldn't get back to SF. Since then, you've given us the Cadwal (Wayness from that series is, I think, your most appealing heroine ever.) chronicles and "Night Lamp" and I recently gobbled up something I've been saving for many years: the Durdane trilogy. Your books are like nobody elses you're far and away the best. Thanks for all the wonderful hours of pleasure. Also, just this week I first read "Bad Ronald" in one absorbed sitting. After the short but poignant denoument("Goodbye"."Goodbye." "Goodbye." read the final line) I sat there, feelings of sympathy, horror and a sensation of psychical perturbation unlike any other I've experienced. I'm very sorry to learn that you're having problems with your eyesight; I'm a new volunteer reader for the blind ;I make cassettes at home of material the blind person wants to hear then mail them to the directress of the agency who then passes it along. So far I've read a large book of poetry for a young girl and I'm working on my second assignment, an action-adventure novel. I plan to plan to do a reading of "Emphyrio" for the next person who requests a SF piece (and I'm assured they're requested freqently.) Best of wishes for you and your family. Dom Ciocca, Jr. "Goodbye."
Dominic A. Ciocca, Jr. <dciocca@uscom.com>
Medford, NJ USA - Saturday, March 29, 1997 at 19:40:43 (PST)

I've bought them all, Jack!! Please, keep enjoying the world!
m. achtereekte <m.achtereekte@a1.nl>
deventer, netherlands - Sunday, March 23, 1997 at 03:46:29 (PST)

Wayhoo! A place for the expression of that peculiar blend of emotions I style "self in relation to Vance" and which is formed of the sentiments: 'reckless elan'; 'glorious joy at the existence of the world'; 'specious shyness'; 'pursed-lipped whimsy'; 'brooding feyness' and a million other, more vague and shifting feelings that I still seek to capture and term but that curiously evade me. ....Thank You, Jack, for the gift of the concepts of complicated emotionality, thinking six thoughts at once, (though I have to lie down after I do that)multi-dimensionality and the reality of my imaginal world. I'm 33 and been reading your stuff since I was 8 or so, so you've been growing up with me.....its impossible to express all the qualities that you have contributed to my life or encouraged me to develop. Heres a list of some - Vocabulary, volubility, verbosity, independence, individuality, focus, honour, nobility, elan, eclecticism; joy in the describing of food, clothing, culture, colours and ships; The spell "imp spring twinkle toe" and loads and loads of laughter. In fact, I don't think anyone in the world has made me laugh as much you have!! really!! If I don't meet you this time..then surely in the next life, and then I might have the opportunity to honour you as I would like to. Watch out for my book 'cause I think you'll like it... Yours Gratefully, Daniel.
Daniel Johnson <daniel@rhythmnet.com.au>
Sydney, N.S.W. Australia - Saturday, March 22, 1997 at 21:19:27 (PST)

You are the best. Thank you for all your hard work.
Drew A. Vincent <ftlcs@ctaz.com>
Kingman, AZ USA - Monday, March 17, 1997 at 11:08:00 (PST)

What started with "Eyes of the Overworld" 13 years ago was the beginning of a special relationship with the works of Jack Vance. Re-reading my favourites is like starting up a conversation with an old friend. Pure poetry! My favourite? The Planet of Adventure Series. And if Jack ever reads this, "Thanks for all the enjoyment; you have a unique gift that brings great pleasure to us all."
John McDonough <jmcdono@terrigal.net.au>
Erina, NSW Australia - Monday, March 17, 1997 at 03:29:10 (PST)

Hi there, we are the Vance fans from down under anxiously awaiting lamplight. Has anyone written Jack's biography because we feel sure that many of the book characters are borrowed from real life. We just love their complexity and yet Jack conveys so much with so few words. Great site.
Matt and Denis <schtoted@flexinet.net.au>
Warwick, Q Australia - Saturday, March 15, 1997 at 03:49:25 (PST)

The first Vance I read was a dinky little Ace pb edition of 'The eyes of the overworld' 25 or more years ago. Since then fashions in sf have come and gone but I must have read just about everything Mr Vance has written. Despite the well-deserved awards I feel he is still underrated in the history of the genre.
William T Goodall <wtg@wtgab.demon.co.uk>
Aberdeen, UK - Wednesday, March 05, 1997 at 16:52:25 (PST)

Years ago, a book called 'Alastor' by Jack Vance was given to me as a present. The book contained three single books by the author and, since 'The Lord of the Rings' I had no bigger book to read. I thought it would need a couple of months to read, but all the three books were so fascinating that it didn't even take me half a week. As I like painting and drawing, Jantiff was an actor that fit me (is that good english?). Few years later many people I know called me 'Jantiff' and so my Nickname was born. To get back to Jack Vance's novels ... they are fantastic piece of writing. Until today I am searching for 'Cugels Saga', I already read it but I must to have it now! :) The first book I read in English, before I have read it in German, is 'Nightlamp' ... right now I am at page 362, only few pages before the end ... so I will leave now and see if Jaro and Skirl will manage to take Garlet, the twin brother, out to the stars ... or if his yaha will end their dreams ... or whatever ... I know, that you, John Holbrook, hear this question often enough, but what about another two or three books about the dying earth? I would do anything to get them. PS: I am willing to paint some pictures for Jack Vance. But how should they be sent?
Marc 'Jantiff' Hermann <mhermann@hydra.informatik.uni-ulm.de>
Ulm, Germany - Wednesday, March 05, 1997 at 06:42:40 (PST)

thanks for the many hours of pleasure your books have given me. please oh please one more cugel book!-shanna
shanna sipple <ssipple976@aol.com>
cambridge, ma USA - Friday, February 28, 1997 at 12:03:26 (PST)

Dear Mr. Vance. Thanks. You have helped inadvertantly bring about the marriage of two people. My wife claims it was when I read her a scene from Cugel's Saga that she decided she had to be married to me. We, and many of our friends are wondering if you might have one of Cugel's adventures up your sleeve. Do you have any plans to continue the tales from the dying earth? Thanks again, for all the books. -dave kukla
Daivd Kukla <djkvty@aol.com>
tucson, az USA - Thursday, February 27, 1997 at 06:13:06 (PST)

From what I've read on Mr. Vance, I strongly suspect he'd be laughing out loud, when he reads some of the messages here on the JV internet Bulletin Board. On the other hand he might be shocked, say, by the thought that anyone would actually want to play hussade. (Let alone hadaul!) So let me just say that this year will mark my 20th as an avid Vance reader. I first picked up Eyes of the Overworld as a 9-year-old in 1977, and had to get special permission to borrow it from the regular (i.e. adult's) public library. As I slowly discovered all Jack Vance's book and stories, I marvelled at his unique talent for creating imagined worlds and cultures. In many ways, I think he inspired me to study cultural anthropology, a science which is mentioned repeatedly in his work. Nowadays I use the internet to try to find those rare books, the only gaps in a 90 or more Vance book collection. Nightlamp was a special treat, which evoked the best of the Demon Princes novels. If Ports of Call indeed is the first of two connected novels, I will be euphoric!
Henri Gooren <H.Gooren@fsw.ruu.nl>
Utrecht, Netherlands - Tuesday, February 25, 1997 at 00:49:29 (PST)

Dear Mr. Vance, At last an opportunity to express my thanks for all the pleasure you have brought into my life. I first read The Palace of Love in 1985 and since then have read many times over everything of yours I could find. 5 years ago I met Sarah, my wife, and captured her heart by reading Cugel's Saga aloud to her! Since then I've read everything else of yours to her (some of it twice). This morning we finished Night Lamp. As they say in Scotland, "Lang may yer lum reek!" Over to Sarah: It's true - I liked him pretty much anyway, but after Cugel's Saga things never looked back. Weirdly enough, when I mentioned this to a couple of my girlfriends who have Vance-loving husbands they revealed, with amazement, that their husbands had also, successfully, used this ploy. All involved claim that this demonstrates not a worldwide male conspiracy but how your wonderful books inspire acts of love from all those whom they touch.Thanks for everything, past and future.
George <george@sugarland.idiscover.co.uk>
London, UK - Sunday, February 23, 1997 at 15:14:33 (PST)

Dear Mr. Vance, Having started reading your work at the age of sixteen, I find that, now being 42, none of the pleasure stemming from your work has diminished. I must have reread most of your work dozens of times, and still I end up smiling and enjoying myself immensely. All of this increased even more after meeting Jerry Hewett on the net, and obtaining via him the English originals of the Dutch translations. Good as they may be, they never seem to do justice to the original. After all these years of reading you, finishing a book over and over again leaves a trace of sorrow, as if having lost a close friend upon ending tne book. I'm sure you'll know what I mean. Thank you very much for being here, may you live to the age of Methusalem, and please, if you can, never stop writing! Kindest regards, Ronald Smolders
Ronald Smolders <smolders@euronet.nl>
Amsterdam, The Netherlands - Saturday, February 22, 1997 at 02:45:12 (PST)

Mr Vance, you've given me lifetime of reading pleasure. Please accept my thanks and my best regards.
Bryan Bingham <b2@seabase.com>
Albuquerque, NM USA - Friday, February 21, 1997 at 23:37:41 (PST)

Dear Jack: I wish that I could in some way properly express the pleasure that I've had in reading your books. Several years ago in Denver I checked out a library copy of Araminta Station. Within months my friends and I were devoting all spare time to ransacking used book stores in order to complete the various series (sometimes in vain; publishers, please reprint EVERYTHING). We were crazed with delight when Nightlamp was released (bringing a temporary end to all income-producing behavior in favor of finding reasons to use the word "proctosculation" in polite conversation); but oh, the many days between Vance novels! From the highest chamber of Watershade to the loneliest starment of Alastor cluster, all proclaim the glory of Vance!
Michael Yonce <myonce@dnet.net>
Franklin, NC USA - Wednesday, February 19, 1997 at 14:29:56 (PST)

Jack - The first book of yours I ever read was the initial paperback edition of The Last Castle, which I still possess. After that I remember buying The Star King and City of the Chasch when they first appeared at supermarket kiosks. As I followed you from planet to planet, my interest in other writers' works wained as my appreciation for your erudite style and droll wit waxed; Blish fell aside, followed by Niven, Farmer, and all the others. You are a master wordsmith - or, more appropriately, the Master Starsmith. I treasure several signed copies of your works and am patiently waiting for Ports of Call.
Bob Butler <robert.a.butler@boeing.com>
Kent, WA USA - Tuesday, February 18, 1997 at 10:14:12 (PST)

Great site, and a useful source of info. Enabled me to find out about Nightlamp months earlier than I would have done otherwise. Looking forward to the next book with much anticipation - Mr. Vance is the only author on whom I will happily spend money to purchase Ltd Editions - I am too impatient to wait for the standard books!
Philip Bell <Philip@araminta.prestel.co.uk>
Skelmersdale, UK - Monday, February 17, 1997 at 13:44:45 (PST)

Hello, Mr. Vance, I would just like to thank you for the many hours of enjoyment I have received from your books. I particularly enjoyed "Eyes of the Overworld." Do you have any plans to write about Cugel again? I hope so. Again, thanks
Logan Tygart <sltygar@panama.phoenix.net>
Panama City, Panama - Monday, February 17, 1997 at 11:02:36 (PST)

What can I say that hasn't been said already. Mr. Vance is, quite simply, one of the most gifted authors around (regardless of genre). I am always impressed by his imagination, and his very impressive command of the english language. Without a doubt, his Dying Earth books are among my favorites (notably Cugel's Saga and Eye's of the Overworld). I want another book about Cugel!!!
David A. Knadler <dak@marsweb.com>
Missoula, MT USA - Sunday, February 16, 1997 at 18:06:53 (PST)

Thanks for making this great page and a forum to thank Mr. Vance for his wonderful books. I've just gone back to reading (and re-reading) them, so I'm a bit of a newbie, but the Dying Earth books have long been among my favorites. I'm in the midst of the Alastor books now, after finishing Showboat World, the Dragonmasters, and the Planet of Adventure books. I can't wait until May for the re-issue of the Demon Princes series. I don't have unbanal enough superlatives for these books!
Michelle Hurzeler <tezcat@intermountain.com>
Murray, UT USA - Thursday, February 13, 1997 at 15:44:35 (PST)

Mr Vance is amusing me since I am 13 (41 now) He has travelled with me on holidays, business trips without knowing. I try to get my collection complete through means as this excellent and beautifully designed page (must be a wellpaying job, Mike -grin-) But actually I hope Mr Vance lives so long I will never be ready! Thanks for stimulating my mental processes as well ( it motivated to learn better english) One nasty question: I do know 2 Dutchmen in Jack Vance's books, one is in real SF, the other in a mystery novel I recently bought and read ofcourse. Most amazing the have been assigned the role of villains. Do all you other fans know which persons I mean? and WHY mr Vance? My respect is extended to a perfectionist who succeeded and found performing in his work more important then seeking personal visibility, thereby receiving honor in the best manner.
Willem Timmer <wjtimmer@worldonline.nl>
Velserbroek, The Netherlands - Thursday, February 13, 1997 at 13:24:20 (PST)

Having been a fan of Mr. Vance's for 17 years (over half my life!) I can say that there are few pleasures I look forward to with as much anticipation, and fewer still I regard with such fondness after they are over, as the reading of his work. Such an unwieldy sentence ought to prove my sincerity. Anyway, a king-sized thank you to Mr. Vance, and a tip of the cap to Mike Berro for running this excellent site!
Stuart Nelson <afreedman@csom.umn.edu>
St. Paul, MN USA - Thursday, February 13, 1997 at 07:43:13 (PST)

I really appriciate services such as yours. Keep up the good work. Alan(SkyGuy1)
Alan Keenan <skykeenan@worldnet.att.net>
Macon, Ga USA - Thursday, February 13, 1997 at 05:54:23 (PST)

Well then, since these comments are to be passed on to Mr.Vance... Jack, meet me down at Cato's Pub on Piedmont Avenue for a few pints of Anchor Steam; I'm buying. You're the best writer that am 'til Navarth comes along (with apologies to the good Baron Bodissey...).
G. J. Escobedo <escobedo@mendel.edu>
Oakland, CA USA - Thursday, February 13, 1997 at 03:53:46 (PST)

It was about 20 years ago that I first picked out a book by Jack Vance. I was playing hooky from my wildly torpid english and humanities classes, and decided to try this strange little book called "The Dying Earth." Since that time long ago and far away I have read everything by Vance at least a dozen times, and every time is as fresh and enjoyable as the last, especially my favorite "Emphyrio". Thank You Mr. Vance!
Tony Gazzano <Rolands@Metro.net>
Santa Rosa, CA USA - Wednesday, February 12, 1997 at 19:56:31 (PST)

No other writer has given me so much reading pleasure as mr Vance. And I�ve read a lot. Thanx for a great site!
G�ran Arnberg <arnberg@mn.medstroms.se>
Stockholm, Sweden - Wednesday, February 12, 1997 at 16:49:24 (PST)

A superb set of pages. Jack Vance is surely the master fantasy writer. Tolkien may have invented the genre (or at least launched it most proudly), but Jack has propelled it to its most dizzying heights. Such wit and style leaves me dazed with admiration again and again.
Andrew Chapman <psyaecha@arts.adelaide.edu.au>
Adelaide, SA Australia - Wednesday, February 12, 1997 at 00:33:29 (PST)

I have more than 1600 sf paperbacks, including 45 by Jack Vance, if I had to sell them for want of cash, I'd keep Jack's books. I've read and reread them time and time again, they're old friends. I start re-reading one, and then I go through the whole series... Colours, smells, tastes, characters, there's everything. And last Sunday the greatest joy : the NEW JV, NIGHT LAMP ! And he's only 80 ! May he live for ever , for our greatest pleasure.
Patrick Dusoulier <axolotl@club-internet.fr>
PARIS, FRANCE - Tuesday, February 11, 1997 at 14:03:44 (PST)

Pocas veces he re�do con tal abandono que creyera llegada mi �ltima hora. Pocas veces me ha sobrecogido el pasmo de lo maravilloso. Pocas veces la palabra > ha sido tan benefactora. Pocas veces la belleza ha estado m�s cerca de m�. Su obra es un oc�ano. Y por �l navega una flota, capitaneada por Cugel, que rebasa todo horizonte. Salud.
Ricardo Galnares <rigalpe@arrakis.es>
Madrid, Spain - Monday, February 10, 1997 at 12:26:20 (PST)

Just like to thank Mike for running the best author related site on the Web. I keep coming back as there is always so much stuff to read. Keep up the good work.
John Langford <gaabooks@cris.com>
New York, NY USA - Monday, February 10, 1997 at 11:27:29 (PST)

Jack Vance's books lead me to a life time interest in Science Fiction and Science Fantasy. I can only thank him for that and hope he keeps writing such wonderful books in the future.
Kym Millbank <kemillba@merlin.net.au>
Whyalla, SA Australia - Monday, February 10, 1997 at 03:40:20 (PST)

To Jack Vance, the emminent luminarian of science fiction and World-Thinker Extraordinaire: I salute you! Your influence is far-reaching and uncanny; your words, thoughts and ideas are the stuffs of timeless inspiration. How can I visit greater praise upon you? Vance, you will truly 'Live Forever'. Humanity is inestimably bettered by your efforts.
John Abe <jpa@dreadnought.cse.nau.edu>
Flagstaff, AZ USA - Sunday, February 09, 1997 at 22:14:21 (PST)

I, too, have been spoiled forever by Jack Vance. To return to one of his works after reading most other fantasy/fiction authors is like dining at a five star restaurant after a diet of fast food. Not to say the other authors aren't enjoyable, but the subtle balance and artistry of Jack Vance is in a class of its own. Thank you, Mr. Vance, for so much enjoyment. I wish you were inexhaustable!
John L. Corso <John_Corso@bendnet.com>
Bend, OR USA - Saturday, February 08, 1997 at 13:00:23 (PST)

Jack Vance has been one of my favorites from the time I first read "The Moon Moth' and have regretted that so few present SF fans appreciated his unique talents. This home page is an excellent source of information about Vanciana and publishing. Keep up the good work!!
Tim Hays <thays@erols.com>
Alexandria , VA USA - Saturday, February 08, 1997 at 06:47:48 (PST)

I've given up reading science fiction mainly because I've been spoiled by Jack Vance and I've never found another writer who comes close to him. But with years between books I have these long empty spaces of fictional reading time to fill.Anyone have any suggestions for substitute authors that come anywhere close to the master?
Bob Scott <rsc@gcal.ac.uk>
Glasgow, Scotland - Friday, February 07, 1997 at 07:43:34 (PST)

Wish I was able to visit his worlds. That would be fun. But alas.... only in my dreams :-( Still, the greatest writer of my time.
Hans van der Veeke <h.van.der.veeke@gasunie.nl>
Baflo, Holland - Wednesday, February 05, 1997 at 12:09:59 (PST)

Great job! Keep on plugging Vance.
Bj�rn Stenberg <stenberg@front.se>
Stockholm, Sweden - Wednesday, February 05, 1997 at 06:36:45 (PST)

Here's a toast to the grand-master. May he live long and propser . Not only for his sake, but for all of us.
Till Noever <till@adi.co.nz>
Dunedin, New Zealand - Tuesday, February 04, 1997 at 19:42:38 (PST)

"Exactly so!" Thanks!
Peter Crawford
Eugene, OR USA - Tuesday, February 04, 1997 at 16:30:02 (PST)

1) Greetings from AEFCF! (Spanish SF & Fantasy Association) E. Gallego (president of AEFCF). 2) A personal opinion: Mr. Vance, thank you for your books, and the wonderful worlds you've created. I think you're the best.
Eduardo Gallego Arjona <egallego@a2000.es>
ALMERIA, SPAIN - Monday, February 03, 1997 at 14:48:53 (PST)

At last a page with sincere intellect for the artistry of Jack Vance. I shall visit with zeal and frequency.
Robert Emmons (a.k.a Liane the Wayfarer) <aemmons@earthlink.net>
San Jose, Ca USA - Monday, February 03, 1997 at 12:27:35 (PST)

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