Postscript by Christopher Priest

THE SUMMING UP

The letters included here reveal something that cannot be emphasized forcefully enough. No one who has read Deadloss, not a single person, in the fannish world or the professional, has stepped forward to defend Mr Ellison.

True, a few correspondents did attack me. They said I was settling a personal score, or breaking ranks with a fellow professional, or deliberately misinterpreting Mr Ellison’s mercurial personality … but the funny thing was that they attacked me while making snide comments about him out of the corners of their mouths. I would publish these letters if I could, but in every case the writer begged me not to, even anonymously.

As far as I can tell (and I believe I did a reasonable job of seeking response from Mr Ellison’s friends) he has no defenders. Everyone is sick to death of this non-existent book, and all that surrounds it.

Mr Ellison has no supporters. His constituency is nil.

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The response taught me something I did not know; at the same time I appear to have informed others of things they did not know.

What I learned is that as recently as 1984 Mr Ellison was still acquiring stories for LAST; there are reports I can’t verify that he has been buying stories since then.

In its turn, ‘Deadloss’ appears to have revealed, at least to a substantial section of American fandom, that the reality of LAST is not the same as its myth.

In particular, it seems that Mr Ellison has managed to portray himself and his contributors as being united in their commitment to the project, arms locked together, heads down against the foe. For instance, until ‘Deadloss’ pointed out the opposite it was widely believed that no writer had ever withdrawn a story.

Perhaps those people in American fandom who by acquiescence have given Mr Ellison tacit support will now be less gullible.

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Until I started writing this essay I did not actually think very often about Mr Ellison and his anthology. After all, Mr Ellison is just one writer whose work I never read among so many others whose work I do … and LAST is just one book that doesn’t exist among so many others that do!

Writing the essay made me remember what I used to think about Mr Ellison and his anthology before I became inadvertently involved. In those days, most of what I knew about him was all the ridiculous literary/macho stuff found in the front of his books–those introductions that he became famous for. They interested me because they seemed defensive in some way, as if trying to cover up some imagined shortcoming. His posture on the ‘Dangerous Visions’ anthologies seemed to be much the same. He kept reminding us how long they were … just as his progress reports about LAST almost invariably include an awe-struck remark or two about size.

Unfortunately, promises of immense length do not legitimize what he has been doing for all these years. For all the bragging and sycophancy that has gone on, and all the threats that have been uttered, there is still nothing there.

To spell it out: ‘The Last Dangerous Visions’ does not exist. Good or bad, it does not exist. Long or short, it does not exist.

Bluff all he may, it will never exist until Mr Ellison finishes his work.

The only tangible evidence of LAST in existence is the story about it I have told here. It is ironical that this essay is in fact the only testament. Already, more people in the world have read these words than have read the manuscripts that make up the anthology, even when you count all the people flown out to Los Angeles to do so.

And this story, fascinating though it is for many people, is none the less a degrading one. It is a saga of bragging and sycophancy and threats.

Any morals to be drawn from all this? Two perhaps. That the short is as worthwhile as the long … and that just as there is virtue in completing that which has been begun, so there is courage in knowing when to abandon that which cannot be finished.

THE REMEDY

You are one of the many remaining contributors to LAST. Ever since you sold your story to Harlan Ellison you have been holding on, waiting for the book to appear. In spite of your own private doubts (as well perhaps as extra doubts raised by THE LAST DEADLOSS VISIONS), you still hope and believe the book will actually appear with your story included.

However, the story was written several years ago, and although it was amongst your best work at the time, you have grown away from it and are now less than completely satisfied with it. You feel that if it doesn’t appear in LAST within the next few months you’d like to have it back so you can revise and resell it.

You have always held back from asking Harlan Ellison to return the manuscript for fear of repercussions.

On the whole you have come to the conclusion it is better to lie low and get on with your work than to keep thinking about this ancient dilemma.

But you can’t stop remembering how strongly you feel about the whole business. You wish he would either publish the book, or return your story. If only there was something you could do …

There is.

Here is a plan in 8 easy stages:

Step 1: ESTABLISH THE FACTS

Brief yourself on all pertinent minor details concerning your story. For instance, establish the date on which you and Mr Ellison made first contact about contributing to his anthology. If Mr Ellison made any promises or guarantees then or later, make a note of what they were. Find out the date on which you actually submitted the story, and the date he responded. Other relevant dates would be those when he sent you the contract, or progress reports about completion, or made payments on account, or gave you estimated publication dates.

The point of this research is that when Mr Ellison raises these matters he is sometimes imaginative with his interpretation of facts. Ready yourself, so that you cannot be thrown off course by pettifogging side issues.

Step 2: DO YOU KNOW ANYONE ELSE IN THE BOOK?

THE LAST DEADLOSS VISIONS contains many names of writers who have at one time or another been involved with Mr Ellison’s anthology. You might be friendly with some of them. You might be in contact with others, through Internet, or through membership of a writers’ organization like SFWA. Make contact, specifically on this subject. Compare notes, compare facts, compare promises. Most of all, compare feelings and opinions.

Tell people about THE LAST DEADLOSS VISIONS if they haven’t read it.

Step 3: SET UP A SELF-HELP GROUP

By making contact with other contributors you are already halfway to this. How self-help groups organize themselves is entirely up to the members, but you should identify yourselves under a particular name so that there is a sense of cohesion. (A conference within Internet would be ideal.) When your self-help group members make up approximately one half of the surviving contributors to LAST, and there is a consensus of broad opinion, you are ready for the next step.

The purpose of this group is not to act on its own, but to coordinate a series of actions that will be taken by individuals.

NB: Group action is not recommended. Group action would be ineffective on Harlan Ellison: he would ignore such an ultimatum by simply refusing to recognize a newly formed body. However, he cannot ignore personal letters from individuals.

Make sure he receives these personal letters all on the same day (or given the vagaries of the U.S. Postal Service, within a week of each other).

You must put this in writing. Do not try to do this over the phone. (A fax message would be OK, though.)

Step 4: AGREE A DATE

The date to be agreed is the one on which all members of the self-help group will write and mail their individual letters to Harlan Ellison.

It is crucial to the success of this Remedy that a large number of people write to Mr Ellison at the same time.

For obvious reasons, avoid any date close to public holidays, worldcons, etc. Give the man a chance to read his mail, and consider his position.

Step 5: AGREE THE WORDING

It is crucial that the letter you send to Harlan Ellison should cover the same ground as everyone else’s, without seeming like a form letter. Mr Ellison is not a fool, and even if he doesn’t get wind of this Remedy in advance, it won’t take him long to work out what’s going on. You will want to be on speaking terms with him after all this is history, so respect his intelligence. Therefore, write him the sort of letter you would normally write him.

However, it is also crucial to the Remedy that no matter how each individual phrases it, all the letters that Mr Ellison receives on this momentous day should contain the same message.

The message I suggest is as follows. The wording should be as firm as possible.

You should say:

That you have run out of patience, and you no longer believe what he says about projected delivery and publication dates.

That you have come to the conclusion the only way your story will be published is if you take personal control of it again.

That you are therefore setting the following achievable conditions:

a. That within 3 months of date of your letter he sends you unambiguous proof that the whole and final manuscript of ‘The Last Dangerous Visions’ has been sent in to the publisher, and that your story was included.

b. That within 4 months of date of your letter you will receive a letter on the headed notepaper of the publisher and signed by the Vice-President in charge of Publishing which confirms that:
the whole manuscript of ‘The Last Dangerous Visions’ has been received from Harlan Ellison;
it has been accepted for publication;
your story is included;
and a (specified) publication date has been set.

You then say that unless these conditions are fulfilled exactly, all rights to your story will automatically revert to you on the first stated deadline (3 months from the date on the letter). If the first condition is fulfilled but the second is not, then rights will revert on the second stated deadline (4 months from the date on the letter). In either case you will consider yourself to be free to revise the story in any way you feel necessary, and to sell it to another market.

This reversion will be absolute and is non-negotiable, now or later.

(You could optionally add that if he feels the conditions are impossible to meet he could let you know straight away, whereupon the story will revert to you at once.)

Step 6: WRITE THE LETTER AND MAIL IT

This must be done. If you procrastinate, or decide to wait to see what results other writers might get first, then the Remedy will fail.

If your resolve starts to weaken, talk to your self-help group. Get people you know and respect to confirm personally that they too will be sending their letters on the agreed date.

Step 7: WHAT HAPPENS NEXT?

There are four possible outcomes, and here is what to do in each case:

i. Harlan Ellison replies, and accepts your conditions

This is the best outcome. Write back at once and say how pleased you are, but remind him that the conditions are real and non-negotiable, and that you have no intention of shifting. The whole manuscript must be delivered by the first stated deadline, you must be given the letter from the publisher by the second stated deadline.

If either of the conditions is subsequently breached, especially the first, pull the plug on Mr Ellison at once … as in (iv) below.

The second deadline is harder to exercise, because a third party is involved. However, if the first deadline has been met but the second has passed, write to the publisher and ask the relevant questions. The reply will tell you what you have to do. See (iv) below, if necessary.

If you give way at this point, all the good work will be undone and the wretched situation will continue indefinitely.

ii. Harlan Ellison replies, but rejects your conditions

This is the worst outcome, and the hardest to deal with.

You will not need reminding that Mr Ellison is an effective demagogue, and that he writes emotional and provocative letters, and goes in for histrionic phonecalls. He will interpret the letter you sent him as having called into question his professionalism, his personal reliability and his integrity. He will also see it as a betrayal of past friendship or favours. Most editors, faced with a discontented contributor, would reply calmly and practically, but Mr Ellison will not. He is capable of almost anything: wheedling, bullying, flattery, self-pity, even threats.

The best advice is this: having come so far you should stick to your guns. To be discouraged now will mean a return to the status quo.

Reply (in your own words) to say this:

You have made up your mind, and will not be wheedled, bullied, etc. You have allowed him a generous and adequate time in which to complete the book. You point out that the more time he spends trying to persuade you to change your mind, the less time he will have in which to complete his editorial work. You remind him of his deadline dates, and your absolute determination to exercise them.

Wait for the first date, then pull the plug on him. See (iv) below.

iii. Harlan Ellison makes a counter-proposal

Another tough one. It is up to you to judge whether the counter-proposal is a real and reasonable one, or is just a delaying tactic. If you decide it is the latter, see (ii) above.

On the other hand, it might just be reasonable. Say that you first have to consult the other writers in your self-help group, and you’ll contact him again. Tell him that until you do, the original deadlines remain in place.

If you and other members of your self-help group agree that his counter-proposal is not only genuine but reasonable, then agree to his terms. Again, write to him as individuals, not as a group. You should, though, maintain the unyielding attitude that this really is his last chance, and that if you accept his counter-proposal and he misses the revised deadline the rights to your story will revert, and you will pull the plug. See (iv) below.

If you reject his counter-proposal, remind him of his deadline then stand by to pull the plug.

iv. Harlan Ellison does not reply

Pull the plug.

On the first stated deadline day (or as soon as possible after) send a registered letter to Mr Ellison. Do not delay this. Do not think you should “give him a few more days”. A deadline is a deadline.

Your letter should say that as the deadline has expired he is no longer permitted to use your story, and that you are now going to sell it elsewhere. Remind him that this is non-negotiable. Make no excuses, and give no ground. Be polite.

Send a copy of this letter to your agent, and to the publisher of ‘The Last Dangerous Visions’, and mark Mr Ellison’s letter with the information that these copies have been sent.

Step 8: IS THAT IT?

Yes.

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Copyright (c) 1987-1994 Christopher Priest. All rights reserved.

One thought on “Postscript by Christopher Priest

  1. Is this the first rewatch post with no comments?

    I feel like you’re underselling the good bits of Earthshock: the androids make no sense, but the direction of the first episode in particular has a pace and energy far in advance of anything we’ve seen before. Even watching old Who out of sequence you get this. (For my money, the next stories that are comparably directed are Resurrection of the Daleks and (obviously) Caves, and then there’s nothing with the same level of energy till Remembrance of the Daleks / Ghost Light / Curse of Fenric)

    For Mawdryn Undead I actually feel the plot doesn’t really start till the episode 3 cliffhanger, although it’s a very pleasant watch. In general, season 20 is too full of stories that have good ideas, get going late, and aren’t very exciting.

    Interested that you like Tegan — watching the stories out of sequence I’m not warming to her (but watching Sarah Jane stories out of sequence I get irritated by how she’s always choking back tears). I’ll look forward to your look back.

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