The Yellow Poetry Anthology

[FONT=Arial Italic, sans-serif]A King in Yellow Q & A With John Thomas Allen[/FONT]

- Although no longer as active here as formerly, John Thomas Allen (perhaps better known to members of TLO as teguififthzeal) is still very much a part of the online weird fiction community, including maintaining facebook pages devoted to surrealism and Richard Chambers' King in Yellow. As a result of this devotion, he and a group of fellow-minded writers now have an anthology of poetry centered around the Yellow King and all things Carcosian appearing in the near future. Over the course of our discussions, I had the opportunity to ask Allen a number of questions about everyone's favorite golden-hued otherworldly monarch, to explore some of the mysteries, and explain his own fascination with the Yellow King.


[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Q: How and when did you first encounter The King in Yellow, and what sort of effect did it have on you?[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I borrowed an edition that was a dark yellow hardback, no cover illustration, from a University library and I don’t think I ever returned it. I was feeling especially forgetful at the time. That got to be a big thing. I got in trouble for not returning the book, serious financial trouble. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]It wasn’t just that book, but they almost brought me to court on that one and a few others. Let me tell you something, when you have a guy at your door with a ticket for a prospective court date and on the summons is something for the King In Yellow, you’ll think about it a lot more.

Q: At the time Chambers was writing, the color yellow had become associated with corruption and decadence ( The Yellow Book , etc.); what sort of significance, if any, does ‘yellow’ possess for you?
Yellow is an inherently fascinating color, I think. I don’t why, specifically, but when I hear about the word “yellow” I think of madness, decay, death before I think about anything beautiful in nature. I grew up reading decadent poets like Ernest Dowson, Thomas Beddoes, etc. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Like probably every other quote on quote “literary” person, I’ve fantasized about drinking absinthe with Verlaine or snorting something with Sara Teasdale in the rain or whatever and dying some fanciful death you can never really die.

Q: Speaking of the Decadent movement itself, do you think it shares any special connections or connotations with the King in Yellow mythos? [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I’m in love the idea of the King In Yellow; there’s something of a color coordinated majesty about Chambers’ idea that synthesizes the blood starved, ghastly iridescence of the so called “Decadent movement”. I like my idea of the Decadent movement probably more than what I would see if I went back and saw Maurice Rollinat bang away on his piano or, tangentially, watched the habits of Isidore Ducasse for a few days. To answer your question I absolutely do see a connection between Chambers’ stories and the collection of individuals who were later negatively termed “decadents”.[/FONT]



[FONT=Helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Q: [/FONT][FONT=Arial, sans-serif]T[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]he creations of some authors of weird fiction, such as Lovecraft’s ‘Great Old Ones’ and Machen’s ‘little people’ for example, can be read as expressions or embodiments of the personal beliefs of their creators; did Chambers intend the King in Yellow to retain a similar meaning? If so, how do you interpret him?[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]

As a person who aspires to be an individual artist and write supernatural prose (Though I’m ordinary and boring enough to have started a surrealist group and stood with that group as one of them; ergo I’ll never be cool as Paul Valery and his disciples.), I don’t believe you can write anything with that kind of sustained genius and not attach a personal meaning to it. For all I know, the King In Yellow might exist in a non ironic and non symbolic and non reductionistic way.

Q: While The King in Yellow is typically categorized as ‘supernatural fiction’, Chambers’ stories also contain such elements as Poesque psychological horror, near-future alternate history, symbolist/proto-surrealist phantasmagorias, and the conte cruel; it is fair then to classify Chambers amongst the authors of weird fiction, or does he deserve a different place in the literary canon?
Whatever play is being read by the characters in Chambers stories is not something one could reproduce. It drives people mad (it doesn’t give them a mental illness treatable by a psychotropic; it drives them mad, a word brought into question by the NIMH) and creates a venereal, polluted atmosphere. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I couldn’t go buy that at Barnes and Nobles and no amount of discouraging logical positivism is going to drive one mad either. Therefore, I personally conclude it is supernatural..which is to say a phenomenon outside the bounds of space, time, and any kind of limitation whatsoever by physics or human and natural laws.

Q: Throughout its history, The King in Yellow has become a sort of collective creation; Chambers originally created the ‘Yellow King’ stories by dramatically expanding upon several short Ambrose Bierce pieces, HP Lovecraft in turn incorporated Chambers’ mythology into his own fictional universe, and numerous writers since have used these texts to build and flesh out further connections. What is it about The King in Yellow that lends itself to this sort of group effort?[/FONT]


[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]To use a bit of hippy jargon, I think Chambers takes us for a moment into the forbidden zone philosopher Norman O. Brown wrote about and suggests what might happen if every degenerate, cackling impulse flew out of the ovulating giggles of our really strange, semiotically balanced psyches. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Mr. Castaigne, for instance, in “The Repairer of Reputations” is a hilarious caricature of a brain damaged nutcase. Ever met anyone with a brain injury who behaves quite like that? Probably not. But Chambers’ suggestion, that an event as simple and horrific as falling off a horse could bathe one in the fetid areas of the psyche permanently is so believable when you read the story. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]He does what great horror writers do: he makes us fear ourselves, the world around us, and above all, the world within.
"In the Court of the Dragon" takes a bunch of young artists and makes their Sturm und Drang real. At first they have the average sort of 'let's paint something or do something but gave affairs first.' Somehow, someone gets a copy of 'The Yellow Book' and boy, do things get real.

Q: The King in Yellow is not just the title of a book; it is also the title of a play and the name of an otherworldly entity appearing within that book; what does this interplay of meaning and identities (potentially metatextual) suggest or conjure up for you?[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I suspect that the color yellow is no more inherently disturbing than any other color, but I like to think it actually is because of my literary enthusiasms and the imaginative potency it now possesses. The King In Yellow could just as easily have been some obscure 60’s band, like The Crystal Chandelier or the Velvett Fog, or been a song lyric in one.
But Robert W. Chambers put this uncanny phrase into a series of powerful stories (as powerful, to my mind, as anything Lovecraft wrote) that Derleth later called mythos. Me? to me it suggests some sort of supernatural, immaterial, immanent antihero composed of spectral hues with an unfathomably disgusting book written in bitter calligraphy. I love it!




Q: Characters in The King in Yellow who read that titular play find afterwards find reality undergoing strange mutations; have you ever felt haunted by any of Chambers' tales, and in what way?[/FONT]

[FONT=Helvetica, sans-serif][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Yes. Once, in college, I was watching a movie that every dystopic or antinatalistic or pessimistic would love called Pate by director[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Agnieszka Wojtowicz-Vosloo[/FONT][FONT=Times New Roman, serif].[/FONT][/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]It really should be on DVD, as it is a horrific and slow meditation on the nonsense of social mores and a sort of elegant, refined cannibalism--as elegant and refined as that can get.

A friend of mine who was slightly sinister offered me some Kava tea, claiming Kava was known to calm people down. I just had this thought: it’s kinda weird, us watching this beyond desolate movie and everyone being lulled to sleep with the herb which I hated. Then I noticed the 1989 Dedalus copy of The King In Yellow on his bookshelf. I got creeped, and I actually left after awhile.....with the copy of the book I’d given to him.[/FONT]



[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Q: Which of Chambers’ Yellow King stories and has had the greatest effect upon you, and why?[/FONT]
“[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]In the Court of the Dragon.” [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Just how he rips away youth and innocence. It’s like someone threw acid on the immortal souls of everyone in the story.



Q: Many other notable weird writers, including the likes of Karl Edward Wagner and Joe Pulver, have also fallen under the spell of Carcosa; what is your favorite contribution to the King in Yellow canon not written by Chambers?
Hands down, Don Webb’s short “Movie Night At Phil’s.” That story explored this world where a fictional movie with Vincent Price entitled “The King In Yellow” drives a fairly normal household insane. It was perfect. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Don is going to be in our anthology Songs of the Shattered World: The Broken Hymns of Hastur, which has a stated release date of April 1st, 2016 from Spectral Press. Simon Marshall Jones is a warrior, one of the finest publishers I’ve ever worked with. He took this project on very short notice and displayed a generosity one rarely sees.
Yeah, Joe Pulver put that collection together, A Season In Carcossa, I just remembered. I enjoy fiction and poetry that’s more about suggestion and less about an outgoing, look at the violence here, that kind of thing, though of course that has a place. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]And Karl Edward Wagner, definitely! I love what he did for Howard, who I think had a beatifically manic case of the crazies. He’s still not appreciated enough (though of course some of that is his own fault.) Wagner was like the Roky Erikson of the KIY “mythos”.

Q: What is the significance of the actual King in Yellow himself to you? What does he mean, and why is he frightening? [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]To me, he represents that which has absolutely no context. An embodied obscenity that embosses SIN across everything, like Mucha. He’s like Keyzer Soze in a less corny, postmod movie. Also I associate him more with poetry than macabre fiction, and I’m primarily a poet.

Q: A year after the whole True Detective affair, what do you feel about the show in connection to The King in Yellow ; has the effect it has had on the Carcosa mythos been negative, positive, or somewhere in between? [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I certainly would not have seen a Barnes and Nobles edition of The King In Yellow without True Detective. That made my day, just seeing it there like that. The thing about True Detective I loved was that it brought that Ligottian feel in a way I hadn’t seen before anywhere. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]The thing is when a philosophy--and I’m mostly friends with antinatalists, though I happen to be a Roman Catholic--tries to attach itself to everything, some of the pure magic of horror is lost. And while I loved a lot of True Detective, I don’t think everything always has to point to the perceived worthlessness of existence. It gets old. When we insist that this is what that writer meant by this story, etc etc, and everyone falls in lockstep, that dangerous magic get sealed up. Funny, one might think, or God forbid a Catholic talk like that. We are old enough! [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]But, like my friend Mark Samuels (also in the anthology), I feel mysticism has a place that can never be annihilated. One might say nihilism needs mysticism, and the reverse. Plus, Machen, Blackwood and James, you know, weren't atheists or antinatalists or anything like that.[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I personally wouldn’t want St. Thomas Aquinas to be the philosophical lynchpin of everything I read in terms of theology, you know? But Thomas Ligotti wrote such a great book with the Conspiracy. Every word weighed, everything taken into the most minute consideration.

People posting antinatalist videos doesn’t bother me a bit, even on my YouTube channel.[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Q: Conceivably, what is the impact you would like to have this anthology to have, both as poetry and as a contribution to the Yellow King canon?[/FONT]

[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]I hope this will be a fallback to Aubrey Beardsley’s Yellow Book; that’s the goal. An authentic Yellow Book filled with some of the most talented Yellow poets you could imagine, decadent as Mario Praz would have had it. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Thinking about this even makes a Coldplay song sound good. I want it to be an ultra-refined treat for fans of poetry AND fans of the macabre, as I think Chambers was thinking more of poetry than prose when he wrote his stories---or the spirit of poetry. [/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Speaking of music, I’m surprised none of the champions of the KIY have discovered an acoustic/ambient group entitled “Thus Sayeth The King”; you can download their first album on Bandcamp for 10 bucks.

That sound is just perfect for the KIY. I sent them a message on YouTube but I don’t think it got through.[/FONT]
[FONT=Times New Roman, serif]Thank you, ChildofOldLeech![/FONT]

This person is a homophobe and a misogamist, and has made lewd comments and advances to women I know (some in very public relationships). I dropped out of this project (he had asked me to contribute and to be co-editor, and/or supply him an intro or blurb) and blocked him on Facebook, the moment I became aware of his extreme vileness. He is toxic and a liar, and he has gone by many names on the net.

I wouldn't go throwing accusations around, Mr. Pulver, though I'm not quite sure what a "misogamist" is.

What happened, roughly, is this, and that's all I've got to say about it as unlike Joe Pulver I do not feel the "King In Yellow" is my possession only. I'm a bit old for that.

I invited Joe into my group on Facebook, the one representing my new anthology. He was heavy handed, bossy, just kind of this looming figure over everyone. He's aware of his status. His friends (Edward Morris-included-) abused-and mistreated-the-other members of the group I will confess that I once said "fuck you tinker bell" to Edward Morris, but it was for the sole reason of him going back and forth on everything and generally being obnoxious.


Joe Pulver acts like a tyrant. But this anthology will go through by hook or crook.

John--Thomas--Allen

One thing I'll give to JP--he's relentless in his pursuit of me.


John Thomas Allen

I'm not even going to dignify this person's name being used in the same solar system as 'anthology' or 'professional.' The woods are full of these little Paciones. Just read what he posts. There need be no additions from other sources. Allen illustrates the entire nature of the issue all by himself.

This person is a toxic liar. Just about every word of his reply is a lie. My post was to inform people. I will not reply to anything he states after. I will not give him the platform

You--don't--have-a--platform.--This--is--my--anthology.--You--have---nothing--to--do--with--it.--Neither--does--Edward,--who--is--a--different--kind--of--bully--than--you--are.

It is not fruitful to make extended responses against hysterics and bullies; it should be enough for those reading this to see that Joe Pulver attacks without provocation and has to hide behind his sychophants.

This is the sort of thing that infantilizes sci-fi/horror authors. I want to be the King In Yellow guy! ::stomps foot::

Though uncomfortably enough Pulver directs his destructive sense of malice toward me with a special degree of willfulness, I'm not alone in my view of him as an insecure bully.

As you might imagine, Pulver's kind of personality never once goes for a direct confrontation. He hides.

I've never known a woman Pulver's known, so I don't know where the hell this accusation about me making "lewd advances" comes from. I've seen plenty of Amazon reviews accusing HIM of being a misogynist, but that appellation is never thrown at me.




GB

- Surely, the King in Yellow is a subject profound and multitudinous enough that it need not be a source of jealousy, zealously staked out as anyone's official territory, with any challengers discredited by petty smear campaigns. As someone who was invited to participate to Mr. Allen's group, and rather than the toxic cesspool of prejudice and egomania implied below, I found it to be a welcoming and friendly environment for people with a mutual interest in the marvelous and macabre; it represents a creative group discussion, with members freely exchanging their writing and sharing suggestions, without the negativity or conformity that such gatherings unfortunately seemingly all too often engender. If there have been complaints about anyone's behavior, I don't doubt that my fellow members would hesitate to make their concerns known, seeing how the group contains a number of individuals familiar with the writing world (including two poets acclaimed for their speculative/experimental verse who have been publishing longer than I've been alive). It is unfortunate that personal disputes between former and present members of this group have had to blossom into random vilifying attacks derived from hearsay a la a vengeful high school clique rather than address their differences in opinion in a manner befitting mature adults. If this had been a thread devoted to the leveling of charge and countercharge such actions might have made sense, but that is far from the case.

Joe Pulver seems like a sweetie to me, but teguififthzeal comes across well also. I am torn between the words of Camilla or Cassilda, and do not know which song masks the true irremediable sins at work in this black starred tableau.

As such, I shall ignore the personal quarrels altogether.

Good interview.

I--appreciate-that.

GB

Thank you.

All--Yellow--Journalism--has--a--price.

“It is not fruitful to make extended responses”, finally we have something true from Allen. So this will be my last. Perhaps this will quiet his private messages demanding I address him?

This is not a clash of personalities, or a personal quarrel, there are wide variety of different personalities--different ages, genders, everything--at odds with this individual. I was part of his project, he’d even convinced me to be co-editor. Then several contributors suddenly dropped out and I saw a very negative post about him and how he was treating a contributor. Almost immediately I was contacted by a writer (someone I’ve known for many years) who had dropped out, and told Allen had a meltdown and called one writer a “faggot” and had approached several women w/ unwanted inappropriate advances (a couple of these women are in VERY public relationships). Then I was contacted by another writer and another, then a highly-regarded editor in our field, who almost everyone sees as a kind and gentle soul . . . A very dark and distasteful pattern emerged. I was “very” distressed to hear all of this, and naturally (and in the politest terms) asked Allen for details, hoping to clear up the mess, and was told it had nothing to do w/ me, and nothing to do w/ the planned book. Bleeding contributors was not a problem? Homophobic spit at contributors was not a problem? Unwanted, inappropriate advances to young women was not a problem? Threatening women was not a problem? Even if we set aside the troll factor here, we are dealing w/ unprofessional. I asked again and was basically told to disregard what I’d heard and basically told to shut up. I withdrew from the project and blocked him.

His posts (here) about me being a bully and a tyrant in regards to the KIY are lies. I do not own the KIY, and have never said I did. I am a longstanding Chambers fan and have always sought to promote Chambers’ works in every possible way. I have never said I own the KIY, and I am not a tyrant or egomaniac, seeking to own it—I am, as I have always been, a mere advocate. I hope _A Season in Carcosa_ and _Cassilda’s Song_ are seen as statements of, I want to see more people mining these fields. I certainly have strong opinions on the subjects of RWC and the KIY, but time and time again, in interviews, I've said I'm glad the gamers have taken the KIY to heart, and if you want to mix HPL and RWC that’s fine, sure not my cuppa, but if it helps to promote RWC, do what you like.

Again, I only posted this as a troll warning to the community.

Just please ignore Joe Pulver. This is about my anthology...I'm sorry it's not about him. Me being a troll and all.

T

BWAHAHAHAHAHAHA

THE YELLOW KING

Do you know of CARCOSSA

The King In Yellow Strikes Again!

Joe Pulver said:

This person is a toxic liar. Just about every word of his reply is a lie. My post was to inform people. I will not reply to anything he states after. I will not give him the platform

Click to expand...

Joe, with all due respect if you're going to level such strong accusations even with the best of intentions you should provide some evidence to back them up. If you don't there's a good chance people will just see it as one of these smear campaigns that have became all too common in the Horror/Scifi/Fantasy communities since the advent of social net-working sites.

I've nothing against either of you and would have directed the same remark at teguififthzeal had he made a similar post.

Joe Pulver said:

(a couple of these women are in VERY public relationships).

Click to expand...

On a lighter note the capitalization of 'very' here intrigues me. So I assume we are to read between the lines and take it that the good Mr. Allen has been caught propositioning the First Lady?