Lin Carter

(1930 – 1988)

Linwood Vrooman Carter (can you blame him for going by "Lin"?) was a prolific author of SF and fantasy, as well as an editor and critic living in New York City. He was a significant force in the resurrection of Heroic Fantasy.

He was a member of the Fanoclasts and some meetings were held at his apartment in the Bronx. He owned a large, fluffy pet rabbit which had the habit of lurking behind the apartment's toilet and then leaping out and biting people on the ankle while they used the toilet. The very young Karian Boardman had come to the meeting with her mother and went to use the bathroom. A moment later she came shrieking back, screaming, "Mr. Carter, your rabbit is trying to drown himself." Lin hastened to the bathroom and rescued the rabbit. It was widely believed that it had bitten someone who then tried to drown it.

He regularly wrote for many fanzines. He was on the committee of Metrocon 1 and published The Saturday Evening Toad and Spaceteer. He was one of the founders of the Swordsmen and Sorcerers Guild of America and a regular at meetings of the Hyborian Legion. He created the Gandalf Award.

He usually wrote as Lin Carter, but sometimes used the pseudonyms of H. P. Lowcraft and Grail Undwin. Carter is best known for editing the Ballantine Adult Fantasy series in the 1970s, which introduced readers to many classics of the fantasy genre.

Awards, Honors and GoHships:

• 1969 -- Balticon 3
• 1971 -- Minicon 4
• 1979 -- Unicon 5
• 1989 -- Spanish Premos Gilgames De Narrativa Fantastica award (Fantasy Collection/Anthology)

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Person

1930—1988

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