Lovecraft Online and the Old Rights Controversy

Looking for somewhere to read the works of H.P. Lovecraft? This wikisource site has all the major ones, more than a few of his short stories, and even several letters and miscellaneous essays too. It is the only near-full online archive of his works since the HPL stories at Dagonbytes went down a few months ago. Of course, reading off Wikisource isn't too easy on the eyes, but it makes a fine point for quick reference. It wouldn't be a bad idea for a few experts to come through eventually and correct background errors with some of the letters. Several are a little off--like the one from 1919 allegedly written to August Derleth, which is inaccurate since Derleth would've been only ten years old at the time. Moreover, Lovecraft, at 19, was also well into his hermitry in that year, a murky phase of his life where he seems to have vegetated following the nervous breakdown a year or two before, which resulted in him quitting formal education.

Speaking of August Derleth, the issue of Lovecraft copyrights has long been a muddled and contentious one. If old August were still alive, he would no doubt fume about the existence of the HP Lovecraft Wikisource archive, along with the other online sources listing his works piecemeal. Derleth did a good deal of aggressively defending ownership of Lovecraft's stories following his death, from the foundation of Arkham House issuing the first collected books of tales, until Derleth's own demise in 1971.

This seems to have happened as a result of Derleth stepping in to take control--when Lovecraft's appointed executor, Robert H. Barlow, was practically too young and far away to deal with his estate properly, and when HPL's only living Aunt died just a few years after Lovecraft himself. This move, which some see as opportunism on Derleth's part, forms almost a secondary controversy in the history of Lovecraft circles over the ethical and legal correctness of Derleth's claims. This is in addition to the arguments over Derleth's literary influence on the Cthulhu mythos, especially his use of good against evil type themes. Daniel Harms' excellent "Papers Falling from an Attic Window" blog recently weighed in on this old debate in Derleth's favor. However, this is mainly separate from the controversies erupting over Derleth's handling of HPL's printed work. Today, it seems dubious Derleth or anyone else ever had a very solid legal claim to Lovecraft's stories.

Many of HPL's work was printed at a time where they fell into the public domain nearly fifty years after their publication. Moreover, Arkham House and others failed to renew their tenuous claims to other major Lovecraft pieces, resulting in the other works being reprinted, with limited penalties. Obviously, the editions still put out by Arkham House, alongside Penguin, Del Rey, and other major publishers means some sort of copyrights for HPL's printed material continue to operate enough to allow these bookmongers to get a profit. Although, thus far, it does not seem solid enough for any to risk new court battles in a fight for Lovecraft's printed rights. Scholar ST Joshi has argued against any holdings to Lovecraft copyrights by Derleth or anyone else in the final chapter of his great biography, "H.P. Lovecraft: A Life." In the end, it is not just to our benefit that Lovecraft's material is so readily available due to shaky copyrights, but also keeps with the spirit HPL himself preferred. The Cthulhu mythos continued to exist and expand because Lovecraft encouraged open use of his creations in numerous letters, and used references by others quite freely himself. Lovecraft was never out to make money, and would likely be glad his creations continue to spur new innovations. He would also probably be comfortable knowing anyone with an internet connection can access many of his tales.

-Grim Blogger