[net.sf-lovers] Concerning Moorcock

laura (07/03/82)

	One thing to remember when buying Moorcock (or any British writer)
is that the editions published on this side of the Atlantic may either be
published under a different name on the other side, or may be revised, rewritten
or otherwise hacked up books and novels which were first published in the UK.
For the most part, the British editions are *far superior*.  Moorcock was, at
one time, suing several American publishers, claiming that they rewrote some
of his novels and published them without his permission, and that they took
some unfinished work and published that.
	As I recall, the publishers were claiming that Moorcock gave them all
rights including the right to rewrite the contested books;  given that some of
them were written during the time when Moorcock was editing/publishing 
*New Worlds* (1964-- (last gasp 1978??)) which was always out of funds and
which Moorcock is said to have financed out of his own pocket on occasion,
there may be some truth to this claim ... I never heard how all of this has
worked out.
	Recently Moorcock has gotten rights to several of his books and
collections and has been revising some of the stories.  I suppose that means that
in Moorcock's own view, the British stories are to be believed over the
American ones, and the recent ones over the early ones.

	John Brunner is another author which one should try to buy in the
British version.  Anyone who has only read the American version of *The Sheep
Look Up* for instance, has only read about 3/4ths of the entire story ... the
remaining one-fourth was cut out of the novel without Brunner's permission...

						laura creighton
						decvax!utzoo!laura