The John W. Campbell, Jr. Letters and Isaac Asimov (1950-1956)

Isaak Yudovich Ozimov, otherwise known as Isaac Asimov, was an American author of science fiction and popular books of science. Isaac, or “Ike” as his friends called him, was a master of hard science fiction, but he also wrote mysteries and fantasies. Perhaps Dr. Asimov will most likely be best remembered for his three laws of robotics and the I, Robot 2004 movie adapted from his writings. "5020 Asimov" is an asteroid named after Ike, and “Asimov Crater” can be found on Mars. According to Wikipedia "Isaac Asimov, who was born . . . Russian ... January 2, 1920 – April 6, 1992 was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. "Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000 letters and postcards. His works have been published in nine out of ten major categories of the Dewey Decimal Classification. His only works in the 100s — which covers philosophy and psychology — were forewords for The Humanist Way (1988) and In Pursuit of Truth (1982), a festschrift in honor of philosopher Sir Karl Popper's 80th birthday.” Asimov is widely considered a master of hard science fiction and, along with Robert A. Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke, he was considered one of the "Big Three" science fiction writers during his lifetime. Ike's parents owned a candy store. As a young boy he began reading science fiction and, when he began writing, he frequently visited editor John W. Campbell, Jr. in the New York City offices of Astounding Science Fiction. John encouraged the young Asimov and provided him with much advice to enhance Ike's writing and story telling skills. One such discussion resulted in the famous Asmovian three laws of robotics. Isaac Asimov developed his own writing talents but also learned "hard" science fiction rules under the tutelage of John W. Campbell, Jr. As summarized in The John W. Campbell Letters, Vol. I, and Vol. II, for many years John W. Campell, Jr. was the editor who, metaphorically, provided the door through which most would-be science fiction writers had to pass to sell their stories. As editor of Astounding Science Fiction, (now Analog Science Fiction and Fact) and also as editor of the short lived Unknown, Campbell had to fill the magazine pages with entertaining stories. During this early era he filled those pages by teaching creative story ideas to anyone who would listen or read. These letters to and from Isaac Asimov are the media by which Campbell taught and Asimov learned. Campbell, the editor, threw out novel science fiction ideas like a farmer casting seed corn to his plowed fields, and he nurtured those ideas almost like real flesh and blood children. We can’t say that Star Trek, Star Wars, and other great science fiction movies would not have been created except for him, but we can say that John W. Campbell, Jr. stimulated the basic inspirations behind them as well as with most modern science fiction movies. Why was that? Because Campbell taught (1) young high school would-be writers, (2) experienced writers of other genre, or even (3) great writers of science fiction that the meaning of “science fiction” was “an interesting story told within the framework of real or possible science.” “No fuzzy thinking was allowed!” one could paraphrase for him. Campbell, the editor of Unknown, also began a new type of “sword and sorcery” magazine that brought magic and genies into modern society complete with automobiles and skyscrapers. John W. Campbell, Jr., as a writer under both his birth name and the pen-name, Don A. Stuart, was greatly successful under two styles. View Less