Lilith Lorraine
Lilith Lorraine (1894-1967), the pseudonym of Texas-born Mary M. Wright, is an amateur press publisher, writer and fanzine contributor.
Lilith Lorraine began publishing in the 1930s in science fiction fanzines. Her first publication as editor began in the 1940s, with Different, a periodical mainly devoted to poetry that also included science fiction. In the 1950s, she began to also publish Challenge, credited as the first poetry periodical devoted to the science fiction and weird fiction genre. She followed Challenge with other poetry periodicals such as The Raven and Flame. At the same time, she was also writing for "pulp" magazines such as "Super Science". "Science Wonder", "Wonder Stories", and "Astounding Stories of Super Science", her work appearing as early as 1930.
At this time, Lorraine and her assistant editor on Challenge, Stanton Coblentz, are credited with beginning the movement "Stellar Poetry".
Clark Ashton Smith writes of her: "She adds a new dimension to fantasy, a nuance of ultra-violet to the spectrum of poetry".
She continued to have work published in poetry journals and is also the author of seven books of poetry: her first, released in 1942, was called Beyond Bewilderment. She wrote one novel as well, titled The Brain of the Planet (1929). Although mainly known for her poetry, Lilith Lorraine also wrote short science fiction stories for 'pulp' magazines such as Amazing Stories and Thrilling Wonder.
After her death, Steve Sneyd wrote "Lilith Lorraine: Postscript" for Fantasy Commentator #51 in 1999, urging a reappraisal of her work. He also reported to It Goes On The Shelf #19 that he had received the file the F.B.I. had kept on Lilith Lorraine while she was alive.
