# Help Me Identify an SF/Fantasy Short Story--Robert E. Howard meets Ernest Hemingway in the afterlife **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [March 28, 2025, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276 "2025-03-28T23:36:49Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 7\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2025, 11:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/1 "2025-03-28T23:36:49Z")
Basic plot: Robert E. Howard (and I think another pulp SF/Fantasy writer) enter the “afterlife” where (amongst other things I forget) they meet Ernest Hemingway who cannot completely hide a sneer when Howard describes the type of stories he writes. Hemingway manages to say something like “Well, I’m sure you wrote it the best you could.” Pretty sure it was published in the last 30-35 years. ? Sir Rhosis ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2025, 11:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/2 "2025-03-28T23:42:51Z")
Part of this series I think > **[Heroes in Hell](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Heroes_in_Hell)** > > Heroes in Hell is a series of shared world fantasy books, within the genre Bangsian fantasy, created and edited by Janet Morris and written by her, Chris Morris, C. J. Cherryh and others. The first 12 books in the series were published by Baen Books between 1986 and 1989, and stories from the series include one Hugo Award winner and Nebula nominee ("Gilgamesh in the Outback" by Robert Silverberg from Rebels in Hell), as well as one other Nebula Award nominee. The series was resurrected in 2011... ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [March 28, 2025, 11:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/3 "2025-03-28T23:44:05Z")
In fact, probably this story > **[Gilgamesh in the Outback](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilgamesh_in_the_Outback)** > > Gilgamesh in the Outback is a science fiction novella by American writer Robert Silverberg, a sequel to his historical novel Gilgamesh the King as well as a story in the shared universe series Heroes in Hell. It won the Hugo Award for Best Novella in 1987 and was also nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novella in 1986. Originally published in Asimov's Science Fiction, it was then printed in Rebels in Hell before being incorporated into Silverberg's novel To the Land of t Robert Silverberg wr... > Real-life writers [Robert E. Howard](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_E._Howard) and [H. P. Lovecraft](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/H._P._Lovecraft) feature as characters in the novella. This review [The Collected Stories of Robert Silverberg, Volume Six: Multiples, 1983-87 – MarzAat](https://marzaat.com/2018/01/16/the-collected-stories-of-robert-silverberg-volume-six-multiples-1983-87/) confirms Hemingway is in tbe story ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2025, 1:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/4 "2025-03-29T01:13:30Z")
Here’s a quote: > “_Weird Tales_ ,” Hemingway said. “_Astounding Stories_ .” A shadow of distaste flickered across his face. “Mmm. Don’t think I knew those magazines. But you wrote well, did you, gentlemen? You set down what you truly felt, the real thing, and you stated it purely? Of course you did. I know you did. You were honest writers or you’d never have gone to Hell. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2025, 7:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/5 "2025-03-29T07:11:05Z")
Wow, I remember that collection, and even bits of that specific story itself. IIRC, Howard upon meeting Gilgamesh found him a near-perfect incarnation of his vision of Conan. Although I also recall that there was (by modern standards) a rather awkward mention of a sexual attraction element. I may easily be mis-remembering though as I probably last read it around 1990! ---
**Author:** ![Sir\_Rhosis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d9b06d/32.png) [@Sir\_Rhosis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_Rhosis)\ **Post date:** [March 29, 2025, 8:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/6 "2025-03-29T08:17:52Z")
Thank you, guys, that’s it. I look forward to rereading it. Sir Rhosis ---
**Author:** ![Askance](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/askance/32/8281_2.png) [@Askance](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Askance)\ **Post date:** [March 30, 2025, 3:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/help-me-identify-an-sf-fantasy-short-story-robert-e-howard-meets-ernest-hemingway-in-the-afterlife/1016276/7 "2025-03-30T03:57:27Z")
I thought this was going to be a later book in the [Riverworld series](https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/To_Your_Scattered_Bodies_Go) (I only read the first) but I see not!