I've been coping well with the loss of my beloved feline friend, but today I discovered another death of which I had been unaware. I learned that Steve Tompkins passed away on March 23 at age 48. He had a heart attack after being hospitalized for severe food poisoning that led to anemia.
Steve was THE world authority on heroic fantasy fiction, with an unmatched style of witty, informative writing in his many posts to various sites. I especially enjoyed his discourses found on The Cimmerian Blog, and his pieces can be accessed here http://www.thecimmerian.com/?author=3. No one else ever put Robert E. Howard and J.R.R. Tolkien into context with one another in such well thought out ways.
Everyone who knew Steve personally felt he was a great guy. I only knew him through his writings, and those were pretty great too. My condolences to his family and friends, his memory will stay alive as long as people continue to read and enjoy his writing. I'll drink a fine India Pale Ale in his honor, even as I'm sure he's now hoisting a few flagons in the company of Robert E. Howard in the afterlife. Cheers and goodbye!
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