Last week I received my DVD of Dreams With Sharp Teeth, the new documentary about Harlan Ellison. I’ve watched it a couple of times now, thoroughly enjoying it. Neil Gaiman makes the observation in the film that Ellison has been engaged in a great big piece of performance art called “Harlan Ellison” and I think he’s spot on. Harlan—he is one of the only writers who ever worked in the realm of fantastic literature to be known almost immediately by his first name—is very much part and parcel of his work. You don’t get the one without the other.
Which is not to say the work doesn’t stand on its own. …