Attributed to Lovecraft by Harold Farnese, who corresponded with Lovecraft briefly, later presented by August Derleth as a direct quote; but as discussed on this page, Farnese's letters to Derleth suggested he tended to paraphrase things Lovecraft had written to him, going by memory rather than referring to letters he had on hand. More details in "The Origin of Lovecraft’s 'Black Magic' Quote" by David E. Schultz, *Crypt of Cthulhu*, issue 48.
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All my stories, unconnected as they may be, are based on the fundamental lore or legend that this world was inhabited at one time by another race who, in practising black magic, lost their foothold and were expelled, yet live on outside ever ready to take possession of this earth again.

— H. P. Lovecraft

What It Means

This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "All my stories, unconnected as they may be, are based on the fundamental lore or legend that this world was inhabited at one time by another race who, in practising black magic, lost their foothold and were expelled, yet live on outside ever ready to take possession of this earth again." in the context of "Attributed to Lovecraft by Harold Farnese, who corresponded with Lovecraft briefly, later presented by August Derleth as a direct quote; but as discussed on this page, Farnese's letters to Derleth suggested he tended to paraphrase things Lovecraft had written to him, going by memory rather than referring to letters he had on hand. More details in "The Origin of Lovecraft’s 'Black Magic' Quote" by David E. Schultz, *Crypt of Cthulhu*, issue 48." to mean that wisdom is timeless.

Source: Wikiquote: "H. P. Lovecraft" (Disputed) The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
H. P. Lovecraft

About H. P. Lovecraft

Howard Phillips Lovecraft (20 August 1890 – 15 March 1937) was an American author of fantasy, horror, and science fiction, known for combining these three genres within single narratives and best remembered for the creation of the Cthulhu Mythos. He is considered, along with Edgar Allan Poe, to be one of the greatest Horror writers.