[Scott]

Story archive at Temple of Dagon:  http://www.templeofdagon.com/lovecraft-archive/stories/
Now no one may use ignorance as an excuse.  (Actually, this was never an acceptable excuse, but now you are on notice)

Well done Cthulhu Mythos FAQ (same site):  http://www.templeofdagon.com/cthulhu-mythos/mythos-faq/
They are careful to sort out what originates with HPL and what was added to the Mythos by others, an important point to me anyway.

Again with the Temple of Dagon!  Artists' galleries, good stuff for inspiration:  http://www.templeofdagon.com/artists/

The Cthulhu Files:  http://www.baharna.com/cmythos/
A less focused fan site, with reviews, original writing and other stuff.

The Commonplace Book:  http://www.lapetiteclaudine.com/archives/011196.html
HP Lovecraft's notebook, full of one line ideas from various sources, thanks to pnutz.

[Ellorien]

That was enlightening. I've never been into Lovecraft (I've read a few of his tales but that's about it) and maybe I should read more to understand. I've got what I consider the best collection of Lovecraft's novels -
'Tales'.

Now no one may use ignorance as an excuse.

Yes Sir.

[Scott]

It is an excellent collection.  Unfortunately, no one has ever published "The Complete Works".  I've got four books now, which I *think* cover all of his stories.  You've got all the great ones covered there, but some of the lesser known but still worthwhile stories, like The Festival, never make the overview type collections.

[FrancoTAU]

Thanks, I guess it never occurred to me that the public domain writings would be on the web.

[Euchrid]

Thanks for the links. Though, I'll continue to use ignorance as an excuse, till I decide it's worth my while to read through them .

[peakperformance]

For reading about Lovecraft himself, a for numerous reasons very interesting subject, I can recommend 'H.P. Lovecraft: Against the world, against life' by Michel Houellebecq. Though much information is available on the net, I never found anything that covered his world view in as good a way.

I never really knew if I should respect, despise or pity Lovecraft as a person - I think it's impossible not to do it all at the same time though. Of course, they were different times and he always were the gentleman in person it seems.

[ILikeToWatch]

A Wikisource is fine too.

[renkin]

I borrowed a Lovecraft anthology from my father a few days ago, since Cyclopean got me interested in his stories. After reading four or five, I already love the stuff. Especially the first two thirds of The Call of Cthulhu blew my mind. The concepts in it are really fascinating; at the same time grandiose and horrific.

Anyway, I'm almost done with the anthology so I'm wondering if anyone (See: Scott ) can recommend some stories to look into next? Since there are a lot of cross-references I imagine some of them can be convenient to read before others. My impression of The Call of Cthulhu, for example, is that it draws parts of the big picture that other stories rest on. I might be totally wrong, though.

[Wrath of Dagon]

The Library of America publication that Ellorien linked above is the best one that I found, it seems to have all the essential stories. A bit pricey though, but good quality.

[Scott]

You can often get Lovecraft's stuff through your public or university library if you don't want to fork out the cash.  I have four Lovecraft collections now and I still think I might be missing one or two stories.  The sense that the stories reference each other is pure illusion.  You can pretty much read them in any order.

Thanks to the wonders of Amazon, you can check out the Tables of Contents on books before you buy to see which stories you've missed.  The main thing to watch out for is books with "Cthulhu" in the title that only include one of HPL's stories.  August Derleth published more than one volume where Lovecraft's name is on the book, but AD actually wrote the stuff, and he is a hack.

Added to first post:  a list of Lovecraft's works.  I used to think it was complete.  Now I'm not so sure.

[renkin]

Thanks for the suggestions, both you of. I think I'll get the one Ellorien linked.

The main thing to watch out for is books with "Cthulhu" in the title that only include one of HPL's stories.

Yeah, the anthology I've got is actually a collection of stories by both HPL and his correspondents. Most of them are enjoyable, but Lovecraft's ones top the others.

The sense that the stories reference each other is pure illusion.

Actually, I have at least one concrete example of a reference. HPL's story The Haunter of the Dark is a direct "sequel" to Robert Bloch's The Shambler from the Stars. But maybe he never does that kinda thing between stories of his own?

[Flop]

It is an excellent collection.  Unfortunately, no one has ever published "The Complete Works".  I've got four books now, which I *think* cover all of his stories.  You've got all the great ones covered there, but some of the lesser known but still worthwhile stories, like The Festival, never make the overview type collections.

I bought a big leatherbound book a few months ago, called "Necronomicon - the Best Weird Tales of H.P. Lovecraft". It doesn't have all of his stuff, but I think it's most of it, and the best ones are in there (I think so at least, although I don't believe I've actually read all of his stories).

[renkin]

Actually, I have at least one concrete example of a reference. HPL's story The Haunter of the Dark is a direct "sequel" to Robert Bloch's The Shambler from the Stars. But maybe he never does that kinda thing between stories of his own?

Ok, so after having read The Haunter story in its entirety, I'll have to change my statement. It's not really a sequel, it just uses Bloch's story as a starting point and the reference is more a fun thing than anything else.

I ordered Tales, by the way. Can't wait.

[Asmodeus de Yakshas]

Barnes & Nobles has recently released a monster of a book (1120 pages) that collects all of HP Lovecraft's stories except those he co-wrote with other authors.

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/HP-Lovecraft/H-P-Lovecraft/e/9781435107939

[OwenMarsh]

If you want to keep a complete copy of the Old Man's works on your memory stick or hard drive so you can access them even when living nightmares destroy the Internet, I recommend:
http://www.psy-q.ch/lovecraft/html/