The Magic Fart

Author’s Note

I wrote the original novel, Pornucopia, in 1969-70, but for some reason it took almost twenty years to get it published. I wrote the sequel, The Magic Fart, in 2002-03, expecting less of a problem with the marketing. Avenues exist now that did not exist then, such as the Internet.

My challenge was to write a book as naughty, dirty, and fun as the first. Close to half my life passed between the novels; could I still write as effectively as a senior citizen? I had saved stray notions in the interim, and used them, but for the most part it was contemporary writing. Readers will have to judge whether I succeeded in matching the level.

Readers may note that there are a number of inset stories within this novel. This is a technique I observed in the classic Arabian Nights stories, and I liked it and have used it in some of my novels. In this case, it was perhaps the only way to present some of the stray notions I had, that weren’t exactly jokes but also weren’t exactly complete stories. I hope they contribute to the larger flavor of the novel.

Will I write another sequel? I doubt it; I have pretty well squeezed out the otherwise untouchable notions, and should now be satisfied to write less naughty fiction. But it has been fun.