The Troubadour

Lowndes, Robert W., 1916-1998Project Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

2.6

Word count: 8.3K words
Chapters: 1

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The Troubadour by Robert W. LowndesAuthor: Lowndes, Robert W., 1916-1998,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Oct 20, 2007

Editor's review

The Troubadour is by Robert W. Lowndes, digitized by Project Gutenberg and in the public domain, classified under American and Canadian literature. Lowndes was long active in pulp magazine editing and writing, and this short work serves as an accessible sample of his narrative interests. The text is in the original English, compact in length and quick in plot, suitable for completing a full read in spare moments. Its value lies not in grand literary ambition but in presenting a typical mid-twentieth-century genre short story: clear setup, concentrated conflict, tidy resolution. Readers interested in studying pulp magazine writing formulas can note how it quickly establishes situation in the opening; general readers may treat it as a light English reading experience. Since the public-domain edition contains no introduction or notes, readers are advised to keep a dictionary at hand and be tolerant of the period context.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers who enjoy English short stories and want to finish one quickly
Enthusiasts interested in mid-twentieth-century genre writing
Writing students studying the structure of pulp magazine short stories
English learners needing lightweight public-domain texts for extensive reading practice

Not a good fit for

Readers seeking a full-length novel with elaborate worldbuilding
Readers dependent on Chinese translation or detailed background notes

Reading tips

On the first pass, follow the plot; on the second, note how the opening quickly establishes situation and conflict.
After reading, summarize the setup, conflict, and ending in three sentences to train awareness of short-story structure.
If using it for English study, mark recurring expressions and compile them into your own phrase list.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

What language is this work in?

This entry is an English-language ebook provided by Project Gutenberg, with the main text in English and no Chinese translation attached; basic English reading ability is required before reading.

Is it suitable as a reference for writing students?

It can serve as a sample of short-story structure, showing how situation, conflict, and resolution are built within limited length, but it is not a writing tutorial; readers must derive the methods themselves.

Does the public-domain edition include notes?

The Project Gutenberg edition primarily preserves the original text and usually contains no introduction, notes, or background explanation; when encountering period expressions, readers may consult reference materials for help.

Comments

Find this book

This site is an index: you start “Search all sources” in your browser, and the entries it lists all point to third-party sites; please judge their availability yourself.

About the author

Lowndes, Robert W., 1916-1998 Author · American · 1916–1998

Robert W. Lowndes (1916–1998) was an American science fiction writer and editor active in the science fiction magazine circles of the mid-twentieth century. Public information about him is limited, and many details of his life remain little known, yet his surviving works and editorial activity still show his place in the genre publishing of the period. Two of his works are held in this collection, The Fourth Invasion and The Troubadour, both science fiction in subject and marked by the imaginative, plot-driven character common to early magazine science fiction. As an editor, he took part in the editorial work of science fiction periodicals over the years and contributed to the publication and circulation of short science fiction; as a writer, his writing and editorial practice reflect each other, embodying the dual identity of author-editor typical of the science fiction field in that era.