Introduction
A WITCH SHALL BE BORN is one of the original sword and sorcery novellas by Robert E. Howard about Conan the Cimmerian. It was written in only a few days in the spring of 1934 and first published in Weird Tales in December 1934. It sold for $155.00.
In July 5, 1934 Howard sent the typescript (not the final draft) to Mr. Barlow. In the letter he tells Barlow that Farnsworth Wright had told him it was his best Conan story.
Queen Taramis of Khauran awakens one day to find her identical twin sister, Salome, staring her in the face. As an infant, Salome was deemed a witch due to a crescent-shaped birthmark on her chest. This birthmark was believed to be a sign of evil, so she was left in the desert to die. However, a magician from Khitai (China) found Salome, brought her up, and instructed her in the art of sorcery.
Published in:
- WEIRD TALES VOLUME 24 NUMBER 6, Popular Fiction Publishing Company, December 1934
- AVON FANTASY READER #10, Avon Novels Inc., 1949
- HÄPNA! NR. 5/6, Grafiska Förlaget Kindberg & Söner AB, June 1957 (Swedish, Part 1 of 2)
- HÄPNA! NR. 7/8, Grafiska Förlaget Kindberg & Söner AB, August 1957 (Swedish, Part 2 of 2)
- 魔女の誕生 (MAJO NO TANJO) (A WITCH SHALL BE BORN), Shinjibutsu Ōraisha, September 1970 (Japanese)
- THE SAVAGE SWORD OF CONAN VOLUME 1 NUMBER 5, Marvel Comics, April 1975 (graphic adaptation)
- A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Grant, 1975
- THE PEOPLE OF THE BLACK CIRCLE, Berkley/Putnam, 1977 (restored text)
- THE PEOPLE OF THE BLACK CIRCLE, Berkley, 1977
- HÉROES BÁRBAROS, Editorial Bruguera, 1977 (Spanish)
- THE PEOPLE OF THE BLACK CIRCLE, Science Fiction Book Club, 1977
- MARVEL TREASURY EDITION #23, Marvel Comics, 1979 (graphic adaptation)
- CONAN Z CIMMERII, Wydawnictwo Alfa, 1988 (Polish)
- CONAN, A BARBÁR, Csokonai Kiado Vállalat, 1989 (Hungarian)
- CONAN: A ZRODÍSE ČARODĔJKA, Klub Julese Vernea, Winter 1989 (Czech)
- MUŽ Z CIMMERIE, Klub Julese Vernea, 1989 (Czech)
- L’IRA DI CONAN, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, February 1990 (Italian)
- CONAN TAISTELIJA, Javala, 1990 (Finnish)
- И СЕ РОДИ ВЕЩИЦА (I SE RODI VEŠHICA), Pleiades, 1991 (Bulgarian)
- CONAN A KIMMÉRIAI, Phoenix Könyvkiadó, 1993 (Hungarian)
- TUTTI I CICLI FANTASTICI – IL CICLO DI CONAN TOMO I, Newton Compton Editori, April 1995 (Italian)
- FANTASY: TIO NOVELLER AV FANTASYNS MÄSTARE, Sam J. Lundwall Fakta & Fantasi, 1995 (Swedish)
- STORIE DI STREGHE, Newton Compton Editori, October 1996 (Italian)
- THE ESSENTIAL CONAN, Science Fiction Book Club, June 1998
- CONAN JA MUSTA RANNIKU KUNINGANNA, Elmatar, 1999 (Estonian)
- THE CONAN CHRONICLES Volume 1, Millennium, August 2000
- CONAN: A ZRODÍSE ČARODĔJKA A JINÉ POVÍDKY, BB Art, 2001 (Czech)
- COMPLETE CONAN OF CIMMERIA VOLUME 2, Wandering Star, 2003
- THE BLOODY CROWN OF CONAN, Del Rey, December 2004
- THE BLOODY CROWN OF CONAN, Science Fiction Book Club, December 2004
- ÖSSZES CONAN TÖRTÉNETE I, Szukits Könyvkiadó, 2004 (Hungarian)
- CONAN. IL CERCHIO NERO, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, June 2005 (Italian)
- THE COMPLETE CHRONICLES OF CONAN, Gollancz, January 2006
- THE WEIRD WRITINGS OF ROBERT E. HOWARD Volume 2, Girasol Collectables, March 2006
- CONAN 2, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, July 2006 (German)
- GARDENS OF FEAR, Wildside Press, December 2006
- 新訂版コナン全集2: 魔女の誕生 (SHINTEIBAN KONAN ZENSHŪ 2: MAJO NO TANJŌ)(THE AUTHORIZED CONAN CHRONICLES 2: A WITCH SHALL BE BORN), Tōkyō Sōgensha, December 2006 (Japanese)
- CONAN – O DEMÓNIO DE FERRO, Saída de Emergência, 2006 (Portuguese)
- THREE TALES OF CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Echo Library, March 2007
- CONAN I, Aurora, 2007 (Czech)
- A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Dodo Press, February 2008
- THE CONAN CHRONICLES Volume 1, Gollancz, April 2008
- CONAN – L’HEURE DU DRAGON, Bragelonne, April 2008 (French)
- BEYOND THE BLACK RIVER, Cosmos Books, July 2008
- “. . .AND THEIR MEMORY WAS A BITTER TREE . . .”, BlackBart Books, August 2008
- THE ADVENTUROUS TALES OF CONAN THE CIMMERIAN, Onno Tasler, October 2008
- CONAN – L’HEURE DU DRAGON, Bragelonne, November 2008 (French, 2nd printing)
- CONAN. IL CERCHIO NERO, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, 2008 (Italian)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Prion Books, May 2009 (U.K.)
- THE BLOODY CROWN OF CONAN, Tantor Media Inc., August 2009 (audio)
- HEROES IN THE WIND: FROM KULL TO CONAN, Penguin Books, September 2009
- CONAN THE REAVER, Halcyon Press, Ltd., December 2009
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Easton Press, January 2010
- THE CONAN SERIES: A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Paradox Entertainment, Inc., January 2010
- THE ROBERT E. HOWARD OMNIBUS: 99 COLLECTED STORIES, Halcyon Press, Ltd., May 2010
- SWORD’S EDGE: PAINTINGS INSPIRED BY THE WORKS OF ROBERT E. HOWARD, Underwood Books, September 2010 (excerpt only)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Prion Books, November 2010
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Metro Books, 2010
- MUSTAN RANNIKON KUNINGATAR JA MUITA CONAN-KERTOMUKSIA, Javala, 2010 (Finnish)
- CONAN IL BARBARO, Newton Compton Editori, July 2011 (Italian)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN: THE CLASSIC ORIGINAL STORIES THAT INSPIRED THE FILM, Gollancz, July 2011
- CONAN, Milady, August 2011 (French)
- THE CONAN SERIES: A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Paradox Entertainment, Inc., September 2011
- CONAN IL BARBARO, Newton Compton Editori, October 2011 (Italian)
- CONAN THE DESTROYER, Gollancz, October 2011
- CONAN BARBARZYŃCA, Rea, April 2012 (Polish)
- WEIRD TALES: 101 WEIRD, STRANGE, AND SUPERNATURAL STORIES VOLUME 1, Civitas Media, May 2012
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Jame-Books, August 2012
- CONAN I SKRWAWIONA KORONA, Rebis, August 2012 (Polish)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN: TALES OF MAGIC & MAYHEM VOLUME 1, Summit Classic Press, September 2012
- A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, JEWELS OF GWAHLUR, BEYOND THE BLACK RIVER: CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Jame-Books, September 2012
- CONAN 2, Urco Editora, 2012 (Galician)
- LEGJOBB CONAN-TÖRTÉNETEI, Szukits Könyvkiadó, 2012 (Hungarian)
- ROBERT E. HOWARD’S COLLECTED WORKS, Jame-Books, February 2013
- WEIRD TALES: 101 WEIRD, STRANGE, AND SUPERNATURAL STORIES VOLUME 1, Civitas Media, April 2013
- PULP REPLICA: WEIRD TALES VOLUME 24 NUMBER 6, Girasol Collectables, May 2013
- THE DEVIL IN IRON, Fiction House Press, February 2015
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, SELECTED SHORT STORIES, Benediction Classics, April 2015
- CONAN – DIE ORIGINAL ERZÄHLUNGEN BAND 3, Festa Verlag, July 2015 (German)
- CONAN ZDOBYWCA. TOM 2, BookRage, August 2015 (Polish)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Ulwencreutz Media, November 2015
- CONAN BARBARZYŃCA, Rea, November 2015 (Polish)
- A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Perennial Press, December 2015
- КОНАН TOM 1, Изток-Запад (East West), 2015 (Bulgarian)
- CONAN IL BARBARO, Arnoldo Mondadori Editore, October 2016 (Italian)
- A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Speculative!, October 2016 (audio)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN – COLLECTED ADVENTURES, The Castanea Group, December 2016
- CONAN: BROADSWORD LEGACY COLLECTION, Shirtsleeve Press, April 2017
- A WITCH SHALL BE BORN, Sir Angels, April 2017
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN – COLLECTED ADVENTURES, The Castanea Group, June 2017
- ROBERT E. HOWARD’S CONAN THE CIMMERIAN BARBARIAN: THE COMPLETE WEIRD TALES OMNIBUS, Pulp-Lit Press, June 2017
- ROBERT E. HOWARD’S CONAN THE CIMMERIAN BARBARIAN: THE COMPLETE WEIRD TALES OMNIBUS, Audible Audio, June 2017
- ROBERT E. HOWARD’S CONAN THE CIMMERIAN BARBARIAN: THE COMPLETE WEIRD TALES OMNIBUS, Easton Press, 2017
- NACERÁ UNA BRUJA, Sportula, March 2018 (Spanish)
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Prion Books, 2018
- DE TOREN VAN DE OLIFANT EN ANDERE VERHALEN, Spatterlight, January 2019 (Dutch)
- L’HEURE DU DRAGON (CONAN, TOME 2), Le Livre de Poche, January 2019 (French)
- NACERÁ UNA BRUJA, Sportula, April 2019 (Spanish, 2nd edition)
- CONAN, O BÁRBARO – LIVRO 3, Pipoca e Nanquim, August 2019 (Portuguese)
- THE FEASTING OF SWORDS: EPIC TALES OF BLOOD AND THUNDER, Legendary Planet, August 2020
- ROBERT E. HOWARD AND WEIRD TALES, Dennis McHaney, November 2021 (excerpt only)
- CÒNAN. LA CANÇÓ DE BELIT, Laertes, June 2022 (Catalán)
L. Sprague de Camp's edited version appears in:
- CONAN THE BARBARIAN, Gnome Press, 1954
- CONAN THE FREEBOOTER, Lancer, 1968
- THE MIGHTY BARBARIANS, Lancer, 1969
- CONAN DER FREIBEUTER, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1970 (German)
- 狂戦士コナン (KYŌSENSHI KONAN) (BERSERKER CONAN), Hayakawa Bunko, June 1971 (Japanese)
- コナンと荒鷲の道 (KONAN TO ARAWASHI NO MICHI), Sōgen Suiri Bunko, December 1971 (Japanese)
- CONAN EL PIRATA, Editorial Bruguera, June 1973 (Spanish)
- CONAN THE FREEBOOTER, Sphere, 1974
- CONAN THE FREEBOOTER, Prestige, 1977
- CONAN DE VRIJBUITER, Zwarte Beertjes, 1977 (Dutch)
- CONAN IL PIRATA, Editrice Nord, March 1979 (Italian)
- CONAN THE FREEBOOTER, Ace, 1981
- CONAN LE FLIBUSTIER, Jean-Claude Lattès, June 1982 (French)
- CONAN DER PIRAT, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, June 1982 (German)
- CONAN DER PIRAT, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1982 (German, 2nd edition)
- CONAN DER PIRAT, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1983 (German, 3rd edition)
- CONAN EL PIRATA, Ediciones Forum, 1983 (Spanish)
- CONAN LE FLIBUSTIER, J’ai Lu, September 1985 (French)
- KONAN: CRNI KOLOS, Niro Dečje Novine, 1985 (Part 1, Serbo-Croatian)
- KONAN: DRVO SMRTI, Niro Dečje Novine, 1985 (Part 2, Serbo-Croatian)
- THE CONAN CHRONICLES Volume 1, Sphere, August 1989
- LA LEGGENDA DI CONAN IL CIMMERO, Editrice Nord, October 1989 (Italian)
- CONAN PIRATEN, Target Games, 1989 (Swedish)
- CONAN LE FLIBUSTIER, J’ai Lu, May 1990 (French, 2nd printing)
- CONAN BARBAR, AFSF, 1991 (Czech)
- CONAN: MEČ S FÉNIXEM, Nezávislý novinář II, 1991 (Czech)
- CONAN PIRAT, Wydawnictwo PiK, 1991 (Polish)
- CONAN LE FLIBUSTIER, J’ai Lu, March 1993 (French, 3rd printing)
- CONAN IL CIMMERO, Editrice Nord, June 1993 (Italian)
- CONAN DER PIRAT, Wilhelm Heyne Verlag, 1994 (German)
- CONAN, AFSF, 1994 (Czech)
- LA SAGA DI CONAN IL CIMMERO, Editrice Nord, 1994 (Italian)
- CONAN EL PIRATA, Ediciones Martinez Roca, 1995 (Spanish)
- CONAN FRIBYTTEREN, Semic / Nordisk Forlag A/S, 1995 (Norwegian)
- CONAN I: BARBAR, AFSF, 1997 (Czech)
- CONAN II: DOBYVATEL, AFSF, 1997 (Czech)
- CONAN: ESPADA & MAGIA VOLUME 3, Unicórnio Azul, 1995 (Portuguese)
- CONAN, Claude Lefrancq Editeur, October 1998 (French)
- KONANAS, Eridanas, 2000 (Lithuanian)
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