TSIOLKOVSY, KONSTANTIN. AUTOGRAPH LETTER SIGNED WITH PRESENTATION COPY OF "THE WILL OF THE UNIVERSE," 1929

Autograph letter, signed "К. Циолко́вский (K. Tsiolkovsky)", in Russian, 4 pp (6 ½ x 9 ½ inches), in brown ink on plain unlined paper, to Russian Science Fiction writer Alexander Belyaev, 7 June, 1931. WITH: ЦИОЛКОВСКИЙ, К[ОНСТАНТИН] (TSIOLKOVSKY, KONSTANTIN). Воля Вселенной. Неизвестные Разумные силы. [The Will of the Universe. The Unknown Intelligence]. Kalga: Printed for the author, 1928. Small 4to. 23 pp. Original printed wrappers. FIRST EDITION, PRESENTATION COPY TO VICTOR ALEXANDER SEMENOVY, SIGNED AND INSCRIBED BY TSIOLKOVSKY TO FRONT WRAPPER. 

THE FATHER OF ROCKETRY GIVES ADVICE ON HOW TO WRITE GOOD SCIENCE FICTION, STRONGLY SUGGESTING THAT BELYAEV BE SURE TO RELY UPON SCIENTIFIC FACTS. “[trans]: I am happy that you are interested in my opinion. Not up to me to discuss the literary virtue of your novel, but the idea that science fiction must be based on science I consider very important! I devoted all of my life to problems of space flight, and consider that I can give you some advice… Pay attention to the peculiarity of the movements of pilots and subjects in spaceships with weightlessness… Your predecessor Jules Verne was carried away by the beauty of description. I think for writers of the 20th century, it is necessary to lean on science and scientific achievements…”