Robert Lynn Asprin (1946 -2008) was an American science fiction and fantasy author and active fan, best known for his humorous MythAdventures and Phule's Company series. Thieves' World is a shared world fantasy series he created in 1978. The original series comprised twelve anthologies, including stories by such science fiction authors as Paul Anderson, John Brunner, Andrew J. Offutt, C. J. Cherryh, Janet Morris, and Chris Morris. Marion Zimmer Bradley was an early contributor, but spun off her main character in the novel Lythande (1986) and did not return for later volumes. The series went on hiatus after the twelfth anthology. Thieves World 6 contains 1) The Vivisectionist; 2) The Rhinoceros and the Unicorn; 3) Arvo the Nose (original).