William Hope Hodgson

William Hope Hodgson
Born(1877-11-15)15 November 1877
Blackmore End, Essex, England
Died19 April 1918 (1918-04-20) (aged 40)[1]
Ypres salient, Belgium
OccupationAuthor, sailor, soldier
NationalityBritish
GenreFantasy, horror, weird fiction
Notable worksThe House on the Borderland, The Night Land
Spouse
Betty Farnworth
(m. 1913)

William Hope Hodgson (15 November 1877 – 19 April 1918) was an English author. He produced a large body of work, consisting of essays, short fiction, and novels, spanning several overlapping genres including horror, fantastic fiction, and science fiction.[2][3][4][5] Hodgson used his experiences at sea to lend authentic detail to his short horror stories, many of which are set on the ocean, including his series of linked tales forming the "Sargasso Sea Stories". His novels, such as The House on the Borderland (1908) and The Night Land (1912), feature more cosmic themes, but several of his novels also focus on horrors associated with the sea. Early in his writing career Hodgson dedicated effort to poetry, although few of his poems were published during his lifetime. He also attracted some notice as a photographer and achieved renown as a bodybuilder. He died in World War I at age 40.

  1. ^ "On What Day Did Hodgson Die?". 17 April 2018.
  2. ^ Bleiler, E. F. (1985). "William Hope Hodgson". Supernatural Fiction Writers. New York: Scribner's. pp. 421–428. ISBN 0-684-17808-7.
  3. ^ Bruce, Samuel W. (1997). Harris-Fain, Darren (ed.). British Fantasy and Science-Fiction Writers Before World War I. Dictionary of Literary Biography. Vol. 178. London: Gale Research. p. 121. ISBN 0-8103-9941-5.
  4. ^ Alder, Emily. "Passing the Barrier or Life: Spiritualism, Psychical Research and Boundaries in William Hope Hodgson's "The Night Land"". in Ramone, Jenni and Twitchen, Gemma, eds. Boundaries. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2007. ISBN 978-1-84718-179-4 (pp. 120-139).
  5. ^ Stableford, Brian, "Hodgson, William Hope", in Pringle, David ed., St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost & Gothic Writers. London: St. James Press, 1998. ISBN 1-55862-206-3 (pp. 273-275).