Joseph Payne Brennan

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Joseph Payne Brennan (December 20, 1918 – 1990) was an American writer of fantasy and horror fiction, and also a poet. Brennan's first professional sale came in December 1940 with the publication of the poem, "When Snow Is Hung", which appeared in the Christian Science Monitor Home Forum, and he continued writing poetry up until the time of his death in January of 1990. As a horror writer, Brennan started out writing stories for Weird Tales in 1952 and then began publishing his own magazine Macabre. Over twenty of his short stories concern an occult detective named Lucius Leffing. His 1959 collection Nine Horrors and a Dream, with classic stories like "Slime" and "Canavan's Back Yard", is celebrated in an essay by Stephen Gallagher in the book Horror: 100 Best Books, edited by Stephen Jones (author) and Kim Newman.

Contents

[edit] Notable work and modern influence

Brennan's stories, though scarce and mostly out-of-print today, are widely considered by horror fiction enthusiasts to be classics. His best-known story, "Slime", follows a protoplasmic life form as it ascends from its home deep within the ocean and begins to prey upon coastal residents of a small New England town. Not only has this story been re-published more than any other Brennan story combined, but many modern horror authors seem to have borrowed heavily from it, such as Dean Koontz in his novel Phantoms, which features a remarkably similar creature, as well as Stephen King in his short novellette The Raft, which also features a blob-like, water-dwelling organism. Another acclaimed story, "Canavan's Back Yard", deals with a weedy back yard that seems small and unremarkable from the outside, but quickly becomes so large for anyone unfortunate to venture in there that they soon get lost and may never find their way out.

[edit] Common themes

Almost all of Brennan's work takes place in or around New England. He often goes to great lengths describing vast stretches of forest, scenery, small towns, and so on. His characters are often seclusive, and stick to these desolate places.

[edit] Influence

Renowned horror author Stephen King has stated in his introduction to the Brennan anthology The Shapes Of Midnight that Brennan was a huge influence on his career and style as a writer.

[edit] Works

  • Heart of Earth (Prairie City, Illinois: The Decker Press, 1950)
  • ESSENCE ( New Haven, Connecticut: The Author. 1950 - 1977, 47 issues, I - XLVII )
  • A Select Bibliography of H. P. Lovecraft (N.P.: The Author, 1952)
  • H. P. Lovecraft: A Bibliography (Washington, D.C.: Biblio Press, 1952)
  • The Humming Stair (Denver, Colorado: Big Mountain Press, 1953)
  • H. P. Lovecraft: An Evaluation (New Haven, Connecticut: Macabre House, 1955)
  • MACABRE ( New Haven, Connecticut: The Author. 1957 - 1976, 23 issues, I - XXIII )
  • 20,000 Feet Over History (American Airlines, 1958)
  • Nine Horrors and a Dream (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1958)
  • The Dark Returners (New Haven, Connecticut: Macabre House, 1959)
  • The Wind of Time (Place of Hawks, Sauk City, Wisconsin: Hawk & Whippoorwill Press, 1961)
  • Scream at Midnight (New Haven, Connecticut: Macabre House, 1963)
  • Nightmare Need (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1964)
  • A Sheaf of Snow Poems (Hamden, Connecticut: Pendulum Press, 1973)
  • The Casebook of Lucius Leffing (New Haven, Connecticut: Macabre House, 1973)
  • Stories of Darkness and Dread (Sauk City, Wisconsin: Arkham House, 1973)
  • Death Poems (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Pilot Press Books, 1974)
  • Edges of Night (Grand Rapids, Michigan: Pilot Press Books, 1974)
  • The Chronicles of Lucius Leffing (West Kingston, Rhode Island: Donald M. Grant, 1977)
  • As Evening Advances (Huntsville, Alabama: Crystal Visions Press, 1978)
  • Webs of Time (New Haven, Connecticut: Macabre House, 1979)
  • Act of Providence (West Kingston, Rhode Island: Donald M. Grant, 1979)
  • The Shapes of Midnight (New York, New York: Berkley Books, 1980)
  • Creep to Death (West Kingston, Rhode Island: Donald M. Grant, 1981)
  • Evil Always Ends (West Kingston, Rhode Island: Donald M. Grant, 1982)
  • Sixty Selected Poems (Amherst, New York: The New Establishment Press, 1985)
  • The Borders Just Beyond (West Kingston, Rhode Island: Donald M. Grant, 1986)
  • Look Back on Laurel Hills (Minneapolis, Minnesota: Jwindz Publishing, 1989)
  • The Adventures of Lucius Leffing (Hampton Falls, New Hampshire: Donald M. Grant, 1990)

[edit] References

[edit] See also