Algernon Blackwood
Encyclopedia
Algernon Henry Blackwood, CBE
(14 March 1869 – 10 December 1951) was an English
short story writer and novelist, one of the most prolific writers of ghost stories in the history of the genre. He was also a journalist
and a broadcasting
narrator. S. T. Joshi
has stated that "his work is more consistently meritorious than any weird writer's except Dunsany's" and that his short story collection Incredible Adventures
(1914) "may be the premier weird collection of this or any other century".
(today part of south-east London
, but then part of northwest Kent
) and educated at Wellington College. His father was a Post Office administrator who, according to Peter Penzoldt
, "though not devoid of genuine good-heartedness, had appallingly narrow religious ideas". Blackwood had a varied career, working as a milk farmer in Canada
, operating a hotel, as a newspaper reporter in New York City
, bartender, model, journalist for the New York Times, private secretary, businessman, and violin teacher.
Throughout his adult life, he was an occasional essayist for various periodicals. In his late thirties, he moved back to England and started to write stories of the supernatural. He was very successful, writing at least ten original collections of short stories and eventually appearing on both radio and television to tell them. He also wrote fourteen novels, several children's books, and a number of plays, most of which were produced but not published. He was an avid lover of nature and the outdoors, and many of his stories reflect this. To satisfy his interest in the supernatural, he joined the Ghost Club. He never married; according to his friends he was a loner but also cheerful company.:
Jack Sullivan points out that "Blackwood's life parallels his work more neatly than perhaps that of any other ghost story writer. Like his lonely but fundamentally optimistic protagonists, he was a combination of mystic and outdoorsman; when he wasn't steeping himself in occultism, including Rosicrucianism and Buddhism
, he was likely to be skiing or mountain climbing." :
His two best known stories are probably "The Willows
" and "The Wendigo". He would also often write stories for newspapers at short notice, with the result that he was unsure exactly how many short stories he had written and there is no sure total. Though Blackwood wrote a number of horror stories
, his most typical work seeks less to frighten than to induce a sense of awe. Good examples are the novels The Centaur, which climaxes with a traveller's sight of a herd of the mythical creatures; and Julius LeVallon and its sequel The Bright Messenger, which deal with reincarnation
and the possibility of a new, mystical evolution
in human consciousness. In correspondence with Peter Penzoldt
, Blackwood wrote:
Blackwood was a member of one of the factions of the qabalistic Order
, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
, as was his contemporary Arthur Machen
.: Qabalistic themes are at the heart of his novel The Human Chord.
Blackwood wrote an autobiography
of his early years, Episodes Before Thirty (1923), and there is a biography by Mike Ashley
(ISBN 0-7867-0928-6).
Blackwood died after several strokes. Officially his death on 10 December 1951 was of cerebral thrombosis with arteriosclerosis as contributory. He was cremated at Golders Green crematorium. A few weeks later his nephew took his ashes to Saanenmoser
and scattered them over the mountains that he had loved for over forty years.
:
Children's novels:
, of sequential placement:
Children's stories:
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(14 March 1869 – 10 December 1951) was an English
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
short story writer and novelist, one of the most prolific writers of ghost stories in the history of the genre. He was also a journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
and a broadcasting
Broadcasting
Broadcasting is the distribution of audio and video content to a dispersed audience via any audio visual medium. Receiving parties may include the general public or a relatively large subset of thereof...
narrator. S. T. Joshi
S. T. Joshi
Sunand Tryambak Joshi — known as S. T. Joshi — is an award-winning Indian American literary critic, novelist, and a leading figure in the study of Howard Phillips Lovecraft and other authors of weird and fantastic fiction...
has stated that "his work is more consistently meritorious than any weird writer's except Dunsany's" and that his short story collection Incredible Adventures
Incredible Adventures
Incredible Adventures is a collection by Algernon Blackwood, comprising four novellas and a story. It was originally published by Macmillan in 1914 and reprinted in 2004 by Hippocampus Press. H. P...
(1914) "may be the premier weird collection of this or any other century".
Life and work
Blackwood was born in Shooter's HillShooter's Hill
Shooter's Hill is a district and electoral ward in south London, England, located in the London Borough of Greenwich. It lies east of Blackheath and west of Welling, south of Woolwich and north of Eltham...
(today part of south-east London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, but then part of northwest Kent
Kent
Kent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
) and educated at Wellington College. His father was a Post Office administrator who, according to Peter Penzoldt
Peter Penzoldt
Peter Penzoldt was the author of The Supernatural in Fiction , a major critical study of the weird tale....
, "though not devoid of genuine good-heartedness, had appallingly narrow religious ideas". Blackwood had a varied career, working as a milk farmer in Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, operating a hotel, as a newspaper reporter in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
, bartender, model, journalist for the New York Times, private secretary, businessman, and violin teacher.
Throughout his adult life, he was an occasional essayist for various periodicals. In his late thirties, he moved back to England and started to write stories of the supernatural. He was very successful, writing at least ten original collections of short stories and eventually appearing on both radio and television to tell them. He also wrote fourteen novels, several children's books, and a number of plays, most of which were produced but not published. He was an avid lover of nature and the outdoors, and many of his stories reflect this. To satisfy his interest in the supernatural, he joined the Ghost Club. He never married; according to his friends he was a loner but also cheerful company.:
Jack Sullivan points out that "Blackwood's life parallels his work more neatly than perhaps that of any other ghost story writer. Like his lonely but fundamentally optimistic protagonists, he was a combination of mystic and outdoorsman; when he wasn't steeping himself in occultism, including Rosicrucianism and Buddhism
Buddhism
Buddhism is a religion and philosophy encompassing a variety of traditions, beliefs and practices, largely based on teachings attributed to Siddhartha Gautama, commonly known as the Buddha . The Buddha lived and taught in the northeastern Indian subcontinent some time between the 6th and 4th...
, he was likely to be skiing or mountain climbing." :
His two best known stories are probably "The Willows
The Willows (story)
"The Willows" is one of Algernon Blackwood's best known short stories. American horror author H.P. Lovecraft considered it to be the finest supernatural tale in English literature. "The Willows" is an example of early modern horror and is connected within the literary tradition of weird...
" and "The Wendigo". He would also often write stories for newspapers at short notice, with the result that he was unsure exactly how many short stories he had written and there is no sure total. Though Blackwood wrote a number of horror stories
Horror fiction
Horror fiction also Horror fantasy is a philosophy of literature, which is intended to, or has the capacity to frighten its readers, inducing feelings of horror and terror. It creates an eerie atmosphere. Horror can be either supernatural or non-supernatural...
, his most typical work seeks less to frighten than to induce a sense of awe. Good examples are the novels The Centaur, which climaxes with a traveller's sight of a herd of the mythical creatures; and Julius LeVallon and its sequel The Bright Messenger, which deal with reincarnation
Reincarnation
Reincarnation best describes the concept where the soul or spirit, after the death of the body, is believed to return to live in a new human body, or, in some traditions, either as a human being, animal or plant...
and the possibility of a new, mystical evolution
Evolution
Evolution is any change across successive generations in the heritable characteristics of biological populations. Evolutionary processes give rise to diversity at every level of biological organisation, including species, individual organisms and molecules such as DNA and proteins.Life on Earth...
in human consciousness. In correspondence with Peter Penzoldt
Peter Penzoldt
Peter Penzoldt was the author of The Supernatural in Fiction , a major critical study of the weird tale....
, Blackwood wrote:
My fundamental interest, I suppose, is signs and proofs of other powers that lie hidden in us all; the extension, in other words, of human faculty. So many of my stories, therefore, deal with extension of consciousness; speculative and imaginative treatment of possibilities outside our normal range of consciousness. ... Also, all that happens in our universe is natural; under Law; but an extension of our so limited normal consciousness can reveal new, extra-ordinary powers etc., and the word "supernatural" seems the best word for treating these in fiction. I believe it possible for our consciousness to change and grow, and that with this change we may become aware of a new universe. A "change" in consciousness, in its type, I mean, is something more than a mere extension of what we already possess and know.
Blackwood was a member of one of the factions of the qabalistic Order
Hermetic Qabalah
Hermetic Qabalah is a Western esoteric and mystical tradition...
, the Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn
The Hermetic Order of the Golden Dawn was a magical order active in Great Britain during the late 19th and early 20th centuries, which practiced theurgy and spiritual development...
, as was his contemporary Arthur Machen
Arthur Machen
Arthur Machen was a Welsh author and mystic of the 1890s and early 20th century. He is best known for his influential supernatural, fantasy, and horror fiction. His novella The Great God Pan has garnered a reputation as a classic of horror...
.: Qabalistic themes are at the heart of his novel The Human Chord.
Blackwood wrote an autobiography
Autobiography
An autobiography is a book about the life of a person, written by that person.-Origin of the term:...
of his early years, Episodes Before Thirty (1923), and there is a biography by Mike Ashley
Mike Ashley (writer)
Michael Ashley is a British bibliographer, author and editor of science fiction, mystery, and fantasy.He edits the long-running Mammoth Book series of short story anthologies, each arranged around a particular theme in mystery, fantasy, or science fiction...
(ISBN 0-7867-0928-6).
Blackwood died after several strokes. Officially his death on 10 December 1951 was of cerebral thrombosis with arteriosclerosis as contributory. He was cremated at Golders Green crematorium. A few weeks later his nephew took his ashes to Saanenmoser
Saanenmöser Pass
Saanenmöser is a high mountain pass in the Bernese Oberland in the Alps in Switzerland.It connects Zweisimmen and Saanen.The Montreux-Oberland Bernois Railway also crosses the pass. It is the highest point on the line.-See also:...
and scattered them over the mountains that he had loved for over forty years.
Critical responses and legacy
- H. P. LovecraftH. P. LovecraftHoward Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
included Blackwood as one of the "Modern Masters" in the chapter of that name in Supernatural Horror in LiteratureSupernatural Horror in Literature"Supernatural Horror in Literature" is a long essay by the celebrated horror writer H. P. Lovecraft surveying the field of horror fiction. It was written between November 1925 and May 1927 and revised in 1933-1934. It was first published in 1927 in the one-shot magazine The Recluse...
. - Peter Penzoldt devotes the final chapter of The Supernatural in Fiction (1952) to an analysis of Blackwood's work, and the book is dedicated "with deep admiration and gratitude, to Algernon Blackwood, the greatest of them all".
- There is an extensive critical analysis of Blackwood's work in Jack SullivanJack Sullivan (literary scholar)Jack Sullivan is an American literary scholar, essayist, author, editor, musicologist, and short story writer. He is one of the leading modern figures in the study of the horror genre, particularly the ghost story....
's book Elegant Nightmares: The English Ghost Story From Le Fanu to Blackwood (1978). - There is a critical essay on Blackwood's work in S. T. JoshiS. T. JoshiSunand Tryambak Joshi — known as S. T. Joshi — is an award-winning Indian American literary critic, novelist, and a leading figure in the study of Howard Phillips Lovecraft and other authors of weird and fantastic fiction...
's The Weird Tale (1990). - The plot of Caitlin R. KiernanCaitlin R. KiernanCaitlín Rebekah Kiernan is the author of many science fiction and dark fantasy works, including seven novels, many comic books, more than one hundred published short stories, novellas, and vignettes, and numerous scientific papers.- Overview :Born in Dublin, Ireland, she moved to the United States...
's novel Threshold (2001) draws upon Blackwood's "The WillowsThe Willows (story)"The Willows" is one of Algernon Blackwood's best known short stories. American horror author H.P. Lovecraft considered it to be the finest supernatural tale in English literature. "The Willows" is an example of early modern horror and is connected within the literary tradition of weird...
", which is quoted several times in the book. Kiernan has cited Blackwood as an important influence on her writing. - In The Books in My Life, Henry MillerHenry MillerHenry Valentine Miller was an American novelist and painter. He was known for breaking with existing literary forms and developing a new sort of 'novel' that is a mixture of novel, autobiography, social criticism, philosophical reflection, surrealist free association, and mysticism, one that is...
chose Blackwood's The Bright Messenger as "the most extraordinary novel on psychoanalysisPsychoanalysisPsychoanalysis is a psychological theory developed in the late 19th and early 20th centuries by Austrian neurologist Sigmund Freud. Psychoanalysis has expanded, been criticized and developed in different directions, mostly by some of Freud's former students, such as Alfred Adler and Carl Gustav...
, one that dwarfs the subject." - Algernon Blackwood appears as a character in the novel "The Curse of the Wendigo" by Rick Yancey
Novels
In sequence of first publicationPublication
To publish is to make content available to the public. While specific use of the term may vary among countries, it is usually applied to text, images, or other audio-visual content on any medium, including paper or electronic publishing forms such as websites, e-books, Compact Discs and MP3s...
:
- Jimbo: A Fantasy (1909a)
- The Education of Uncle Paul (1909b)
- The Human Chord (1910)
- The Centaur (1911)
- A Prisoner in Fairyland (1913); sequelSequelA sequel is a narrative, documental, or other work of literature, film, theatre, or music that continues the story of or expands upon issues presented in some previous work...
to The Education of Uncle Paul - The Extra Day (1915)
- Julius LeVallon (1916a)
- The Wave (1916b)
- The Promise of Air (1918a)
- The Garden of Survival (1918b)
- The Bright Messenger (1921); sequel to Julius LeVallon
- Dudley & Gilderoy: A Nonsense (1929)
Children's novels:
- Sambo and Snitch (1927)
- The Fruit Stoners: Being the Adventures of Maria Among the Fruit Stoners (1934)
Plays
In sequence of first performance:- The Starlight ExpressThe Starlight Express"The Starlight Express" is a children's play by Violet Pearn, based on the imaginative novel "A Prisoner in Fairyland" by Algernon Blackwood, with songs and incidental music written by the English composer Sir Edward Elgar in 1915.- Production :...
(1915), coauthored with Violet Pearn; incidental musicIncidental musicIncidental music is music in a play, television program, radio program, video game, film or some other form not primarily musical. The term is less frequently applied to film music, with such music being referred to instead as the "film score" or "soundtrack"....
by Edward ElgarEdward ElgarSir Edward William Elgar, 1st Baronet OM, GCVO was an English composer, many of whose works have entered the British and international classical concert repertoire. Among his best-known compositions are orchestral works including the Enigma Variations, the Pomp and Circumstance Marches, concertos...
; based on Blackwood's 1913 novel A Prisoner in Fairyland - The Crossing (1920a), coauthored with Bertram Forsyth; based on Blackwood's 1913 short story "Transition"
- Through the Crack (1920b), coauthored with Violet Pearn; based on Blackwood's 1909 novel The Education of Uncle Paul and 1915 novel The Extra Day
- White Magic (1921a), coauthored with Bertram Forsyth
- The Halfway House (1921b), coauthored with Elaine Ainley
- Max Hensig (1929), coauthored with Frederick Kinsey Peile; based on Blackwood's 1907 short story "Max Hensig — Bacteriologist and Murderer"
Short fiction collections
In sequence of first publication:- The Empty House and Other Ghost Stories (1906); original collection
- The Listener and Other Stories (1907); original collection
- John Silence (1908); original collection; reprintReprintA reprint is a re-publishing of material that has already been previously published. The word reprint is used in many fields.-Academic publishing:...
ed with added prefacePrefaceA preface is an introduction to a book or other literary work written by the work's author. An introductory essay written by a different person is a foreword and precedes an author's preface...
, 1942 - The Lost Valley and Other Stories (1910); original collection
- Pan's Garden: a Volume of Nature Stories (1912); original collection
- Ten Minute Stories (1914a); original collection
- Incredible Adventures (1914b); original collection
- Day and Night Stories (1917); original collection
- Wolves of God, and Other Fey Stories (1921), honorarily coauthored with Wilfred Wilson; original collection
- Tongues of Fire and Other Sketches (1924); original collection
- Ancient Sorceries and Other Tales (1927a); selections from previous Blackwood collections, and pre-publication abridgment of 1932's planned The Willows and Other Queer Tales
- The Dance of Death and Other Tales (1927b); selections from previous Blackwood collections; reprinted as 1963's The Dance of Death and Other Stories
- Strange Stories (1929); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- Short Stories of To-Day & Yesterday (1930); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- The Willows and Other Queer Tales (1932); selected by G. F. Maine from previous Blackwood collections
- Shocks (1935); original collection
- The Tales of Algernon Blackwood (1938); selections from previous Blackwood collections, with a new preface by Blackwood
- Selected Tales of Algernon Blackwood (1942); selections from previous Blackwood collections (not to be mistaken for the identical title to a 1964 Blackwood collection)
- Selected Short Stories of Algernon Blackwood (1945); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- The Doll and One OtherThe Doll and One OtherThe Doll and One Other is a collection of two fantasy and horror novelettes by author Algernon Blackwood. It was released in 1946 and was the first publication of either novelette...
(1946); original collection - Tales of the Uncanny and Supernatural (1949); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- In the Realm of Terror (1957); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- The Dance of Death and Other Stories (1963); reprint of 1927's The Dance of Death and Other Tales
- Selected Tales of Algernon Blackwood (1964); selections from previous Blackwood collections (not to be mistaken for the identical title to a 1942 Blackwood collection)
- Tales of the Mysterious and Macabre (1967); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- Ancient Sorceries and Other Stories (1968); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- Best Ghost Stories of Algernon Blackwood (1973), selected and introducedIntroduction (essay)An introduction is a beginning section which states the purpose and goals of the following writing. The introduction is usually interesting and it intrigues the reader and causes him or her to want to read on. The sentence in which the introduction begins can be a question or just a statement...
by Everett F. BleilerEverett F. BleilerEverett Franklin Bleiler was an editor, bibliographer, and scholar of science fiction, detective fiction, and fantasy literature. In the late 1940s and early 1950s, he co-edited the first "year's best" series of science fiction anthologies, and his Checklist of Fantastic Literature has been called...
; selections from previous Blackwood collections; includes Blackwood's own preface to 1938's The Tales of Algernon Blackwood - The Best Supernatural Tales of Algernon Blackwood (1973); selected and introduced by Felix MorrowFelix MorrowFelix Morrow was an American communist political activist and newspaper editor. In later years, Morrow left the world of politics to become a book publisher. He is best remembered as a factional leader of the American Trotskyist movement....
; selections from 1929's Strange Stories - Tales of Terror and Darkness (1977); selections from previous Blackwood collections
- Tales of the Supernatural (1983); selected and introduced by Mike AshleyMike Ashley (writer)Michael Ashley is a British bibliographer, author and editor of science fiction, mystery, and fantasy.He edits the long-running Mammoth Book series of short story anthologies, each arranged around a particular theme in mystery, fantasy, or science fiction...
; selections from previous Blackwood collections - The Magic Mirror (1989); selected, introduced, and notes by Mike Ashley; original collection
- The Complete John Silence Stories (1997); selected and introduced by S. T. JoshiS. T. JoshiSunand Tryambak Joshi — known as S. T. Joshi — is an award-winning Indian American literary critic, novelist, and a leading figure in the study of Howard Phillips Lovecraft and other authors of weird and fantastic fiction...
; reprint of 1908's John Silence (without the preface to the 1942 reprint) and the one remaining John Silence story, "A Victim of Higher Space" - Ancient Sorceries and Other Weird Stories (2002); selected, introduced, and notes by S. T. Joshi; selections from previous Blackwood collections
- Algernon Blackwood's Canadian Tales of Terror (2004); selected, introduced, with notes by John Robert Colombo; eight stories of special Canadian interest plus information on the author's years in Canada
Select short story synopses
- "A Haunted Island" (1899)
- To prepare for his professional examinations, a young man remains after the other summer visitors to a lake in the Canadian wildernessWildernessWilderness or wildland is a natural environment on Earth that has not been significantly modified by human activity. It may also be defined as: "The most intact, undisturbed wild natural areas left on our planet—those last truly wild places that humans do not control and have not developed with...
have gone, but soon he experiences a terrifying vision of himself hunted and murdered.
- To prepare for his professional examinations, a young man remains after the other summer visitors to a lake in the Canadian wilderness
- "Smith: An Episode in a Lodging House" (1906)
- A man and his strange neighbor's paths meet more often than he would like in this story of a man delving into secrets he should not know.
- "The WillowsThe Willows (story)"The Willows" is one of Algernon Blackwood's best known short stories. American horror author H.P. Lovecraft considered it to be the finest supernatural tale in English literature. "The Willows" is an example of early modern horror and is connected within the literary tradition of weird...
" (1907)- Perhaps Blackwood's most celebrated story, this was influenced heavily by his own trips up the DanubeDanubeThe Danube is a river in the Central Europe and the Europe's second longest river after the Volga. It is classified as an international waterway....
. Two campers find themselves staying in an eerie locale, impinged on by another dimension. H. P. LovecraftH. P. LovecraftHoward Phillips Lovecraft --often credited as H.P. Lovecraft — was an American author of horror, fantasy and science fiction, especially the subgenre known as weird fiction....
considered this the finest supernatural tale in English literature.
- Perhaps Blackwood's most celebrated story, this was influenced heavily by his own trips up the Danube
- "The Insanity of Jones" (1907)
- A reincarnation story based around the correcting of past wrongs by revenge.
- "Ancient Sorceries" (1908)
- A tourist returning from a trip becomes too enchanted with a strange French town and its people to leave. He is slowly drawn more and more into their realm of secrets and talk of ancient memories.
- "The WendigoWendigoThe Wendigo is a mythical creature appearing in the mythology of the Algonquian people. It is a malevolent cannibalistic spirit into which humans could transform, or which could possess humans...
" (1910)- Another camper tale, this time set in the Canadian wilderness. A hunting party separates to track moose, and one member is abducted by the Wendigo of legend. Robert AickmanRobert AickmanRobert Fordyce Aickman was an English conservationist and writer of fiction and nonfiction. As a writer, he is best known for his supernatural fiction, which he described as "strange stories".-Life:...
regarded this as "one of the (possibly) six great masterpieces in the field".
- Another camper tale, this time set in the Canadian wilderness. A hunting party separates to track moose, and one member is abducted by the Wendigo of legend. Robert Aickman
- "The Glamour of the Snow" (1911)
- A traveller meets a strange woman late one night at a ski resort and spends the rest of his vacation searching for her, so that they can have one last moment together. He almost gets his wish....
- "The Man Whom the Trees Loved" (1912)
- A wife is powerless to save her husband from the nature he loves and its ever growing influence on his life.
- "The Regeneration of Lord Ernie" (1914)
- A listless young aristocrat is transformed into a firebrand through witnessing a mystical ceremony.
- "The Damned" (1914)
- A highly original haunted houseHaunted houseA haunted house is a house or other building often perceived as being inhabited by disembodied spirits of the deceased who may have been former residents or were familiar with the property...
tale in which the haunting results from the intolerant religious beliefs of a series of previous residents.
- A highly original haunted house
- "A Descent into Egypt" (1914)
- A long, carefully constructed story in which a man's soul is gradually subsumed into eternity.
- "The Man Who Found Out" (1921)
- A researcher goes on an expedition to find "The Tablets of the Gods" which have plagued his dreams since his boyhood. He finds them, and the horrible truth of humanity's true purpose in the universe.
Short fiction
In sequence of first publication or, when in the same anthologyAnthology
An anthology is a collection of literary works chosen by the compiler. It may be a collection of poems, short stories, plays, songs, or excerpts...
, of sequential placement:
- "A Mysterious House" (1889)
- "The Story of Karl Ott" (1896)
- "A Haunted Island" (1899)
- "A Case of Eavesdropping" (1900)
- "The Last Egg in the Nest" (1902)
- "The House of the Past" (1904a)
- "Testing His Courage — The Story of a Quaint Device" (1904b)
- "How Garnier Broke the Log-Jam" (1904c)
- "The Empty House" (1906a)
- "Keeping His Promise" (1906b)
- "With Intent to Steal" (1906c)
- "The Wood of the Dead" (1906d)
- "Smith: An Episode in a Lodging House" (1906e)
- "A Suspicious Gift" (1906f)
- "The Strange Adventures of a Private Secretary in New York" (1906g)
- "Skeleton Lake: An Episode in Camp" (1906h)
- "The Listener" (1907a)
- "Max Hensig — Bacteriologist and Murderer" (1907b)
- "The Willows" (1907c)
- "The Insanity of Jones" (1907d)
- "The Dance of Death" (1907e)
- "The Old Man of Visions" (1907f)
- "May Day Eve" (1907g)
- "Miss Slumbubble — and Claustrophobia" (1907h)
- "The Woman's Ghost Story" (1907i)
- "A Psychical Invasion" (1908a)
- "Ancient Sorceries" (1908b)
- "The Nemesis of Fire" (1908c)
- "Secret Worship" (1908d)
- "The Camp of the Dog" (1908e)
- "The Secret" (1908f)
- "The Kit-Bag" (1908g)
- "Stodgman's Opportunity" (1908h)
- "The Story of Mr. Popkiss Told" (1908i)
- "Entrance and Exit" (1909a)
- "You May Telephone From Here" (1909b)
- "The Invitation" (1909c)
- "The Lease" (1909d)
- "Faith Cure on the Channel" (1909e)
- "Carlton's Drive" (1909f)
- "The Laying of a Red-Haired Ghost" (1909g)
- "Up and Down" (1909h)
- "The Man Who Played upon the Leaf" (1909i)
- "The Terror of the Twins" (1909j)
- "The Strange Disappearance of a Baronet" (1909k)
- "The Occupant of the Room" (1909l)
- "The South Wind" (1910a)
- "If the Cap Fits —" (1910b)
- "Perspective" (1910c)
- "Special Delivery" (1910d)
- "The Lost Valley" (1910e)
- "The Wendigo" (1910f)
- "Old Clothes" (1910g)
- "The Man From the 'Gods'" (1910h)
- "The Price of Wiggins's Orgy" (1910i)
- "The Eccentricity of Simon Parnacute" (1910j)
- "The Message of the Clock" (1910k)
- "The Sea Fit" (1910l)
- "The Singular Death of Morton" (1910m)
- "Imagination" (1910n)
- "The Empty Sleeve" (1911a)
- "The Deferred Appointment" (1911b)
- "The Impulse" (1911c)
- "The Prayer" (1911d)
- "The Return" (1911e)
- "Two in One" (1911f)
- "Accessory Before the Fact" (1911g)
- "Clairvoyance" (1911h)
- "Dream Trespass" (1911i)
- "News vs Nourishment" (1911j)
- "The Glamour of the Snow" (1911k)
- "The Transfer" (1911l)
- "The Messenger" (1911m)
- "In a Jura Village" (1911n); subsequently incorporated into Blackwood's 1913 novel A Prisoner in Fairyland
- "The Golden Fly" (1911o)
- "The Heath Fire" (1912a)
- "The Biter Bit" (1912b)
- "The Destruction of Smith" (1912c)
- "The Man Whom the Trees Loved" (1912d)
- "Egyptian Antiquities" (1912e)
- "The Attic" (1912f)
- "The Whisperers" (1912g)
- "The Second Generation" (1912h)
- "Ancient Lights" (1912i)
- "Sand" (1912j)
- "The Temptation of the Clay" (1912k)
- "The Goblin's Collection" (1912l)
- "Let Not the Sun —" (1912m)
- "La Mauvaise Riche" (1912n)
- "The Man Who Found Out" (1912o)
- "Wayfarers" (1912p)
- "The Sacrifice" (1913a)
- "Her Birthday" (1913b)
- "Violence" (1913c)
- "Jimbo's Longest Day" (1913d)
- "Who Was She?" (1913e)
- "The Barmecide Feast" (1913f)
- "The Kiss of a Psychologist" (1913g)
- "H.S.H." (1913h)
- "The Story Hour" (1913i); subsequently incorporated into Blackwood's 1915 novel The Extra Day
- "The Tradition" (1913j)
- "Transition" (1913k)
- "A Desert Episode" (1914a)
- "What Nobody Understands" (1914b); subsequently incorporated into Blackwood's 1915 novel The Extra Day
- "Maria" (1914c); subsequently incorporated into Blackwood's 1915 novel The Extra Day
- "By Water" (1914d)
- "A Bit of Wood" (1914e)
- "The Night Wind" (1914f)
- "The Falling Glass" (1914g)
- "Breakfast Honey" (1914h)
- "The Philosopher" (1914i)
- "The Daisy World" (1914j); subsequently incorporated into Blackwood's 1915 novel The Extra Day
- "The Wings of Horus" (1914k)
- "The Regeneration of Lord Ernie" (1914l)
- "The Damned" (1914m)
- "A Descent into Egypt" (1914n)
- "A Victim of Higher Space" (1914o)
- "Non-Human" (1914p)
- "An Egyptian Hornet" (1915a)
- "The God" (1915b)
- "The Soldier's Visitor" (1915c)
- "The Paper Man" (1915d)
- "The Other Wing" (1915e)
- "Cain's Atonement" (1915f)
- "The Celestial Motor-'Bus" (1915g)
- "The Exiled Gods" (1916a); thereafter reprinted as "Initiation" (commencing 1917)
- "Proportion" (1916b)
- "Camping Out" (1916c)
- "The Tryst" (1917a)
- "The Touch of Pan" (1917b)
- "Laughter of Courage" (1917c)
- "The Memory of Beauty" (1918a)
- "S.O.S." (1918b)
- "The Little Beggar" (1919a)
- "Picking Fir-Cones" (1919b)
- "The Perfect Poseur" (1919c)
- "The World-Dream of McCallister" (1919d)
- "Alexander Alexander" (1919e)
- "Wireless Confusion" (1919f)
- "The Other Woman" (1919g)
- "The Decoy" (1919h)
- "The Call" (1919i)
- "First Hate" (1920a)
- "Chinese Magic" (1920b)
- "Running Wolf" (1920c)
- "Onanonanon" (1921a)
- "Confession" (1921b)
- "The Valley of the Beasts" (1921c)
- "The Wolves of God" (1921d)
- "The Tarn of Sacrifice" (1921e)
- "Egyptian Sorcery" (1921f)
- "The Lane That Ran East and West" (1921g)
- "Vengeance Is Mine" (1921h)
- "The Olive" (1921i)
- "Changing 'Ats" (1921j)
- "Nephelé" (1921k)
- "Genius" (1922a)
- "Lost!" (1922b)
- "Tongues of Fire" (1923a)
- "The Pikestaffe Case" (1923b)
- "The Man Who Was Milligan" (1923c)
- "A Man of Earth" (1924a)
- "The Open Window" (1924b)
- "Malahide and Forden" (1924c)
- "Playing Catch" (1924d)
- "A Continuous Performance" (1924e)
- "Petershin and Mr. Snide" (1924f)
- "The Impulse" (1924g)
- "Full Circle" (1925a)
- "Hands of Death" (1925b)
- "Chemical (1926)
- "The Crossword Alien" (1927a)
- "The Stranger" (1927b)
- "The Land of Green Ginger" (1927c)
- "Dr. Feldman" (1928)
- "The Adventure of Tornado Smith" (1929)
- "Mr. Bunciman at the Zoo" (1930a)
- "Shocks" (1930b)
- "The Survivors" (1930c)
- "The Man Who Lived Backwards" (1930d)
- "Revenge" (1930e)
- "The Colonel's Ring" (1930f)
- "The Fire Body" (1931a)
- "A Threefold Cord..." (1931b)
- "The Blackmailers" (1935a)
- "Elsewhere and Otherwise" (1935b)
- "Adventures of Miss de Fontenay" (1935c)
- "At a Mayfair Luncheon" (1936a)
- "That Mrs. Winslow" (1936b)
- "The Man-Eater" (1937a)
- "By Proxy" (1937b)
- "The Reformation of St. Jules" (1937c); subsequently reprinted as "The Voice" (1989)
- "The Magic Mirror" (1938)
- "King's Evidence" (1941); Blackwood's own revision and condensation of his 1921 story "Confession"
- "The Doll" (1946a)
- "The Trod" (1946b)
- "Roman Remains" (1948)
- "The Wig" (1989a); posthumously published manuscript
- "Lock Your Door" (1989b); posthumously published manuscript
- "Wishful Thinking" (1989c); posthumously published manuscript
Children's stories:
- "Toby's Birthday Presents" (1926)
- "Mr. Cupboard, or The Furniture's Holiday" (1927a)
- "The Water Performance" (1927b)
- "When Nick Dressed Up" (1928a)
- "The Chocolate Cigarettes" (1928b)
- "My Underground" (1929)
- The Graceless Pair, a serialSerial (literature)In literature, a serial is a publishing format by which a single large work, most often a work of narrative fiction, is presented in contiguous installments—also known as numbers, parts, or fascicles—either issued as separate publications or appearing in sequential issues of a single periodical...
of six magazine stories constituting a prequelPrequelA prequel is a work that supplements a previously completed one, and has an earlier time setting.The widely recognized term was a 20th-century neologism, and a portmanteau from pre- and sequel...
to Blackwood's 1929 novel Dudley & Gilderoy: A Nonsense:- "The Saving of Colonelsirarthur" (1930a)
- "French and Italian" (1930b)
- "Burglars" (1930c)
- "'Anyopedoctor? Abaslesboches! Etc.'" (1930d)
- "The Fish Pond" (1930e)
- "The Afternoon Call" (1930f)
- "The Parrot and the — Cat!" (1930g); prequel to Blackwood's 1929 novel Dudley & Gilderoy: A Nonsense and to his 1930 serial The Graceless Pair
- "The Italian Conjuror" (1931)
- "Maria (of England) in the Rain" (1932)
- "Sergeant Poppett and Policeman James" (1933a)
- "What the Black Chow Saw" (1933b)
- "The Fruit Stoners" (1934); linked to, but not part of, Blackwood's 1934 novel The Fruit Stoners: Being the Adventures of Maria Among the Fruit Stoners
- "How the Circus Came to Tea" (1935)
- "Eliza Among the Chimney Sweeps" (1950)
Nonfiction
Aside from well over a hundred published articles, essays, prefaces, and book reviews which remain to be collected, Blackwood authored only one nonfiction book, a memoir of his youth:- Episodes Before Thirty (1923); reissued in 1950 with newly incorporated photographic plates and a brief prefatory "Author's Note".
See also
- Tales of MysteryTales of MysteryTales of Mystery was a British supernatural television drama anthology series based on the short stories of Algernon Blackwood. It was broadcast by ITV and ran over three seasons from 1961-1963. Produced by Peter Graham Scott, each episode was 25 minutes long and introduced by John Laurie...
(A 1960s British supernatural television drama series) - Religion and mythologyReligion and mythologyReligion and mythology differ, but have overlapping aspects. Both terms refer to systems of concepts that are of high importance to a certain community, making statements concerning the supernatural or sacred. Generally, mythology is considered one component or aspect of religion...
- List of horror fiction authors
- Weird FictionWeird fictionWeird fiction is a subgenre of speculative fiction written in the late 19th and early 20th century. It can be said to encompass the ghost story and other tales of the macabre. Weird fiction is distinguished from horror and fantasy in that it predates the niche marketing of genre fiction...
External links
- http://www.fantasticfiction.co.uk/authors/Algernon_Blackwood.htm
- The Algernon Blackwood Society
- "The Empty House" Creative Commons Audio Book
- The Literary Gothic's Algernon Blackwood page
- JIMBO - free mp3 recording of Blackwood's fantasy from LibriVox.org]
- The Willows - free mp3 recording, also from LibriVox.org
- Spitzer Interview: Adapting The Willows
- Collection of Blackwood Stories
- Algernon Blackwood Quotes