Jack Cady
Encyclopedia
Jack Cady was an American
author
. He is most known as an award winning fantasist and horror writer. In his career he won the Nebula Award
, the World Fantasy Award
, and the Bram Stoker Award
.
Cady was a conscientious objector during the Korean War
, but served in the U.S. Coast Guard in Maine. Later in life, he held several jobs, including truck driver, auctioneer, landscaper and finally university instructor. He first taught creative writing at the University of Washington
from 1968 until 1973, and he then he had a number of short teaching stints at colleges in Illinois, Pennsylvania and Alaska from 1973 to 1978. In 1985 he began teaching writing at Pacific Lutheran University
in Tacoma, Washington
, and he retired from that post in 1998. Cady married fellow writer Carol Orlock in 1977, and they remained together until his death. Cady's collected literary papers were donated to the Mortvedt Library at Pacific Lutheran in the spring of 2006.
A master of the short story, Cady is perhaps best known for the Nebula-winning tale "The Night We Buried Road Dog" (1993). His work at shorter lengths also won him a place in the Best American Short Stories
anthologies of 1971 and 1972.
Cady also wrote science fiction. The dystopian novel McDowell's Ghost concerns a modern-day Southerner who keeps seeing the ghost of an ancestor killed during the Civil War; the spirit helps McDowell obtain justice for a female friend who was raped. Cady was born in Kentucky and McDowell's Ghost was his attempt to explain the Southern code of conduct with a reverence matched only by William Faulkner.
Cady was also a major believer in the value of history, not only towards understanding politics, but also writing itself. One of his books was The American Writer: Shaping a Nation's Mind, a survey of American literature.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
author
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
. He is most known as an award winning fantasist and horror writer. In his career he won the Nebula Award
Nebula Award
The Nebula Award is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the previous year...
, the World Fantasy Award
World Fantasy Award
The World Fantasy Awards are annual, international awards given to authors and artists who have demonstrated outstanding achievement in the field of fantasy...
, and the Bram Stoker Award
Bram Stoker Award
The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented by the Horror Writers Association for "superior achievement" in horror writing. The awards have been presented annually since 1987, and the winners are selected by ballot of the Active members of the HWA...
.
Cady was a conscientious objector during the Korean War
Korean War
The Korean War was a conventional war between South Korea, supported by the United Nations, and North Korea, supported by the People's Republic of China , with military material aid from the Soviet Union...
, but served in the U.S. Coast Guard in Maine. Later in life, he held several jobs, including truck driver, auctioneer, landscaper and finally university instructor. He first taught creative writing at the University of Washington
University of Washington
University of Washington is a public research university, founded in 1861 in Seattle, Washington, United States. The UW is the largest university in the Northwest and the oldest public university on the West Coast. The university has three campuses, with its largest campus in the University...
from 1968 until 1973, and he then he had a number of short teaching stints at colleges in Illinois, Pennsylvania and Alaska from 1973 to 1978. In 1985 he began teaching writing at Pacific Lutheran University
Pacific Lutheran University
Pacific Lutheran University is located in Parkland, a suburb of Tacoma, Washington. In September 2009, PLU had a student population of 3,582 and approximately 280 full-time faculty...
in Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma, Washington
Tacoma is a mid-sized urban port city and the county seat of Pierce County, Washington, United States. The city is on Washington's Puget Sound, southwest of Seattle, northeast of the state capital, Olympia, and northwest of Mount Rainier National Park. The population was 198,397, according to...
, and he retired from that post in 1998. Cady married fellow writer Carol Orlock in 1977, and they remained together until his death. Cady's collected literary papers were donated to the Mortvedt Library at Pacific Lutheran in the spring of 2006.
A master of the short story, Cady is perhaps best known for the Nebula-winning tale "The Night We Buried Road Dog" (1993). His work at shorter lengths also won him a place in the Best American Short Stories
Best American Short Stories
The Best American Short Stories yearly anthology is a part of The Best American Series published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. Since 1915, the BASS anthology has striven to contain the best short stories by some of the best-known writers in contemporary American literature.-Edward O'Brien:The...
anthologies of 1971 and 1972.
Cady also wrote science fiction. The dystopian novel McDowell's Ghost concerns a modern-day Southerner who keeps seeing the ghost of an ancestor killed during the Civil War; the spirit helps McDowell obtain justice for a female friend who was raped. Cady was born in Kentucky and McDowell's Ghost was his attempt to explain the Southern code of conduct with a reverence matched only by William Faulkner.
Cady was also a major believer in the value of history, not only towards understanding politics, but also writing itself. One of his books was The American Writer: Shaping a Nation's Mind, a survey of American literature.
Novels
- The Well (1981)
- Singleton (1981)
- The Jonah Watch (1982)
- Mc Dowell's Ghost (1982)
- The Man Who Could Make Things Vanish (1983)
- Inagehi (1993)
- Street (1995)
- The Off Season (1996)
- The Hauntings of Hood Canal (2001)
- Rules of '48 (2009)
Collections of short fiction
- The Burning and Other Stories (1972)
- Tattoo (1978)
- The Sons of Noah (1992) (World Fantasy Award winner)
- The Night We Buried Road Dog (1998)
- Ghostland (2001; e-publication)
- Ghosts of Yesterday" (2003)
Short fiction
- "The Night we Buried Road Dog" Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (Jan 1993)
- Reprinted in the Feb 2009 issue, along with an introduction by Kristine Kathryn RuschKristine Kathryn RuschKristine Kathryn Rusch is an American writer. She writes under various pseudonyms in multiple genres, including science fiction, fantasy, mystery, romance, and mainstream....
.
- Reprinted in the Feb 2009 issue, along with an introduction by Kristine Kathryn Rusch