Today, July 10, saw the birth of a number of writers of weird and fantasy fiction.  I’ll list a few here, limiting myself to those who have passed on.  If I fail to mention one of your favorites, feel free to mention them in the comments.

Putting the lie to the tired old trope that women weren’t represented in the pulps (see this post for further information), we have Greye La Spina (July 10, 1880-July 9,1969).  A contributor to Weird Tales, she wrote a number of stories for The Unique Magazine along with other pulps.  Werewolves were a favorite theme.

John Wyndham

Next is British author John Wyndhm (1903-1969), who also published fiction under his real name of John Benyon Harris.  Although he was proficient at shorter lengths, Wyndham is best remembered for his novels Day of the Triffids and The Midwich Cuckoos.  The former was filmed under it’s original title, while the latter was filmed as Village of the Damned.  If you’ve not read that book, it has some of the creepiest writing I’ve ever read up until the point the children are born.  Wyndham began writing in the thirties.  While he was never as well known in the US as he was in the UK, he was an important figure in the field in the mid-twentieth century.

Carl Jacobi

Next is Weird Tales stalwart Carl Jacobi (1908-1997).  A short story writer, Jacobi was active for decades, although his production slowed down in the final decade of his life.  When Weird Tales folded, Jacobi switched to science fiction.  Sadly, the only thing in print is a collection his science fiction stories from Wildside Press.  That is not intended as a slam on either his science fiction or Wildside, merely a complaint that his weird fiction isn’t in print (other than in a few electronic anthologies.

Editor David G. Hartwell (1941-2016).  I had the pleasure of meeting him at a number of conventions.  His annual compilations of the science fiction of the year and the best fantasy of the year are anthologies I deeply miss.  I always enjoyed comparing his selections to those of Dozois and Datlow & Windling, and usually preferred his choices.  Fortunately most of his anthologies, including the year’s best volumes, are available in ebook form for only a few bucks apiece.

I’m hoping I can squeeze in some time to read a short story by each of the above authors.  If only they were available in a Hartwell edited anthology.