William John Metcalfe (6 October 1891 – 31 July 1965) was an English teacher, short story writer and novelist from

Norfolk Norfolk () is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in East Anglia in England. It borders Lincolnshire to the north-west, Cambridgeshire to the west and south-west, and Suffolk to the south. Its northern and eastern boundaries are the No ...

, who twice emigrated to the United States. His stories have been said to "build up a unique sense of unease.""Metcalfe, John" by

Brian Stableford Brian Michael Stableford (born 25 July 1948) is a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who has published more than 70 novels. His earlier books were published under the name Brian M. Stableford, but more recent ones have dropped ...

David Pringle David Pringle (born 1 March 1950) is a Scottish science fiction editor and critic. Pringle served as the editor of '' Foundation'', an academic journal, from 1980 to 1986, during which time he became one of the prime movers of the collective whi ...

ed., ''St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost and Gothic Writers''. London: St. James Press, 1998, , pp. 405–406.

Biography

John Metcalfe was born in Heacham, Norfolk, on 6 October 1891.Stefan R Dziemianowicz, "Metcalfe, (William) John", in S. T. Joshi and Dziemianowicz, eds, ''Supernatural literature of the world: an encyclopedia''. Westport, Conn.: Greenwood Press, 2005. , pp. 802–803. He studied philosophy at the

University of London The University of London (UoL; abbreviated as Lond or more rarely Londin in post-nominals) is a federal public research university located in London, England, United Kingdom. The university was established by royal charter in 1836 as a degree ...

, graduating in 1913. Metcalfe then taught in Paris until 1914.

War and after

During the First World War, he served in the

Royal Naval Division The 63rd (Royal Naval) Division was a United Kingdom infantry division of the First World War. It was originally formed as the Royal Naval Division at the outbreak of the war, from Royal Navy and Royal Marine reservists and volunteers, who wer ...

, the Royal Naval Air Service, and then in the

Royal Air Force The Royal Air Force (RAF) is the United Kingdom's air and space force. It was formed towards the end of the First World War on 1 April 1918, becoming the first independent air force in the world, by regrouping the Royal Flying Corps (RFC) an ...

. After the war, Metcalfe taught for five years at Highgate Junior School in London and began writing. His first book, ''The Smoking Leg and Other Stories'', published in 1925, contains several noted stories, including the title story, "The Bad Lands", "Nightmare Jack" and "The Double Admiral". After its publication, he abandoned teaching for writing full-time.

Emigration

Metcalfe emigrated to the United States in 1928, where he wrote ''Arm's Length'' while serving as a barge captain on the

East River The East River is a saltwater tidal estuary in New York City. The waterway, which is actually not a river despite its name, connects Upper New York Bay on its south end to Long Island Sound on its north end. It separates the borough of Quee ...

. On 17 March 1930, Metcalfe married the American novelist Evelyn Scott. Metcalfe's second collection, ''Judas and Other Stories'' features several horror stories. They include "Mortmain", about a man who believes he is being haunted by the ghost of his wife's first husband. After service in World War II in the British Royal Air Force, Metcalfe taught in schools in

Dorset Dorset ( ; archaically: Dorsetshire , ) is a county in South West England on the English Channel coast. The ceremonial county comprises the unitary authority areas of Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole and Dorset. Covering an area of , ...

and Hampstead before returning to the United States, where he was a teacher in

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

and New York. In the 1950s, Metcalfe discussed with

August Derleth August William Derleth (February 24, 1909 – July 4, 1971) was an American writer and anthologist. Though best remembered as the first book publisher of the writings of H. P. Lovecraft, and for his own contributions to the Cthulhu Mythos and th ...

the possibility of having a third collection of his fiction published by

Arkham House Arkham House is an American publishing house specializing in weird fiction. It was founded in Sauk City, Wisconsin, in 1939 by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei to publish hardcover collections of H. P. Lovecraft's best works, which had ...

. This collection (to be entitled ''The Feasting Dead and other Stories'') never appeared, but Arkham House did publish ''The Feasting Dead'' as a standalone novel. Derleth also included several of Metcalfe's stories in his anthologies.

Return to UK

Evelyn Scott died in August 1963, having suffered from heart disease, a lung tumour, and mental health problems. Metcalfe suffered a breakdown after her death and received hospital treatment. On his release in October 1964 he returned to England, where he died on 31 July 1965, after a fall.

"Subtle, finely crafted"

Although Metcalfe is best known as a writer of horror stories, he also wrote novels and poetry. T. E. D. Klein described him as a "writer of subtle, finely crafted supernatural tales, many of them about lonely misfits out of step with their times."T. E. D. Klein, "John Metcalfe", Jack Sullivan, ed., '' The Penguin Encyclopedia of Horror and the Supernatural'', Viking Press, 1986, , p. 290 ff. Brian Stableford noted how Metcalfe's stories "build up a unique sense of unease."

Works

Novels

*''Brenner's Boy'' (1932) *''Arm's Length'' *''Spring Darkness'' (US title: ''Mrs Condover'') *''Foster-Girl'' (US title: ''Sally'') *''All Friends Are Strangers'' *'' The Feasting Dead'' (1954) (reprinted 2014 by

Valancourt Books Valancourt Books is an independent American publishing house founded by James Jenkins and Ryan Cagle in 2005. The company specializes in "the rediscovery of rare, neglected, and out-of-print fiction," in particular gay titles and Gothic and ho ...

)

Collections

*''The Smoking Leg, and Other Stories'' (1925) *''Judas, and Other Stories'' (1931) *''Nightmare Jack and Other Tales'' (1998)

References

* * * *

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Metcalfe, John 1891 births 1965 deaths English fantasy writers English horror writers English science fiction writers Alumni of the University of London Royal Navy personnel of World War I Royal Naval Air Service personnel of World War I Royal Air Force personnel of World War II People from Heacham British male poets English male short story writers English short story writers English male novelists 20th-century English poets 20th-century English novelists 20th-century British short story writers 20th-century English male writers English male non-fiction writers British emigrants to the United States