Richard Lawrence Dalby (15 April 1949 – 4 May 2017) was an editor and literary researcher noted for his anthologies of ghost stories.

Early life

Richard Dalby was born in London on 15 April 1949 to Tom, a publishing editor, and Nancy, an amateur artist. He was educated at Haberdashers' Aske's School from the age of 7 when he also began to take an interest in supernatural fiction. He was diagnosed with diabetes at the age of 16. He did not attend university.Richard Dalby.
''

The Times ''The Times'' is a British daily national newspaper based in London. It began in 1785 under the title ''The Daily Universal Register'', adopting its current name on 1 January 1788. ''The Times'' and its sister paper ''The Sunday Times'' (fou ...

'', 1 June 2017. Retrieved 23 July 2017.

Career

Dalby's early career was spent as a bookseller in bookshops, including

Foyles W & G Foyle Ltd. (usually called simply Foyles) is a bookseller with a chain of seven stores in England. It is best known for its flagship store in Charing Cross Road, London. Foyles was once listed in the ''Guinness Book of Records'' as the ...

in London, and he later sold books by mail order, issuing catalogues from his home in Scarborough, Yorkshire. In the 1970s he began to produce anthologies of ghost stories and supernatural tales, compiling ''The Sorceress in Stained Glass and Other Ghost Stories'' in 1971 and over 50 other anthologies and collections.Richard Dalby.
''A Guide to Supernatural Fiction'', 19 May 2008. Retrieved 23 July 2017. He unearthed rare and forgotten works and promoted the work of authors he loved, whether antiquarian or contemporary, such as

H. Russell Wakefield Herbert Russell Wakefield (1888 – 2 August 1964) was an English short-story writer, novelist, publisher, and civil servant chiefly remembered today for his ghost stories. Life Wakefield was the third of four children of the clergyman Henry Russ ...

and L. A. Lewis (1899–1961). In 1993 he founded the Ghost Story Press with

David Tibet David Tibet (born David Michael Bunting; 5 March 1960) is a British poet and artist who founded the music group Current 93, of which he is the only full-time member. He was given the name "Tibet" by Genesis P-Orridge, and in January 2005 he a ...

, which published 14 volumes. Dalby was described by ''The Times'' as the "unofficial deputy editor" for the journal '' Book and Magazine Collector'', writing over 200 articles for the magazine. He owned a set of H. Rider Haggard first editions and a copy of

Bram Stoker Abraham Stoker (8 November 1847 – 20 April 1912) was an Irish author who is celebrated for his 1897 Gothic horror novel '' Dracula''. During his lifetime, he was better known as the personal assistant of actor Sir Henry Irving and busine ...

's ''Dracula'' with the author's annotations. His book collection was so extensive that he rented a storage unit to help house it.

Death

Dalby died of

diabetic ketoacidosis Diabetic ketoacidosis (DKA) is a potentially life-threatening complication of diabetes mellitus. Signs and symptoms may include vomiting, abdominal pain, deep gasping breathing, increased urination, weakness, confusion and occasionally loss of ...

on 4 May 2017. He lived with his parents until their deaths and never married.

Select bibliography

''The first edition of each title is listed below''

Anthologies

* ''The Sorceress in Stained Glass and Other Ghost Stories'' (London: Tom Stacy, 1971). * ''The Best Ghost Stories of H. Russell Wakefield'' (London: John Murray, 1978). * ''Dracula's Brood'' (Wellingborough: Crucible, 1987). * ''Ghosts and Scholars'' (Wellingborough: Crucible, 1987). * ''The Virago Book of Ghost Stories: The Twentieth Century, Volume One'' (London: Virago, 1987). * ''The Virago Book of Ghost Stories'' (London: Virago, 1988). * ''Ghosts for Christmas'' (London: O'Mara, 1988. * ''Chillers for Christmas'' (London: O'Mara, 1989). * ''Mystery for Christmas'' (London: O'Mara, 1990). * ''The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories'' (London: Robinson, 1990). * ''The Mammoth Book of Ghost Stories 2'' (New York: Carroll & Graf, 1991). * ''The Virago Book of Ghost Stories: The Twentieth Century: Volume Two'' (London: Virago, 1991) * ''Crime for Christmas'' (London: O'Mara, 1991). * ''Tales of Witchcraft'' (London: O'Mara, 1991). * ''The Collected Ghost Stories of E. F. Benson'' (New York: Carroll & Graf, 1992). * ''Vampire Stories'' (London: Michael O'Mara, 1992). * ''Horror for Christmas'' (London: Michael O'Mara, 1992). * ''Shivers for Christmas'' (London: Michael O'Mara, 1995). * ''The Mammoth Book of Victorian and Edwardian Ghost Stories'' (London: Robinson, 1995). * Bram Stoker, ''Best Ghost and Horror Stories'' (London: Mineola, NY: Dover Publications, 1997). Joint editors: Stefan Dziemianowicz and S. T. Joshi. * ''Twelve Gothic Tales'' (Wellingborough: Crucible, 1998).

Nonfiction

* ''Bram Stoker: A Bibliography of First Editions'' (London: Dracula Press, 1983) * ''The Golden Age of Children's Book Illustrations'' (London: Michael O'Mara, 1991).

References

External links

Ghost Story Press and Durtro Press
*
Richard Dalby's Library
- description of his personal library (with links to Swan River Press's memoir "Remembering Richard Dalby") and Mark Valentine's obituary, "RIP Richard Dalby (1949-2017)", at Wormwoodiana).
Interview with Richard Dalby on allthingshorror.co.uk
{{DEFAULTSORT:Dalby, Richard 1949 births 2017 deaths Place of birth missing Deaths from diabetes English book editors Anthologists People educated at Haberdashers' Boys' School Writers from London English bibliophiles English bibliographers