Robert Rick McCammon (born July 17, 1952) is an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire ...

from

Birmingham, Alabama Birmingham ( ) is a city in the north central region of the U.S. state of Alabama. Birmingham is the seat of Jefferson County, Alabama's most populous county. As of the 2021 census estimates, Birmingham had a population of 197,575, down 1% f ...

. One of the influential names in the late 1970s–early 1990s American

horror literature Horror is a genre of fiction which is intended to frighten, scare, or disgust. Horror is often divided into the sub-genres of psychological horror and supernatural horror, which is in the realm of speculative fiction. Literary historian J. A ...

boom, by 1991 McCammon had three ''New York Times'' bestsellers (''

The Wolf's Hour ''The Wolf's Hour'' is a 1989 World War II horror novel by American writer Robert R. McCammon. It is the story of a British secret agent who goes behind German lines to stop a secret weapon from being launched against the Allies. This agent i ...

'', ''Stinger'', and''

Swan Song The swan song ( grc, κύκνειον ᾆσμα; la, carmen cygni) is a metaphorical phrase for a final gesture, effort, or performance given just before death or retirement. The phrase refers to an ancient belief that swans sing a beautiful so ...

'') and around 5 million books in print. Since 2002 he’s written several books in a

historical mystery The historical mystery or historical whodunit is a subgenre of two literary genres, historical fiction and mystery fiction. These works are set in a time period considered historical from the author's perspective, and the central plot involves th ...

series featuring a 17th-century magistrate’s clerk, Matthew Corbett, as he unravels mysteries in

colonial America The colonial history of the United States covers the history of European colonization of North America from the early 17th century until the incorporation of the Thirteen Colonies into the United States after the Revolutionary War. In the ...

Personal life

His parents are Jack, a musician, and Barbara Bundy McCammon. After his parents' divorce, McCammon lived with his grandparents in Birmingham. He received a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

Journalism Journalism is the production and distribution of reports on the interaction of events, facts, ideas, and people that are the " news of the day" and that informs society to at least some degree. The word, a noun, applies to the occupation (p ...

from the

University of Alabama The University of Alabama (informally known as Alabama, UA, or Bama) is a public research university in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. Established in 1820 and opened to students in 1831, the University of Alabama is the oldest and largest of the publ ...

in 1974. McCammon lives in Birmingham. He has a daughter, Skye, with his former wife, Sally Sanders.

Career

McCammon has published multiple award-winning books, including ''Mine'' in 1990 and ''Boy's Life'' in 1991. After the release of'' Gone South'', McCammon chose to leave his publisher. After clashing with an editor at a new publisher over the direction for his historical fiction novel ''Speaks the Nightbird'', he retired from writing. After a long hiatus which resulted from the reorganization of the publishing industry and McCammon's personal depression and soul searching, he returned to the publishing world with ''Speaks the Nightbird'', the first book in the Matthew Corbett series. ''Publishers Weekly'' called it a "compulsively readable yarn," and said, "McCammon's loyal fans will find his resurfacing reason to rejoice." Since 2002, fourteen new books have been published, including eight, so far, in the Matthew Corbett series. In 1985, McCammon's story "Nightcrawlers" was adapted into an episode of ''The Twilight Zone'' (1985). Like

Dean Koontz Dean Ray Koontz (born July 9, 1945) is an American author. His novels are billed as suspense thrillers, but frequently incorporate elements of horror, fantasy, science fiction, mystery, and satire. Many of his books have appeared on ''The New ...

, McCammon for a while refused to let his first novels (up to and including ''They Thirst'') be republished because, while not disliking the books, he did not feel that they were up to the standards of his later works. He wrote that he feels he was allowed to learn how to write in public, and therefore had decided to officially retire his earlier works.Why are some of McCammon's novels out-of-print?
/ref> However, ''Baal'', ''Bethany's Sin'', ''The Night Boat'', and ''They Thirst'' were re-released by Subterranean Press as limited edition novels. In a 2013 interview, McCammon acknowledged that some readers would like to have a complete collection of his work, and said "reading back over those books I find they’re not as poorly written as I recall them to be." They have also all been released as ebooks and audiobooks.

Bibliography

*''Baal'' (1978) *''Bethany's Sin'' (1980) - second published novel, but actually third written *'' The Night Boat'' (1980) - third published novel, but actually second written *'' They Thirst'' (1981) *'' Mystery Walk'' (1983) – first novel published in hardcover *'' Usher's Passing'' (1984) - Winner of the 1985 Alabama Library Association Alabama Author Award *''

'' (1987) - Co-winner of the 1987

Bram Stoker Award The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented annually by the Horror Writers Association (HWA) for "superior achievement" in dark fantasy and horror writing. History The Awards were established in 1987 and have been presented annually since ...

and nominated for the 1988

World Fantasy Award for Best Novel In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

; the first of his novels to appear on the

New York Times Bestseller List ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

*''Stinger'' (1988) - Nominated for the 1988 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel;

New York Times Bestseller ''The New York Times'' Best Seller list is widely considered the preeminent list of best-selling books in the United States. John Bear, ''The #1 New York Times Best Seller: intriguing facts about the 484 books that have been #1 New York Times ...

*''Blue World'' (1990) – Short Story Collection; Nominated for the 1989

and the 1990

World Fantasy Award for Best Collection In its most general sense, the term "world" refers to the totality of entities, to the whole of reality or to everything that is. The nature of the world has been conceptualized differently in different fields. Some conceptions see the worl ...

*'' Mine'' (1990) - Winner of the 1990 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel *'' Boy's Life'' (1991) - Winner of the 1991 Bram Stoker Award and the 1992 World Fantasy Award for Best Novel *''Gone South'' (1992) - Later published in an omnibus edition with '' Boy's Life''. *''The Five'' (2011) *''The Border'' (May 2015) *''The Listener'' (February 2018)

Michael Gallatin books

*''

'' (1989) - Nominated for the 1989 Bram Stoker Award for Best Novel; New York Times Bestseller *''The Hunter from the Woods'' ollection(2011)

Matthew Corbett series

*''Speaks the Nightbird'' (2002) - Later published as two paperback volumes, ''Judgement of the Witch'' and ''Evil Unveiled'' *''The Queen of Bedlam'' (2007) *''Mister Slaughter'' (2010) *''The Providence Rider'' (2012) *''The River of Souls'' (2014) *''Freedom of the Mask'' (May 2016) *''Cardinal Black'' (April 2019) *''The King of Shadows'' (December 2022) *''Leviathan'' (Forthcoming) ''Seven Shades of Evil'' hort story collection(forthcoming)

Trevor Lawson series

*''I Travel by Night'' (2013) - Novella *''I Travel by Night 2: Last Train from Perdition'' (Fall 2016)

References

External links

Robert McCammon's official siteRobert McCammon: Matthew Corbett's WorldRobert McCammon @ FacebookInkwell Newswatch McCammon Interview
*
"Corn on Macabre – An Appreciation of Robert McCammon"
- ''Apocalypse Confidential'' {{DEFAULTSORT:McCammon, Robert R. Writers from Birmingham, Alabama 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American horror writers American male novelists American Christians 1952 births Living people World Fantasy Award-winning writers 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Alabama