Howard Phillips Lovecraft

The Profile

Howard Phillips Lovecraft (1890–1937) was an American author whose weird fiction reshaped modern horror with a materialist, cosmic perspective. His work introduced enduring settings and entities and profoundly influenced later literature, film, games, and pop culture.

Born and died in Providence, Rhode Island; wrote the essay “Supernatural Horror in Literature”; his fiction underpins the Cthulhu Mythos; posthumous reputation advanced by Arkham House (founded by August Derleth and Donald Wandrei); his stories are now widely published, including in Penguin Classics.

DeBaser’s reviews celebrate Lovecraft’s cosmic horror—from the Antarctic dread of At the Mountains of Madness to the cultic revelations of The Call of Cthulhu and the briny paranoia of The Shadow over Innsmouth. Several pieces explore the Dreamlands and Randolph Carter, while others debate style, influences, and flaws. The set highlights key entities (Cthulhu, Nyarlathotep, Yog-Sothoth), recurring settings (Arkham, Miskatonic), and his enduring impact and posthumous acclaim.