Howard Phillips Lovecraft was an American author of horror, fantasy, and science fiction, known then as weird fiction. Lovecraft’s major inspiration and invention was cosmic horror: the notion that life is incomprehensible to human minds and that the universe is fundamentally alien. He has developed a cult following for his Cthulhu Mythos, a series of loosely interconnected fictions featuring a pantheon of human-nullifying entities.
Lovecraft’s works were quite pessimistic and cynical, challenging the values of Enlightenment, Romanticism, and Christian humanism. Although, his readership was limited during his life, his reputation has grown over the decades, and he is now commonly regarded as one of the most influential horror writers of the 20th century. Lovecraft’s name is synonymous with horror fiction. His writing, particularly, the Cthulhu Mythos, has influenced fiction authors all over the world, and Lovecraftian elements can be found in novels, movies, music, comic books, and cartoons.
Many modern horror writers, including Stephen King, Joe R. Lansdale and Neil Gaiman, cite Lovecraft as one of their primary influences. His stories made it into the pages of prominent pulp magazines like Weird Tales but not many people knew his name. Lovecraft corresponded regularly with other contemporary writers such as Clark Ashton Smith and August Derleth. In 1936, he was diagnosed with cancer of the intestine and died on March 15, 1937 in Providence.
