S. Fowler Wright


Sydney Fowler Wright was a British editor, poet, science fiction author, writer of screenplays, mystery fiction and works in other genres, as well as being an accountant and a conservative political activist. He also wrote as Sydney Fowler and Anthony Wingrave.

Background

Wright was born in Holly Street, Smethwick, England on 6 January 1874. Wright left school at eleven, and spent his adolescence studying literature when not
working. From a young age, Wright deliberately adopted a healthy lifestyle; he did not smoke or eat meat, and rarely drank alcohol. Wright also took regular exercise by hiking or cycling in the countryside.
He was married twice. His first wife was Nellie Ashbarry, whom he married in 1895. After Nellie's death in 1918, Wright married Truda Hancock in 1920. Wright had ten children.

Writing career

In 1917, Wright helped found the Empire Poetry League and edited the League's journal, Poetry. Wright used Poetry to publish his translations of Dante's Inferno and Purgatorio.
Wright began writing science fiction in the 1920s. The book Science-Fiction: The Early Years describes Wright as "the major British writer of genre science fiction between Wells and the moderns".
His first science fiction novel was The Amphibians, set in a future where humanity has been succeeded by the titular beings. His 1928 novel Deluge, about a flood which devastates Britain, was a success and was later adapted into a Hollywood film of the same title. The Island of Captain Sparrow was inspired by H. G. Wells' The Island of Doctor Moreau. Wright's novel features a race of satyr-like beast men persecuted by humans.
Wright was critical of modern industrial civilization, and his 1932 collection The New Gods Lead contained several stories attacking trends Wright disagreed with, including birth control and the motor car. The New Gods Lead includes several stories of note, including "The Rat", about
a doctor who discovers an immortality serum, and "P.N. 40", which is set in a repressive future controlled by supporters of the eugenics movement. "The Choice:An Allegory of Blood and Tears" is a satire on the Christian conception of Heaven.
In 1934, Wright visited Nazi Germany to write a series of newspaper articles. Alarmed at what he saw, he wrote three novels about a future war in Europe: Prelude in Prague: The War of 1938, Four Days' War, and Mediggo's Ridge.

Works

Science fiction novels

Amphibians sequence

Deluge and Dawn sequence

Marguerite Cranleigh series

Future War series

  • Prelude in Prague: The War of 1938
  • Four Days War
  • Megiddo's Ridge

Other science fiction novels

  • The Island of Captain Sparrow
  • Beyond the Rim
  • Power
  • The Screaming Lake
  • The Hidden Tribe
  • The Adventure of Wyndham Smith
  • ''The Adventure of the Blue Room''

Historical novels

Mystery novels (as Sydney Fowler)

  • The King against Anne Bickerton
  • By Saturday
  • The Bell Street Murders Crime & co.
  • Who Else But She?
  • Was Murder Done?
  • The Attic Murder
  • Post-Mortem Evidence
  • Four Callers in Razor Street
  • The Jordans Murder
  • The Murder in Bethnal Square
  • The Wills of Jane Kanwhistle
  • The Secret of the Screen
  • The Hanging of Constance Hillier
  • The Rissole Mystery
  • A Bout with the Mildew Gang
  • Second Bout with the Mildew Gang
  • Dinner in New York
  • The End of the Mildew Gang
  • Too Much for Mr. Jellipot
  • Who Murdered Reynard?
  • ''With Cause enough?''

Other novels

  • Seven Thousand in Israel
  • Red Ike.
  • ''Ordeal of Barata''

Short fiction

  • "Automata: I"
  • "Automata: II"
  • "Automata: III"
  • "P.N. 40"
  • "The Rat"
  • "Automata"
  • "Brain"
  • "Choice"
  • "The Rule"
  • "Proof"
  • "Appeal"
  • "This Night"
  • "Justice"
  • "Original Sin"
  • "The Terror of William Stickers"
  • "A Question of E.D.D."
  • "The Congo Cat"
  • "The Temperature of Gehenna Sue"
  • "Carrots"
  • "Burglar's Aid"
  • "Who Else But She?"
  • "Status"
  • "The Witchfinder"
  • "Obviously Suicide"
  • "The Better Choice"

Collections

Non-fiction

Police and Public The Life of Sir Walter Scott – Part I The Life of Sir Walter Scott – Part II
  • ''Should We Surrender Colonies?''