On This Day: John Russell Fearn

On this day in 1908, one of the more prolific British SF writers was born. John Francis Russell Fearn, who dropped the ‘Francis’ for his fiction, also wrote under a bewildering array of pseudonyms and house names – most famously, Vargo Statten and Volsted Gridban (which he inherited from E C Tubb).

During the 1930’s, Fearn wrote for British magazines and the US pulps but after the war, turned his attention to the burgeoning paperback book market, writing westerns, crime and romance in addition to his SF. His output approached 200 books, with his SF embracing exuberant space operas, tales of emergent supermen, planetary romances and much more.

Gateway will be publishing a good portion (though not all!) of Fearn’s output over the coming months, including such gems as . . .

Enjoy!