Michael Robert Collings (born October 29, 1947)[1][2] is an American writer, poet, literary critic, and bibliographer, and a former professor of creative writing and literature at Pepperdine University.[2][3] He was Poet in Residence at Pepperdine's Seaver College from 1997 to 2000.[4]
Michael R. Collings | |
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![]() Collings at Life, the Universe, & Everything, a science fiction and fantasy symposium at Brigham Young University. | |
Born | Rupert, Idaho | October 29, 1947
Occupation | Writer, bibliographer, literary critic, poet, professor (retired) |
Language | English |
Nationality | United States |
Education | Master's degree (English) Ph.D. (English literature) |
Alma mater | Bakersfield College (AA) Whittier College (BA) University of California, Riverside (MA and PhD) |
Period | 1979 - current |
Genres | fantasy, horror, science fiction |
Subjects | Orson Scott Card, Stephen King |
Notable works | In the Image of God: Theme, Characterization and Landscape in the Fiction of Orson Scott Card |
Spouse | Judi Collings |
Children | Michaelbrent Collings |
Website | |
StarShine and Shadows |
Collings has had multiple collections of his poetry published on subjects such as Latter Day Saint theology, Joseph Smith, Christmas, science fiction, and horror.[4] He is known for his literary critiques and bibliographies of the works of Orson Scott Card and Stephen King,[2][3][4] though he has also published critiques and bibliographies of the works of Peter Straub, Dean Koontz, C. S. Lewis, Brian W. Aldiss, and Piers Anthony.[2][4] His In the Image of God: Theme, Characterization and Landscape in the Fiction of Orson Scott Card was the first book-length academic look at Card's works.[4][5]
Biography
editMichael Robert Collings was born in Rupert, Idaho.[6] He graduated from Bakersfield College in 1967 with an Associate's degree, then graduated with a Bachelor's degree in English from Whittier College two years later. After graduating with a Master's degree in English from the University of California, Riverside in 1973, Collings received his Ph.D. in English literature from UCR in 1977, specializing in Milton and The Renaissance.[7]
Before he began teaching creative writing and literature at Pepperdine University,[2] Collings taught at UCR, San Bernardino Valley Community College, and UCLA. He taught at Pepperdine from 1979[7] until 2010, when he retired. He now lives in Idaho with his wife, Judi. His son, Michaelbrent Collings, is a fantasy and horror writer.
Collings was introduced to Stephen King's work by a student, David A. Engebretson, in 1983, and published his first book on him, The Many Facets of Stephen King, in 1985; reading King led to his also studying and publishing on Koontz and Robert McCammon.[8]
The World Horror Convention awarded him their Grand Master Award in 2016.[9]
Selected bibliography
editArticles and papers
edit- "C. S. Lewis and the Music of Creation" (July–August 1979), Lamp-Post of the Southern California C.S. Lewis Society
- "The Mechanisms of Fantasy" (January 1980), Lamp-Post of the Southern California C.S. Lewis Society
- "To Be Still a Man: Abstraction and Concretion in C. S. Lewis" (January 1982), Lamp-Post of the Southern California C.S. Lewis Society
- "Beyond Deep Heaven: Generic Structure and Christian Message in C. S. Lewis's Ransom Novels", (December 1986), Lamp-Post of the Southern California C.S. Lewis Society
- "Brothers of the Head: Brian W. Aldiss's Psychological Landscape" (1988), Spectrum of the Fantastic: Selected Papers from the Fifth International Conference on the Fantastic in the Arts, Greenwood Press
- "Brian W. Aldiss" (1989), Reader's Guide to Twentieth Century Science Fiction Writers, American Library Association
- "To See the World the Poet's Way" In the Image of God: Theme, Characterization, and Landscape in the Fiction of Orson Scott Card. New York: Greenwood Press, (1990), Contemporary Literary Criticism. Ed.Jeffrey W. Hunter. Vol. 279. Detroit: Gale, 2010
Sources:[4]
Non-fiction books
edit- The Many Facets of Stephen King (1985), Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-14-3
- The Shorter Works of Stephen King (1985), with David A. Engebretson, Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-02-X
- Stephen King as Richard Bachman (1985), Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-00-3
- The Annotated Guide to Stephen King: A Primary and Secondary Bibliography of the Works of America's Premier Horror Writer (1986), Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-80-1
- The Films of Stephen King (1986), Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-10-0
- Card Catalogue: The Science Fiction and Fantasy of Orson Scott Card (1987), Hypatia Press, ISBN 0-940841-01-0
- The Stephen King Phenomenon (1987), Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-12-7
- In the Image of God: Theme, Characterization and Landscape in the Fiction of Orson Scott Card (1990), Greenwood Press, ISBN 0-313-26404-X
- Scaring Us to Death: The Impact of Stephen King on Popular Culture (1997), Borgo Press, ISBN 0-930261-37-2
- The Work of Orson Scott Card: An Annotated Bibliography and Guide (1997), with Boden Clarke
- Hauntings: The Official Peter Straub Bibliography (2000), Overlook Connection Press, ISBN 1-892950-15-4
- Storyteller: The Official Guide to the Works of Orson Scott Card (2001), Overlook Connection Press, ISBN 1-892950-26-X
- Horror Plum'd: An International Stephen King Bibliography and Guide 1960-2000 (2003), Overlook Connection Press, ISBN 1-892950-45-6
- Stephen King Is Richard Bachman, (March 2008), Overlook Connection Press, ISBN 1-892950-74-X
Novels
edit- The House Beyond the Hill (2007, Wildside Press, ISBN 1-4344-0066-2)
- Singer of Lies (2009, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-5710-3)
- The Slab (2011, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-1207-2)
- Static! (2011, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-3530-9)
- Shadow Valley (2011, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-3521-7)
- Writing Darkness (2012, CreateSpace, ISBN 978-1-4793-8404-4)
Wordsmith series
- The Veil of Heaven (2009, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-0280-6)
- The Thousand Eyes of Flame (2009, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-0281-3)
- Three Tales of Omne (2010, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-1177-8, published in an omnibus with The Elder of Days by Robert Reginald)
Epic poem
edit- The Nephiad: An Epic Poem in XII Books (1996, Zarahemla Motets, ISBN 1-886405-52-2)
Poetry and fiction collections
edit- Naked to the Sun (1986, Starmont House, ISBN 0-930261-76-3)
- Dark Transformations: Deadly Visions of Change (1990, Starmont House, ISBN 1-55742-196-X)
- All Calm, All Bright: Christmas Offerings (2007, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-0172-4)
- In the Void: Poems of Science Fiction, Myth and Fantasy, & Horror (2009, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-5761-5)
- Wer Means Man and Other Tales of Wonder and Terror (2010, Borgo Press/Wildside Press, ISBN 978-1-4344-1187-7)
- Dear Emily and Other Poems (2016, CreateSpace, ISBN 978-1541095892)
- In the Haunting Darkness (2022, Hemelein Publications, ISBN 978-1-64278-060-4)
See also
editReferences
edit- ^ U.S. Public Records Index Vol 1 (Provo, UT: Ancestry.com Operations, Inc.), 2010.
- ^ a b c d e f Wands, D C (2008-02-16). "Michael R Collings". FantasticFiction. Retrieved 2008-02-29.
- ^ a b Beahm, George W. (1998). Stephen King from A to Z: an encyclopedia of his life and work. Andrews McMeel Publishing. p. 43. ISBN 0-8362-6914-4.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Michael R. Collings". Brigham Young University. 2003. Retrieved 2008-02-29.
- ^ a b Langford, Jonathan (1997-10-21). "AML-List Review: In the Image of God: Theme, Characterization, and Landscape in the Fiction of Orson Scott Card". Association for Mormon Letters. Archived from the original on 2007-10-26. Retrieved 2008-02-29.
- ^ a b "Michael R. Collings - Summary Bibliography". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved May 5, 2015.
- ^ a b "Michael R. Collings Bio Information". Pepperdine University. Archived from the original on January 5, 2009. Retrieved 2008-02-29.
- ^ Lindbergh, Ben (September 4, 2018). "The King Chroniclers and the Reimagining of an Icon of American Letters". The Ringer. Retrieved September 10, 2018.
- ^ "World Horror Grandmaster 2016". Science Fiction Awards Database. Archived from the original on March 6, 2019. Retrieved March 4, 2019.
- ^ "The House Beyond the Hill by Michael R Collings". FantasticFiction. Retrieved 2008-02-29.