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Dean Koontz
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BIOGRAPHY

Dean Koontz grew up in desperate poverty under the tyranny of a violent Alcoholic father (Koontz's father served time in prison for trying to murder him). Despite his traumatic childhood, Koontz put himself through Shippensburg University Of Pennsylvania (then known as Shippensburg State College), and in 1967 went to work as an English teacher at Mechanicsburg High School. In his spare time he wrote his first novel, '' Star Quest '', which was published in 1968 . From there he went on to write over a dozen more Science Fiction Novel s.

In the 1970s, Koontz began publishing mainstream suspense and Horror Fiction , under his own name as well as under several Pseudonym s; Koontz has stated he used pen names after several editors convinced him that authors who switched genre fell victim to "negative crossover": alienating established fans, while simultaneously not picking up any new fans. Known pseudonyms include Deanna Dwyer, K. R. Dwyer, Aaron Wolfe, David Axton, Brian Coffey, John Hill, Leigh Nichols, Owen West, and Richard Paige. Currently some of those novels are sold under Koontz's real name.

Koontz's breakthrough novel was '' Whispers '' (1980). Several of his books have reached #1 on the ''New York Times'' Bestseller List (9 hardcover and 13 softcover).

Koontz is renowned for his skill at writing suspenseful page-turners. His strengths also include memorable characters, original ideas, and ability to blend Horror , Fantasy and Humour . Koontz has been criticized for his tendency to include too many similes and therefore to drag out descriptions, his frequent use of similar Plot ting structures, and a tendency to moralize heavily.

Arguably, most of Koontz's work can still be classified as science fiction, as he tries to create plausible, consistent explanations for the unusual, fantastic events featured in most of his novels.

Koontz's protagonists invariably arm themselves with guns to combat the various monsters and madmen that they deal with, and Koontz gets all the technical details right.

Koontz also has a very interesting way of adding his own little quirks to his novels, such as adding simple quotes from a book by the name of '', whose works figure in the plot of the novel).

Koontz has long been a fan of Art Bell 's radio program, Coast To Coast AM . He appeared as a guest after a fan reported to Bell that one of Koontz's novels featured a character describing a Paranormal event as an "Art Bell moment."

Koontz currently resides in '', in 2004. Trixie is also often referenced in his official newsletter "Useless News".

Dogs often figure heavily in Koontz's novels, as he is an avid dog lover. ''Fear Nothing'', ''Watchers'', ''Dark Rivers of the Heart'', and ''One Door Away from Heaven'' are prime examples. However, lately he has seen fit to include cats as characters, most notably the smart cat Mungojerrie in the Christopher Snow novels.

Koontz is also known for never recycling a character. The only exceptions to date are Christopher Snow, the protagonist in "Fear Nothing," "Seize the Night," and the forthcoming "Ride the Storm" (these books make up the Moonlight Bay Trilogy ); and Odd Thomas of "Odd Thomas,""Forever Odd," and the forthcoming "Brother Odd."

Koontz is generally unhappy with most film adaptations of his books, the notable exceptions being Watchers 2 in 1990 (not really a sequel to Watchers, but actually a much better adaptation more closely following the book), Watchers 3 (1994), Watchers Reborn (1998), Haute Tension (2003), and Frankenstein (2004). Koontz himself partly contributed to the screenplays of the last two films. According to a 1996 interview, the so-called final straw occurred with the film adaptation of his book Hideaway . Koontz was so unhappy with the final cut that he had his standard contract modified to give him creative control over all subsequent films based on his books. Despite this fact, most later films over which he exercised creative control failed to garner his approval.

At the end of books, Koontz includes in his ABOUT THE AUTHOR page his mailing address:
Dean Koontz
P.O.Box 9529
Newport Beach, CA 92658


BIBLIOGRAPHY



Novels



Children's books

  • ''Robot Santa: The Further Adventures of Santa's Twin'' ( October 1 2004 )

  • ''Every Day's a Holiday : Amusing Rhymes for Happy Times'' ( October 1 2003 )

  • ''The Paper Doorway : Funny Verse and Nothing Worse'' ( October 1 2001 )

  • ''Santa's Twin'' ( November 1 1996 )

  • ''Oddkins: A Fable for All Ages'' (1988)



Non-fiction

  • ''Christmas Is Good!: Trixie Treats And Holiday Wisdom'' w/ Trixie Koontz ( October 31 2005 )

  • ''Life is Good! Lessons in Joyful Living'' w/ Trixie Koontz ( October 31 2004 )

  • ''How To Write Best-Selling Fiction'' (1981)

  • ''Writing Popular Fiction'' (1972)

  • ''The Pig Society'' w/ Gerda Koontz (1970)

  • ''The Underground Lifestyles Handbook'' w/ Gerda Koontz (1970)



Essays and introductions (incomplete)

  • Foreword to ''Love Heels: Tales from Canine Companions for Independence'' ( October 1 2003 )

  • Introduction to ''Great Escapes: New Designs for Home Theaters'' by Theo Kalomirakis ( October 15 2003 )

  • "Ibsen's Dream" (Reflector, 1966)

  • "Of Childhood" (Reflector, 1966)



Collections

  • ''Strange Highways'' (1994, short story collection) {reissued in September 2002}



Short fiction

  • "Black River" (1999)

  • "Pinkie" (1998)

  • "Trapped" (1989) {re-issued as a graphic novel in 1992}

  • "Graveyard Highway" (1987)

  • "Twilight of the Dawn" (1987)

  • "Miss Atilla the Hun" (1987)

  • "Hardshell" (1987)

  • "The Interrogation" (1987)

  • "The Black Pumpkin" (1986)

  • "The Monitors of Providence {collaboration}" (1986)

  • "Snatcher" (1986)

  • "Weird World" (1986)

  • "Down in the Darkness" (1986)

  • "Night of the Storm" (1974) {re-issued as a graphic novel in 1976}

  • "We Three" (1974)

  • "The Undercity" (1973)

  • "Terra Phobia" (1973)

  • "Wake Up To Thunder" (1973)

  • "The Sinless Child" (1973)

  • "Grayworld" (1973)

  • "A Mouse in the Walls of the Global Village" (1972)

  • "Ollie's Hands" (1972) {revised and re-issued in 1987}

  • "Altarboy" (1972)

  • "Cosmic Sin" (1972)

  • "The Terrible Weapon" (1972)

  • "Bruno" (1971)

  • "Unseen Warriors" (1970)

  • "Shambolain" (1970)

  • "The Crimson Witch" (1970)

  • "Beastchild" (1970)

  • "Emanations" (1970)

  • "The Mystery of His Flesh" (1970)

  • "The Good Ship Lookoutworld" (1970)

  • "Nightmare Gang" (1970)

  • "A Third Hand" (1970)

  • "Muse" (1969)

  • "The Face in His Belly" Part Two" (1969)

  • "Dragon In the Land" (1969)

  • "The Face in His Belly" Part One (1969)

  • "Where the Beast Runs" (1969)

  • "Killerbot" (1969) {revised and re-issued in 1977 as "A Season for Freedom"}

  • "Temple of Sorrow" (1969)

  • "In the Shield" (1969)

  • "Dreambird" (1968)

  • "The Twelfth Bed" (1968)

  • "The Psychedelic Children" (1968)

  • "To Behold the Sun" (1967)

  • "Love 2005" (1967)

  • "Soft Come the Dragons" (1967)

  • "A Miracle is Anything" (1966)

  • "Some Disputed Barricade" (1966)

  • "This Fence" (1965)

  • "The Kittens" (1965)



Poetry



''Every Day's a Holiday: Amusing Rhymes for Happy Times'' (2003)


  • "Holiday Gifts"

  • "Stop The World! It's Your Birthday!"

  • "Holiday Data Glitch"

  • "New Year's Eve"

  • "New Year's Day"

  • "Appropriate Holiday Entertainment"

  • "Carnival!"

  • "Gravity Day"

  • "Martin Luther King, Jr. Day"

  • "Snow Day"

  • "Valentine's Day"

  • "Abraham Lincoln's Birthday"

  • "George Washington's Birthday"

  • "Saint Patrick's Day"

  • "The First Day of Spring"

  • "Every Day's A Holiday"

  • "Easter: The Danger of Improving Holiday Traditions"

  • "April Fool's Day"

  • "Sakura Matsuki (Cherry Blossom Festival)"

  • "Dino Day"

  • "Cinco de Mayo"

  • "Teacher's Day"

  • "Annual Animals' Day in Court"

  • "Mother's Day Is Every Day, Thanks to Us"

  • "Cat Day"

  • "Memorial Day"

  • "Things That Can Spoil a Good Holiday"

  • "Father's Day"

  • "The Eighteen Acceptable Excuses Not to Celebrate a Holiday"

  • "Toad Day"

  • "The Last Day of School, the Saddest Day of the Year"

  • "Graduation Day"

  • "The First Day of Summer"

  • "Me Day"

  • "Independence Day: Free to Be Ignorant Old Me"

  • "Dog Day"

  • "Friendship Day"

  • "Holidays on Other Planets"

  • "Labor Day"

  • "Grandfather's Day"

  • "Grandma's Day or Why One Day There Will Be Good Cookies on the Moon"

  • "The First Day of Autumn"

  • "Lost-Tooth Day"

  • "Rosh Hashanah"

  • "Troll Day, Whether You Like IT of Not"

  • "Yom Kippur"

  • "Holiday Dinner"

  • "Columbus Day"

  • "How to Get to Sleep Before a Holiday"

  • "Mr. Halloween"

  • "What Should Go into a Holiday Pie"

  • "Día de los Muertos"

  • "Praise the Chicken Day - or Else"

  • "Diwali by Golly"

  • "National Book Week: Why Paper Tigers Are the Preferred Breed"

  • "Holiday, Holinight"

  • "Thanksgiving Turkey Dresses in Hand-Me-Downs"

  • "The First Day of Winter"

  • "The Shortest Day of the Year"

  • "Christmas Eve"

  • "Christmas Day"

  • "Up-Is-Down Day"

  • "Kwanzaa"

  • "Not the Stuff of Holidays"



''The Paper Doorway: Funny Verse and Nothing Worse'' (2001)


  • "A Bad Cat"

  • "A Beverage with Antlers"

  • "A Cure for Ugly"

  • "A Long Day of Rhyming"

  • "A Short Trip"

  • "A Skeleton's Hotel"

  • "A Strange Day on the Farm"

  • "Advice"

  • "Ages of a Toad"

  • "All Families Are Not the Same"

  • "An Accident at the Pole"

  • "An Angry Poem by a Dragon's Mother"

  • "An Interesting Fact About Dogs"

  • "At War with Wood"

  • "Auntie"

  • "Balance"

  • "Baseball is Safer"

  • "Being Me"

  • "Better Than Money"

  • "Boogeyman"

  • "Cats in Spats"

  • "Crime and Punishment"

  • "Dangerous Music"

  • "Dinner with Jilly"

  • "Do Trees Sneeze?"

  • "Dogs and Hogs"

  • "Fashion-Plate Fido"

  • "Food Psychos"

  • "Frankenbunny"

  • "Handyman"

  • "Head Number Two"

  • "Horse Thief"

  • "I Don't Share"

  • "If I Were a Potato"

  • "Insults"

  • "Listen to the Wind"

  • "Lucky Skunk"

  • "Mary Thinks She Wants a Puppy"

  • "My Words"

  • "Peace Through Hopping"

  • "Peg-Leg Zeg"

  • "Plurals"

  • "Poem by My Dog"

  • "Princess with a Tail"

  • "Rain"

  • "Red Hair"

  • "Rocks"

  • "Rumor"

  • "Safe Household Accidents"

  • "Sick"

  • "Silly"

  • "Snowland"

  • "So There"

  • "Stars, Mars, and Chocolate Bars"

  • "The Bear with One Green Ear"

  • "The Cabbage Feels No Pain"

  • "The Fearful Bee"

  • "The Man With Four Eyes"

  • "The Monstrous Broccoli Excuse"

  • "The Paper Doorway"

  • "The Pig with Pride"

  • "The Prettiest Butterfly I Will Ever See"

  • "The Reliable Bunny"

  • "The Seasons of a Toad"

  • "The Shark in the Park"

  • "The Threat"

  • "The Wart"

  • "The Woggle Wrangler"

  • "The Young Musician - Or Maybe Thug"

  • "Them and Us"

  • "Thinking About Me"

  • "Those Weird Guys in Nursery Rhymes"

  • "Toast and Jam"

  • "Up"

  • "Wally the Werewolf"

  • "What I Like"

  • "What Will We Do, What Will We Do?"

  • "Why Good Manners Matter"

  • "Why I Find It So Hard to Learn"

  • "Why Most People Prefer Cats and Dogs"

  • "Why?"

  • "Wishes"

  • "You Get the Pickle You Ask For"



''The Reflector'' (1965-67)

  • "The Day"

  • "Growing Pains"

  • "Sing A Song Of Sixpence"

  • "This Fence"

  • "Cellars"

  • "Cloistered Walls"

  • "Flesh"

  • "For A Breath I Tarry"

  • "Hey, Good Christian"

  • "Holes"

  • "It"

  • "I've Met One"

  • "Mold In The Jungle"

  • "Once"

  • "The Rats Run"

  • "Sam: the Adventurous, Exciting, Well-Traveled Man"

  • "Something About This City"

  • "The Standard Unusual"

  • "A Trio Of Possible Futures"

  • "You Dirty Jap, Said The Jap"

  • "Where No One Fell"



Screenplays



Other



Film and television adaptations


Not all of these films are approved of by Mr. Koontz. Specifically ''Watchers II'', ''Watchers III'', ''Watchers Reborn'', Frankenstein and ''Haute Tension'' . For most of the rest of them, he's just not happy with the result.



Books about Dean Koontz

  • ''A Collector's Guide to Dean Koontz'' by (2006)

  • ''Dean Koontz: A Reader's Checklist and Reference Guide'' ( October 1 1999 )

  • ''Dean Koontz: A Writer's Biography'' by Katherine Ramsland ( August 1 1998 )

  • ''Dean Koontz: A Critical Companion'' by Joan G. Kotker ( August 30 1996 )

  • ''The Dean Koontz Companion'' by Martin H. Greenberg, Ed Gorman , Bill Munster ( March 1 1994 )

  • ''Sudden Fear: The Horror and Dark Suspense Fiction of Dean R. Koontz'' (Starmont Studies in Literary Criticism, # 24) by Bill Munster ( June 1 1988 )



Common collecting errors

These titles/authors are ''not'' Mr. Koontz:
  • ''Heartbeeps'' by John Hill

  • ''Stolen Thunder'' and ''Sharkman Six'' by David Axton

  • anything by Owen Brookes

  • anything by Frank Coffey

  • anything by the Irish poet Brian Coffey



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