Shortt, Vere
Entry updated 12 September 2022. Tagged: Author.
(1874-1915) UK soldier and author who fought with distinction in South Africa and served as a Captain in World War One. His first novel, Lost Sheep (1915), uninterestingly incorporates some elements of black magic. He saw active service in France, dying in combat in 1915 before completing The Rod of the Snake (1917), which was completed by his sister Frances Mathews. The tale, a not entirely coherent, clottedly erotized occult romance, hints at sf through links to Atlantis understood in terms of Theosophy. The "Old Ones" who are invoked through the use of the titular talisman are conveyed with Horror in SF menace, and it is possible H P Lovecraft was influenced by Shortt's depiction of cosmic malice. [JC]
Vere Dawson Shortt
born Mountrath, Queen's County, Ireland: 1874
died at the Battle of Loos, France: 27 September 1915
works
- Lost Sheep (London: John Lane the Bodley Head, 1915) [hb/]
- The Rod of the Snake (London: John Lane, 1917) with Frances Mathews [hb/]
links
previous versions of this entry