Peter Haining
British novelist, writer on occult subjects, and anthologist of horror stories. Born April 2, 1940, in Enfield, Middlesex, England, Haining was educated in Buckhurst Hill, England. He worked as a journalist and magazine writer (1957-63) and successively as editor, senior editor, and editorial director of New English Library (1963-72) in London. Since 1972 he has been an editorial consultant, writer, and anthologist. He is a member of the International Association of Poets, Playwrights, Editors, Essayists and Novelists (PEN).
Haining's family lived for many generations in Scotland, but he now resides in the "witch county" of Essex, England. His research into witchcraft and black magic resulted in a ritual curse from a group of devil worshipers in London, but that did not interfere with Haining's literary success. He claims that one of his ancestors was burned at the stake for possessing a "book of spells," and his publication The Warlock's Book (1972) is said to include materials based on records of this ancestor.
Haining's investigation of a desecrated graveyard in Essex led to his first book, Devil Worship in England (1964), coauthored with A. V. Sellwood. Since that time he has written or edited several titles annually. His early vampire anthology, The Midnight People (1966), also known as Vampires at Midnight, has been frequently reprinted. His work has covered the fields of occultism, science fiction, fantasy, and horror. Most memorable among Haining's almost 100 titles are Anatomy of Witchcraft (1972), Ghosts: An Illustrated History (1974), The Craft of Terror: Extracts from the Rare and Infamous Gothic "Horror" Novels (1966), A Circle of Witches: An Anthology of Victorian Witchcraft Stories (1971), The Necromancers: The Best of Black Magic and Witchcraft (1971), The Hashish Club (1974), The Sherlock Holmes Scrapbook (1974), The Edgar Allen Poe Bedside Companion (1980), The Vampire Terror (1981), and Shades of Dracula (1982). Haining edited The Complete Ghost Stories of Charles Dickens (1982), Vampire! (1984), The "Doctor Who" File (1986), Elvis in Private (1987), and Supernatural Tales of Sir Arthur Conan Doyle (1987).
Sources:
Ashley, Mike. Who's Who in Horror and Fantasy Fiction. London: Elm Tree Books, 1977.
Melton, J. Gordon. The Vampire Book: The Encyclopedia of the Undead. Detroit: Visible Ink Press, 1994.
Reginald, Robert. Science Fiction and Fantasy Literature, 1975-1991. Detroit: Gale Research, 1992.
