Frank Herbert

Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr. was born on October 8, 1920, in Tacoma, Washington, to Franklin Patrick Herbert Sr. and Eileen McCarthy Herbert. His paternal grandparents had moved west in 1905 to join the Burley Colony in Kitsap County, one of several utopian communities established in Washington State during the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Herbert spent much of his childhood in the rural Olympic and Kitsap Peninsulas. He developed an early interest in books and photography and acquired several cameras during his childhood and adolescence.

In 1938, Herbert left home with his five-year-old sister, Patricia Lou, because of his parents' drinking. He went to live with his maternal aunt, Peggy "Violet" Rowntree, and her husband, Ken Rowntree Sr. Patricia returned home within several weeks, while Herbert remained with his aunt and uncle.

Herbert attended Salem High School, now North Salem High School, and graduated the following year. In 1939, he moved to Los Angeles, California, where his parents and sister had relocated. He falsely claimed to be older in order to obtain his first newspaper job at the Glendale Star. He returned to Salem in 1940 and worked for the Oregon Statesman, now Statesman Journal, in several positions, including photographer.

Herbert married Flora Lillian Parkinson in San Pedro, California, in 1941. They had one daughter, Penelope, born in 1942, and divorced in 1943. In 1942, following the United States' entry into World War II, Herbert served for six months as a photographer with the United States Navy Seabees. After suffering a head injury, he received a medical discharge. He subsequently moved to Portland, Oregon, where he worked as a reporter for The Oregon Journal.

After the war, Herbert attended the University of Washington, where he met Beverly Ann Stuart in a creative-writing class in 1946. They married in Seattle later that year. Herbert and Stuart had two sons, Brian, born in 1947, and Bruce Calvin Herbert, born in 1951, who died from AIDS-related pneumonia in 1993. Herbert and Stuart were the only students in their class who had sold work for publication at the time. Herbert had sold two pulp adventure stories, including "Survival of the Cunning", published by Esquire in 1945.

In 1949, Herbert and his family moved to California, where he worked for the Santa Rosa Press-Democrat. There he became acquainted with psychologists Ralph and Irene Slattery. Through them, Herbert encountered the work of several philosophers and psychologists who later influenced his writing, including Sigmund Freud, Carl Jung, Karl Jaspers, and Martin Heidegger. They also introduced him to Zen Buddhism.

Herbert did not graduate from the University of Washington. According to his son Brian, he preferred to study subjects that interested him rather than complete the university's required curriculum. He subsequently returned to journalism, working for the Seattle Star and the Oregon Statesman. He later spent approximately a decade as a writer and editor for the San Francisco Examiner's California Living magazine.

Herbert had read science fiction for approximately a decade before beginning to write in the genre. He cited H. G. Wells, Robert A. Heinlein, Poul Anderson, and Jack Vance among his favourite authors. His first science-fiction story, "Looking for Something", was published in the April 1952 issue of Startling Stories. Three additional stories by Herbert appeared in Astounding Science Fiction and Amazing Stories in 1954.

Herbert's first novel, "The Dragon in the Sea", was originally published in serial form as "Under Pressure" in Astounding in 1955. The novel examined psychological stability aboard a 21st-century submarine and dealt with conflicts arising from the production and consumption of oil. It received favourable critical attention but was not a major commercial success. During this period, Herbert also worked as a speechwriter for Republican senator Guy Cordon.

Herbert began researching "Dune" in 1959. His wife returned to full-time employment as an advertising writer for department stores, allowing Herbert to devote more time to writing. The novel was partly inspired by Herbert's research into sand dunes near Florence, Oregon. He had originally been assigned to write a magazine article about the dunes, but the research produced considerably more material than was required for the proposed article. Although the article was never completed, the research contributed to the development of "Dune".

Herbert spent approximately six years researching and writing "Dune". His environmental work in Oregon influenced the novel's treatment of ecology and its depiction of the Fremen and their efforts to manage the desert environment. "Dune" was published in serial form by Analog, formerly Astounding, in eight instalments under the titles "Dune World" and "Prophet of Dune" between 1963 and 1965. The completed novel was subsequently rejected by numerous publishers.

Sterling E. Lanier, an editor at Chilton Book Company, offered Herbert a $7,500 advance and future royalties for the rights to publish "Dune" as a hardcover book. Herbert revised much of the serialised material before its publication as a novel in 1965. "Dune" won the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1965 and shared the Hugo Award for Best Novel in 1966 with Roger Zelazny's "...And Call Me Conrad".

Although "Dune" was not an immediate bestseller, Herbert earned considerably more from its publication than was typical for science-fiction authors at the time. The novel's success enabled him to pursue other professional opportunities. From 1969 to 1972, he worked as the education writer for the Seattle Post-Intelligencer and lectured in general studies and interdisciplinary studies at the University of Washington. In 1972, he worked as a social and ecological consultant in Vietnam and Pakistan. In 1973, he served as director-photographer for the television programme "The Tillers".

By the end of 1972, Herbert had left newspaper journalism and became a full-time fiction writer. During the 1970s and 1980s, he achieved considerable commercial success. He divided his time between homes in Hawaii and on Washington's Olympic Peninsula. His home in Port Townsend was designed in part as an ecological demonstration project. During this period, he wrote extensively about ecological and philosophical subjects.

Herbert continued the "Dune" series with "Dune Messiah" (1969), "Children of Dune" (1976), "God Emperor of Dune" (1981), "Heretics of Dune" (1984), and "Chapterhouse: Dune" (1985). He intended to write a seventh novel, but died before completing it, leaving several storylines unresolved.

Herbert's other novels included "The Godmakers" (1972), "The Dosadi Experiment" (1977), and "The White Plague" (1982). He also collaborated with Bill Ransom on "The Jesus Incident" (1979), "The Lazarus Effect" (1983), and "The Ascension Factor" (1988), which continued the story begun in Herbert's 1966 novel "Destination: Void". In 1977, Herbert published a favourable review of Terry Brooks' first novel, "The Sword of Shannara", which contributed to Brooks' early recognition as an author.

In 1974, Herbert's wife Beverly underwent treatment for lung cancer. The treatment affected her health, although she survived for another decade. Herbert was the featured speaker at the Octocon II science-fiction convention in Santa Rosa, California, in 1978. In 1979, he met anthropologist Jim Funaro, with whom he subsequently developed the Contact Conference. Herbert was a guest of honour at Advention '81 in Adelaide, South Australia, in 1981.

Beverly Herbert died on February 7, 1984. Herbert completed "Heretics of Dune" that year and dedicated "Chapterhouse: Dune", published in 1985, to her. Also in 1984, David Lynch's film adaptation "Dune" was released. The film received largely negative reviews from critics in the United States, although it achieved greater critical and commercial success in some European and Japanese markets.

In 1985, Herbert married Theresa Shackleford, who had previously represented him at Putnam. He published "Chapterhouse: Dune" that year. His final single-author works included the collection "Eye", published in 1985, and "Man of Two Worlds", published posthumously in 1986.

Herbert died on February 11, 1986, in Madison, Wisconsin, at the age of 65. He died from a pulmonary embolism while recovering from surgery for pancreatic cancer.