The Fiction of Theodore Sturgeon

This is a list of Theodore Sturgeon's fiction, beginning with his short fiction (ordered according the wonderful collections put together by Paul Williams). The novels appear separately at the end of the list. Additional information is available at the sfsite for Theodore Sturgeon.

My intention is to eventually illustrate the list, similar to my illustrated Heinlein list. I have plans for pages of other Authors from the Golden Age of SF.

Michael Main
main@colorado.edu

Volume I: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Heavy Insurance"
Al, a married man and courier with heavy debt, talks to Phil about how he came to find himself in such a position.
PUBLICATION:
  ----- First publication: Milwaukee Journal and other newspapers under McClure Newspaper Syndication (July 16, 1938)

"The Heart"
A drunken woman tells about Bill Llanyn, the man that she loved who had a bad heart that she hated.
PUBLICATION:
  ----- First publication: Other Worlds (May 1955)

"Cellmate"
An unlucky man is in jail for sixty days and has a new cellmate named Crawly who has a weird body and a manner than indicates that he's used to getting his own way.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Weird Tales (January 1947)

"Fluffy"
Perpetual house guest Ransome meets a cat called Fluffy whose likable qualities are as rare as his own.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Weird Tales (March 1947)

"Alter Ego"
A despotic Leader sets up his own downfall when he finds and trains a look-alike double.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Mailed through a Porthole"
A sailor awaits a hurricane in the Atlantic with calm bravado.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"A Noose of Light"
Terry is as beautiful as her sister, Florence, is brilliant, but only one of them can land the man that they both have eyes for.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Strangers on a Train"
(Title selected by Paul Williams)
A man and a woman, both coming off of broken marriages, meet on a train from Reno and begin to open up to each other.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Accidentally on Porpoise"
A sailor named Whacker washes overboard in a disaster and wakes up to a new life.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"The Right Line"
Leo, the bouncer at The Blue Anchor, listens to Gay and longs for her as she tells him of the man who left her and how they will be married when he returns on the Wanderford.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Golden Day"
Tommy, who is smooth and masterful for his age, and Sue, of soft hands, enjoy a day in the country in love.
PUBLICATION:
  ----- First publication by McClure Newspaper Syndication (March 4, 1939).

"Permit Me My Gesture"
Margot realizes that she may have driven off Ace too soon.

"Watch My Smoke"
A solo pilot in northern Quebec must decide between bailing out and trying to land his flaming plane.

"The Other Cheek"
Drew is a wealthy businessman regrets the loss of the diamond cufflinks that were a present from his sweetheart.

"Extraordinary Seaman"
Placed on a tanker voyage by her aunt, Joye meets a sailor named Charming (first name, Prince).

"One Sick Kid"
Young Cotter becomes ill on his first voyage into the Gulf.

"His Good Angel"
Investigative reporter Gene Willis is pining for his lost finance.

"Some People Forget"
Teenage hoodlum Butch and his gang take off after Britt who seems headed for a fancy date with a young lady.

"A God in a Garden"
Kenneth Courtney finds a statue of a god who can give him an amazing power.

"Fit for a King"
Bill Foxx, bell captain at a fancy hotel, doesn't always agree with his manager about how to treat visiting royalty.

"Ex-Bachelor Extract"
Carl Hanson is a confirmed bachelor until Louise finds the right bait to reel him in.

"East is East"
Laura wants something more exciting than her life on West Beaufort Street.

"Three People"
Three kids playing Fourth of July pranks find that Mrs. Mulligan isn't as bad as her reputation.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Eyes of Blue"
Estelle Rudd, a headstrong little brat, tries to run away from Mrs. Van Kurp's Finishing School.

"Ether Breather"
Writer Ted Hamilton investigates a problem that occurs when television shows are broadcast over a new system.

"Her Choice"
(Title before publication: "The Fourth")
Tom, George, and Sam share a car and a girl.

"Cajan Providence"
Veillon shows that growing rice isn't the only way to scrape a living from the bayou.

"Strike Three"
The sonnett worked well to woo Anna, but what about Betty and Celia?
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Contact!"
Young Peggy has her eye on office worker Roy Bell.

"The Call"
Bert Colley has a feeling that his new wife might be in trouble in their air conditioned apartment.

"Helix the Cat"
Pete Tronti invents a glass that captures a lost soul who decides to take over the body of Pete's cat.

"To Shorten Sail"
Percy and his mate throw their fate the winds in an attempt to win the regatta.

"Thanksgiving Again"
Rag promises to write 52 letters regularly to Peg and rejoin her at the next Thanksgiving.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Bianca's Hands"
Ran is taken by a monster with lovely hands.

"Derm Fool"
David Worth is a taxadermist who has a most unusual source of material.

"He Shuttles"
MacIlhainy Tobin spends an inordinate amount of time deciding on exactly the right three wishes to be granted.

"Turkish Delight"
In a fog on the Willowtree, Bull Durham tells a frightening story of drums in the Caribbean.

"Niobe"
Beautiful and strong Niobe falls to jealousy.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume I (1994).

"Mahout"
A small Cajun sailor gets the better of burly Muggsy. Beautiful and strong Niobe falls to jealousy.

"The Long Arm"
Deuce is on the run from a woman and from Detective Sergeant McGonigle.

"The Man on the Steps"
Joseph Berx recalls a meeting he had years ago with a brave man who started him on a road to success.

"Punctuational Advice"
The pretty young woman down the hall tells how she took the advice of Mrs. Katz about the young man that she fancied.

"Place of Honor"
Matty and her husband Grover Cleveland MacDonald each scheme on how to get the gift that each other wants.

"The Ultimate Egoist" (Pseudonym E. Hunter Waldo)
Whatever Woodie believes in becomes true, and contrariwise those things that he doesn't believe in...

"It"
Alton Drew follows faithful hound Kimbo into the woods, and young Babe follows her Uncle Alton.

"Butyl and the Breather"
Hamilton and Berbelot cook up a scheme to get the Ether Breather to come out of hiding.

Volume II: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Cargo"
The third mate on the Dawnlight spins the yarn explaining why he and the rest of the crew are no longer worried about the dangers of arms running at the start of World War II.

"Shottle Bop"
Derived from an earlier unpublished story called "Abraxas."
A mazy lan receives a talent from an elixer bought at the Shottle Bop, and then must struggle to use the talent for good and not for boastfulness or revenge.

"Yesterday Was Monday"
Harry Wright goes to bed on Monday, sleeps through just one night, and wakens on Wednesday.

"Brat"
Shorty and Michaele need to find a baby that they can borrow for a few weeks to convince Shorty's aunt that he his worthy of receiving an inheritance.

"The Anonymous"
Gabe Jarret leads a charmed life of wealth and amazingly good looks, but his Chloe doesn't seem to want him to be so good looking.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume II (1995).

"Two Sidecars"
Henley's wife is deserting him for another man and the South American continent.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume II (1995).

"Microcosmic God"
James Kidder retreats to an island and puts is biochemical genius to productive work.

"The Haunt"
Bill figures that the best way to get tough Miriam Jensen to fall for him is to show his bravery in a fake haunted house.

"Completely Automatic"
Wiper Babson tells the tale of how he was trapped in a completely automatic ship with no way to extinguish the magnesium fire.

"Poker Face"
The accountant, Mr. Face, joins the poker game and, among other things, has the remarkable ability to rig any deal without even touching the cards.

"Nightmare Island"
Seaman Barry gets washed ashore a seemingly deserted island.

"The Purple Light"
(Pseudonym E. Hunter Waldo)
A solo pilot in the far reaches of space must decide between bailing out and trying to save his ship from a nuclear explosion.

"Artnan Process"
Earthlings Bell Bellew and Slimmy Cob try to pull a fast one on the Martians who also want to learn the secret of isotope transformation from the Artnans.

"Biddiver"
Biddiver, a working man, first comes into a large sum of money unexpectedly, and then he accidentally finds himself in an amazing car pitted against the powerful Arnik brothers.

"The Golden Egg"
Ancient Elron arrives on Planet Earth in the form of a golden egg and sets out to find out about how man and woman work.

"Two Percent Inspiration"
Second year student Hughie McCauley accompanies the brilliant Professor Thaddeus MacIlhainy Nudnick on a trip round the solar system, but will the professor be as brilliant as sf hear captain Jaundess?

"The Jumper"
A cruel p.o.w. guard with a knack for imitation is taken on by two prisoners in World War II.

Volume III: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Blabbermouth"
Eddie Gretchen's new wife is compusively driven to tell the truth.

"Medusa"
The Psy Board sends Rip on a mission to the taboo planet Xantippe, but it seems that Rip is the only sane man among the crew of eight.

"The Green-Eyed Monster"
(Later title change: "Ghost of a Chance")
Gus meets and falls for Iola Harvester, a pale girl who's the object of a jealous ghost's affection.

"The Bones"
Written with James H. Beard.
Donzey has a knack for jury-rigging weird inventions, such as the FM radio receiver that is partly made of bones.

"The Hag Séleen"
Written with James H. Beard.
Jon and his daughter Patty have a vacation in the bajou interrupted by a mean and magical woman who has a way with rhymes and canoes.

"Killdozer"
Tom Jaeger and his crew of seven men must rapidly build a runway on a Pacific island, but the ancient spirit they uncover has murderous intentions and a powerful body appropriated from a D-7 caterpillar tractor.

"Abreaction"
An unnamed man in another dimension tries to remember his life as a bulldozer operator on Earth.

"Poor Yorick"
During wartime, a woman receives a souvenier skull from her fiance.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume III (1996).

"Crossfire"
A soldier in Europe faces deadly snipers.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume III (1996).

"Noon Gun"
Joe hangs out with mousie Sara Nell and wonders what it would take to live in the world of movie star heros.

"Bulldozer Is a Noun"
(Title assigned by Paul Williams)
Thousands of years in the future, rude Mauritius the Drip is the only man who can resurect ancient technology.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume III (1996).

"August Sixth 1945"
Pulp magazines! Who reads this crap? And who knows about the final days of World War II?

"The Chromium Helmet"
Engineer Godfrey must figure why his daughter, wife, and sister all believe so strongly in wishes that couldn't be true.

"Memorial"
After the devestation of Hiroshima, scientist Grenfell devises an even more horrible weapon that he hopes will stop war once and for all.

"Mewhu's Jet"
A space alien and his jet fall on Jack Garry and his young daughter Molly.

Volume IV: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Maturity"
Robin English has a brilliant streak combined with an unfocused immaturity that Dr. Peg Wenzell has plans for.

"Tiny and the Monster"
Metalurgist Alistar Forsythe begins a correspondence with Alex, who sends her a remarkable German shepard named Tiny.

"The Sky Was Full of Ships"
(aka "The Cave of History")
(aka "Incident at Switchpath")
Gordon Kemp stumbled onto a powerful way to control an atomic powered cutter, leading to an unbelievable story about the deal of eccentric old Skyes.

"Largo"
Vernon Dreksall has talent at just one thing, the violin, and he wants to use his talent to capture the most beautiful woman on Earth.

"Thunder"
After a nuclear attack destroys all but a few hundred people, Pete Mawser contemplates striking back.

"The Deadly Ratio"
(aka "It Wasn't Syzygy")
Leo meets Gloria and it's love at first sight; from a population of millions, she's the one woman made just for him.

"The Blue Letter"
She seemed sorry for him: two thousand miles and eight months away from his wife.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume IV (1997).

"The Place"
This unpublished and lost story was mentioned in a 1947 letter from Sturgeon to his ex-wife Dorothe.

"Wham Bop!"
Manuel has drumming in his blood in a way that Red might never know.

"Well Spiced"
The county isn't big enough for more than one county seat or more than one railway station, and the town with the water seems to be the odds-on favorite over Zapappas's settlement.

"Hurrican Trio"
Yancey Bowman has a perfectly happy marriage with Beverly but something happened with Lois and something happened with that space ship too.

"That Low"
Mrs. Hallowell predicts that Fowler shall live a long, unhappy life.

"Memory"
Jeremy Jedd has just one hope for his interplanetary shipping business: figure out the cryptic message that his brother has sent from Mars about a cheap way to pack pipes.

"There Is No Defense"
Belter and the pacifist Hereford, both members of the Joint Solar Military Council, face the threat of a seemingly invicible and ruthless invader from outside the solar system.

"The Professor's Teddy Bear"
Jeremy gets comfort from the real dreams that his teddy monster provides, but what does the monster get from it all?

"The Way Home"
(aka "A Way Home")
Young Paul Roudenbush is on his way out of his home town, not planning to return for many years.

"The Clock"
This short short story was not available to include in Volume IV of the collected stories, but hopefully it will appear in a later volume.

"Smoke!"
This short short story was not available to include in Volume IV of the collected stories, but hopefully it will appear in a later volume.

Volume V: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Quietly"
A young girl named Quietly does everything quietly, raised by her reculsive widower father, until her 18th year when she is cast into the world.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume V (1998).

"The Music"
(aka "In the Hospital")
At a hospital, a cat fights a rat and the music plays.

"Unite and Conquer"
Dr. Muscles Simmons and his colonel brother must mend their differences--just as the world does the same--to face the Outsiders.

"The Love of Heaven"
(aka "Blight")
Warner loses his pup to a mysterious visitor.

"Till Death Do Us Join"
(aka "The Rivals")
In spite of a compulsive attraction, Sandra becomes increasingly fearful of Paul's brother Golly.

"The Perfect Host"
We first hear the story of Grace Stoye's suicide through the eyes of 14-year-old Ronnie Daniels, but it takes seven more viewpoints to understand the full story in an intimate way.

"The Martian and the Moron"
Young Henry knows that his dad sometimes goes overboard on projects such as that radio thing with the Martians in 1924, and now grown-up Henry seems to go overboard on occasion himself--such as this thing with Cordelia.

"Die, Maestro, Die!"
(aka "Fluke")
Fluke is the cat with the bat, the daddio who's a baddio, the killer in this chiller...

"The Dark Goddess"
In her dying days, Jessie tells the story of how she and Tommie have lived together for so many years without either of them asking for marriage.
PUBLICATION:
   Unpublished until The Collected Stories Volume V (1998).

"Scars"
(aka "Chivalry")
Out on the range, cowboy Kellet tells the origins of his deepest scars.

"Messenger"
Bentow plans to use the safety mechanisms of Condenser Station No. 48 to do away with his future father-in-law.

"Minority Report"
Dr. Falu Englehart is determined to discover the fate of his lost hero Gryce, inventor of the interstellar drive--until a mysterious trip to the stars shifts his life goal to that of preventing mankind from ever again reaching for the stars.

"Prodigy"
Far in the future, after many genetic mutations have destroyed much of mankind, young Andi discovers that he is not like the other children--and his method of communication may be intolerable.

"Farewell to Eden"
Gowri and Tisla are the new Adam and Eve of the post-holocaut human race.

"One Foot and the Grave"
Claire, with one cloven hoof, is in love with Thad, who only has eyes for the seemingly perfect Luana.

"What Dead Men Tell"
Movie projectionist Hulon has a philosphy that may lead him to discover the full truth about mortality.

"The Hurkle is a Happy Beast"
A accident transports a young six-legged hurkle from a long time ago to present-day Earth.

Volume VI: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Shadow, Shadow on the Wall"
Young Bobby dreams of leaving his cruel stepmother by escaping to the shadows.

"The Stars Are the Styx"
Old and fat Charon watches and guides those who come from Earth to Curbstone and sometimes farther Out.

"Rule of Three"
Three three-part aliens come to Earth where they are horrified at the way humans kill and the way they pair up.

"Make Room for Me"
(Unaknowledged co-author Rita Dragonette)
Three college friends become one under the direction of an empathetic alien parasite.
  • ----- First publication: Fantastic Adventures (May 1951)

"Special Aptitude"
(aka "Last Laugh")
A man recounts the famous trip to Venus, decades ago, where one man's experiences made him the only one who could understand the Gabblers and their powerful crystals.

"The Traveling Crag"
Literary agent Cris Post receives one remarkable story from an unknown writer, but the production of the story seems to have involved more than inspiration and perspiration.

"Excalibur and the Atom"
Private Investigator Hadley Guinn is able to find any object, provided that you convince him that it exists, which is exactly what the mysterious Morgan sets out to do.

"The Incubi of Parallel X"
Heroic and scientific Garth Gesell returns to Gesell Hall to puzzle out the mystery of the women who have been missing ever since the attack and defeat of the Ffanx.

""
Lucinda Lefferts worries that her brilliant husband will upset the delicate ageold dance between men and women.

"The Sex Opposite"
Medical Examiner F.L. "Muley" Muhlenberg and newspaper reporter Budgie investigate two gruesome murders and along the way they experience a taste of syzygy.

"Baby Is Three"
Gerry talks to a head-shrinker about his group: the mongoloid baby, the teleporting twins, and the telepath.

Volume VII: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"A Saucer of Loneliness"
(aka "Saucer of Loneliness")
A man seeks a woman on a lonely beach, then patiently listens to her story of an encounter with a strange saucer and the subsequent persecution.

"The Touch of Your Hand"
Young and sensitive Jubilith falls in love with Osser who is different from the rest of his kind because he feels a driving need to prove his strength to all in the village.

"The World Well Lost"
Grunty and Rootes must return two telepathic prisoners to their planet, a planet that has shunned all mankind.

"...And My Fear Is Great..."
Elderly Miss Phoebe Watkins knows something about ancient forces and means to use them for good by taking 18-year-old Don under her wing, but when Don meets another force--the love of a girl named Joyce--Don grows to something that Miss Watkins was unprepared for.

"The Wages of Synergy"
Chemist Killilea found a dangerous substance several years ago and immediately quit the chemistry business, after which his girl, Prue, left him; now he's found her again and she's mysteriously connected with three dead chemists.

"The Dark Room"
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Volume VIII: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

Volume IX: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

"Won't You Walk...?"
Joe Fritch has the life of a loser until he meets Zeitgeist, a scientist who can change all that.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Astounding Science Fiction (January 1956)

"New York Vignette"
Ted Sturgeon himself laments that the man in the brown bowler hat grants everyone's wish except the one that Ted longs for.
PUBLICATION:
  ----- A 17-minute reading on PULSE, a radio show of the 50s.
   First publication: Fantasy and Science Fiction (October/November 1999)

"The Half-Way Tree Murder"
Cotrell, the C.I.D.'s best detective in Jamaca, puts his mind to solving the murder of a Chinese shopkeeper--or at least part of his mind (the part that's not on the most extraordinary woman he has ever seen).
PUBLICATION:
  ----- First publication: The Saint Detective Magazine (March 1956)

"The Skills of Xanadu"
Bril of Kit Carson, Second Planet of the Sumner System and home to a billion and a half, arrives on the backwater planet of Xanadu.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Galaxy Science Fiction (July 1956)

"The Claustrophile"
Meek, introspective Chris has always started things only to see his boisterous younger space-faring brother take over, but when gorgeous Gerda Stein shows up, she prefers to tell her stories of outer space to Chris.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Galaxy Science Fiction (August 1956)

"Dead Dames Don't Dial"
Careful Cassidy seems to have the perfect alibi--he was with Detective Howell when the murder occured--or was he?
PUBLICATION:
  ----- First publication: The Saint Detective Magazine (August 1956)

"Fear Is a Business"
Josephus Macardle Phillipso has made his fortune warning the world against invading aliens, so naturally he is approached by the real aliens who want to clean up their reputation.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (August 1956)

"The Other Man"
A doctor ("Freddy boy," to Richard A. Newell) treats his romantic rival (that would be Newell) who is both the world's biggest jerk and an innocent, pure man.
NOTES:
    º   Written from an outline that Heinlein sent (hence Newell's middle name, Anson).
PUBLICATION:    First publication: Galaxy Science Fiction (September 1956)

"The Waiting Thing Inside" (with Don Ward)
Vic Ryan, spurned in love by Delia Fox, becomes the main ranch hand for Delia and her brother, bidding his time for the right moment that finally arises when a nester takes up residence in their wide free range valley.
PUBLICATION:
   First publication: Ellery Queen's Mystery Magazine (September 1956)

"And Now the News..."
Mr. MacLyle (not his real name) is obsessive about watching and listening to the news, and doing so affects him deeply. To his wife, he quotes the metaphysical poet, John Donne: ...any man's death diminishes me, because I am involved in mankind...
NOTES:
    º   Written from a three-paragraph idea that Heinlein sent (hence MacLyle as a mismash of Heinlein's two pseudonyms).
PUBLICATION:    First publication: The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction (December 1956)

Volume X: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

Volume XI: The Complete Stories of Theodore Sturgeon

Novels

The Dreaming Jewels
(Also published as The Synthetic Man)
Horty Bluett has adequate reason to run away from his adoptive parents and to a carnival that's run by a man who studies dreaming jewels.
  • ----- First publication: Fantastic Adventures (February 1950)

More Than Human
Novel written around "And Baby Is Three".
  • ----- First publication: (1953)

The Cosmic Rape
Expansion of "To Marry Medusa".
  • ----- First publication: (1958)

The King and Four Queens
(Western movie novelization)
xxxxxx
  • ----- First publication: (1956)

Venus Plus X
xxxxxx
  • ----- First publication: (1960)

I, Libertine
(Historical novel)
xxxxxx
  • ----- First publication: (1960)

Some of Your Blood
(Mystery/Thriller novel)
xxxxxx
  • ----- First publication: (1961)

Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
(Movie novelization)
xxxxxx
  • ----- First publication: (1961)

The Player on the Other Side
(Mystery, using house name of Ellery Queen)
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  • ----- First publication: (1963)

The Rare Breed
(Western movie novelization)
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  • ----- First publication: (1966)

Star Trek Photonovel: Amok Time
Based on his Star Trek teleplay Amok Time, in which Spock will die if he doesn't return to Vulcan for a mate. This was the first episode to use the Vulcan greeting "Peace and Long Life" and "Live Long and Prosper". Sturgeon also wrote the episode Shore Leave in which the crew's fantasies become reality on a strange planet.
  • ----- First publication: (1978)

Godbody
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  • ----- First publication: (1986)
Michael Main
www.storypilot.com

Thanks for your visit to the Theodore Sturgeon fiction page, ©2001-2007 by Michael Main. Last modification November 19, 2007.