Category: Fantasy/Science Fiction

Lifespan: (October 8, 1920 – February 11, 1986)

Interesting & Unique Facts: Herbert is best known for the novel Dune and its five sequels. The Dune saga, set in the distant future and taking place over millennia, deals with themes such as human survival and evolution, ecology, and the intersection of religion, politics and power.

His career as a novelist began with the publication of The Dragon in the Sea in 1955, in which he used the environment of a 21st century submarine as a way to explore sanity and madness. The book predicted worldwide conflicts over oil consumption and production.

Dune was serialized in Analog magazine in two separate parts ("Dune World" and "Prophet of Dune"), in 1963 and 1965 respectively. It was then rejected by nearly twenty book publishers before finally being accepted to be fully published. Chilton, a minor publishing house in Philadelphia known mainly for its auto-repair manuals, gave Herbert a $7,500 advance, and Dune was soon a critical success. It won the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1965 and shared the Hugo Award in 1966. Dune was the first ecological science fiction novel.

By 1972, Herbert retired from writing for newspapers and became a full-time novelist. Herbert died of a massive pulmonary embolism while recovering from surgery for pancreatic cancer in Madison, Wisconsin at the age of 65.

Author's work in order (with publication dates):

Dune Novels

Series Note: [These publications dates are for the novel formats, not the serial releases. The serial release dates for Dune, Dune Messiah, and Children of Dune happened before the novel releases for each work, respectfully.]

• Dune (1965)
• Dune Messiah (1970)
• Children of Dune (1976)
• God Emperor of Dune (1981)
• Heretics of Dune (1984)
• Chapterhouse: Dune (1985)

Other Novels

• The Dragon in the Sea (1956) [also published as Under Pressure and 21st Century Sub]
• The Green Brain (1966)
• Destination: Void (1966) [revised in 1978]
• The Eyes of Heisenberg (1966)
• The Heaven Makers (1968)
• The Santaroga Barrier (1968)
• Whipping Star (1970)
• Soul Catcher (1972)
• The Godmakers (1972)
• Hellstrom's Hive (1973)
• The Dosadi Experiment (1977)
• The Jesus Incident (1979) [with Bill Ransom]
• Direct Descent (1980)
• The White Plague (1982)
• The Lazarus Effect (1983) [with Bill Ransom]
• Man of Two Worlds (1986) [with Brian Herbert]
• The Ascension Factor (1988) [with Bill Ransom]

Short Fiction Collections

• The Worlds of Frank Herbert (1970)
• The Book of Frank Herbert (1973)
• The Best of Frank Herbert (1975)
• The Priests of Psi (1980)
• Eye (1985)

Short Fiction

• Survival of the Cunning (1945)
• Yellow Fire (June 1947)
• Looking for Something? (April 1952)
• Operation Syndrome (June 1954)
• The Gone Dogs (1954)
• Packrat Planet (1954)
• Rat Race (1955)
• Occupation Force (1955)
• The Nothing (1956)
• Cease Fire (1956)
• Old Rambling House (1958)
• You Take the High Road (1958)
• A Matter of Traces (1958)
• Missing Link (1959)
• Operation Haystack (1959)
• The Priests of Psi (1960)
• Egg and Ashes (1960)
• A-W-F Unlimited (1961)
• Try to Remember (1961)
• Mating Call (1961)
• Mindfield (1962)
• The Mary Celeste Move (1964)
• The Tactful Saboteur (1964)
• Greenslaves (1965)
• Committee of the Whole (1965)
• The GM Effect (1965)
• Do I Wake or Dream? (1965)
• The Primitives (1966)
• Escape Felicity (1966)
• By the Book (1966)
• The Featherbedders (1967)
• The Mind Bomb(1969) [also published asThe Being Machine]
• Seed Stock (1970)
• Murder Will In (1970)
• Project 40 (1970)
• Encounter in a Lonely Place (1973)
• Gambling Device (1973)
• Passage for Piano (1973)
• The Death of a City (1973)
• Come to the Party (1978) [with F.M Busby]
• Songs of a Sentient Flute (1979)
• Frogs and Scientists (1979)
• Feathered Pigs (1979)
• "The Road to Dune (1985)

Herbert died before completing the final Dune novel. After his death, Frank's son Brian found the extensive notes his father had made for the final book. Brian Herbert then started working to complete the saga; this involved creating prequels to flesh out of the world. The final Dune novel was a two-part (two book) publication.

Frank always wanted one of his children to follow in his footsteps and he finally got his wish. Brian and his father worked on one book together before his death.

Brian Herbert & Kevin J. Anderson Dune Prequel Series

Prelude to Dune

• Dune: House Atreides (1999)
• Dune: House Harkonnen (2000)
• Dune: House Corrino (2001)

Legends of Dune

• Dune: The Butlerian Jihad (2002)
• Dune: The Machine Crusade (2003)
• Dune: The Battle of Corrin (2004)

Dune 7 (The final book)

• Hunters of Dune (2006)
• Sandworms of Dune (2007)

Heroes of Dune

• Paul of Dune (2008)
• The Winds of Dune (2009)
• The Throne of Dune (forthcoming)
  
• Leto of Dune (forthcoming)
  

Companion Books

Note: [The Road to Dune is a companion work to the Dune novels includes an alternate novel based on Frank Herbert's original notes for Dune. It also includes short stories by Brian Herbert and Anderson. It also has unused chapters from Dune and Dune Messiah.]

The Road to Dune (2005)

Dreamer of Dune: The Biography of Frank Herbert (2003)