🎯 Where Should I Start?
ⓘ About Jack Ketchum
Jack Ketchum is the pen name of American horror novelist Dallas Mayr. Born in Livingstone, NJ, Ketchum has worked as a lumber sales representative, a teacher, and actor before becoming a novelist. As a teenager, he had the honor of meeting “Psycho” author, Robert Bloch, who would become his mentor and friend until his death in 1994. He credits the chance acquaintance he made with Henry Miller while he was interning at the Scott Meredith Literary Agency as the turning point in his budding writing career. Henry Miller invited the young Ketchum into his Pacific Palisades home, and soon after became his agent, helping him publish his first novel “Off Season”. His first novel Off Season went on to receive widespread popularity and critical acclaim.
All Book Series by Jack Ketchum
The Woman
Latest in the series · book 3 of 3 · published 2010 Co-authored · Lucky McKee
The Secret Life of Souls
Latest in the series · book 20 of 20 · published 2016 Co-authored · Lucky McKee
Writers on Writing Vol.4
Latest in the series · book 4 of 4 · published 2016 Anthology · Joe Mynhardt
Shock Totem 6: Curious Tales of the Macabre and Twisted
Book 23 of 50 · published 2013
A New York State of Fright: Horror Stories from the Empire State Kindle Edition
Book 45 of 50 · published 2019
? Frequently Asked Questions
Who is Jack Ketchum?
Jack Ketchum is the pen name of American horror novelist Dallas Mayr. Born in Livingstone, NJ, Ketchum has worked as a lumber sales representative, a teacher, and actor before becoming a novelist. As a teenager, he had the honor of meeting “Psycho” author, Robert Bloch, who would become his mentor and friend until his death in 1994.
Which Jack Ketchum series should I start with?
The best place to start is the Off Season series, the earliest of Jack Ketchum's multi-book series: it opens with Off Season (1980) and runs to 3 books across 1980–2010, ending with The Woman (2010). Jack Ketchum's other series stand alone, so they can be read in any order.
How many books has Jack Ketchum written?
Jack Ketchum has 100 books catalogued in this guide, published between 1974 and 2024. 10 of them belong to 3 named series — the largest being the Writers On Writing series with 4 books — and 90 are standalone titles, collections or anthologies.
In what order should Jack Ketchum's series be read?
Read each series in publication order — the numbered entries in each series follow the year each book first appeared. Jack Ketchum's series do not depend on one another, so they can be started in any order; by start date they are Off Season (1980–2010, 3 books), D.O.A.: Extreme Horror Anthology (2011–2017, 3 books) and Writers On Writing (2015–2016, 4 books).
How are Jack Ketchum's books organised into series?
This guide splits Jack Ketchum's 100 books into 3 named series and 90 titles that stand alone or appear only in collections: Writers On Writing (4 books, 2015–2016); Off Season (3 books, 1980–2010); D.O.A.: Extreme Horror Anthology (3 books, 2011–2017).