Rocky Wood (1959-2014)

Horror Writers Association president and Stephen King scholar Rocky Wood, 55, died December 1, 2014 in Melbourne Australia of complications from ALS.

Rocky Wood was born October 19, 1959 in Wellington, New Zealand. He was one of the foremost experts on Stephen King, writing many articles and books on the author, including The Complete Guide to the Works of Stephen King (2003), Stephen King: Uncollected, Unpublished (2006), The Stephen King Collector’s Guide (2006), Stephen King: The Non-Fiction (2009), and Stoker Award winner Stephen King: A Literary Companion (2011). He assisted King with research on Doctor Sleep, sequel to The Shining, with King calling Wood “my go-to guy for all things Shining…. The Rock knows my work better than I do myself.”

Wood was a Trustee in the Horror Writers Association from 2008-10, and was elected as president for the 2010-12 term. He was re-elected for the 2012-14 term. He also wrote non-fiction graphic novels, including Stoker Award winner Witch Hunts: A Graphic History of the Burning Times (2011).

Wood was diagnosed with amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS) in October 2010. He is survived by two daughters and a granddaughter.

See the January 2015 issue of Locus for a complete obituary.