Joseph Vernon Shea (1912–1981) was an American author of horror, fantasy, poetry, and essays; and a correspondent of H. P. Lovecraft, Clark Ashton Smith, and August Derleth.
Shea was born in Dayton, Kentucky, the son of a professional magician. When corresponding with Lovecraft in 1931–1937, he resided in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Shea later served overseas in the Army Medical Corps, then returned to civilian life and worked as a metallurgist in Cleveland, Ohio. He was a long-time member of the "Esoteric Order of Dagon" Amateur Press Association at the time of his sudden accidental death.
"The Necronomicon" at the Wayback Machine (archived October 20, 2009). (Written before Lovecraft's death in 1937; Lovecraft read and annotated the manuscript.)"The Old Lady's Room". August Derleth, ed., Over the Edge. Arkham House, 1964."Five-Year Contract". Magazine of Horror, September 1964."The Flaw". Magazine of Horror, Spring 1967."The Haunter of the Graveyard". August Derleth, ed., Tales of the Cthulhu Mythos. Arkham House, 1969."Icarus Climbs Toward the Sun". The Dark Brotherhood Journal, No. 2, 1972."Dead Giveaway". Outré, 1976. Reprinted in Robert M. Price, ed., The New Lovecraft Circle. Fedogan & Bremer, 1996. ISBN 1-878252-16-X.'"The Snouted Thing". 1979. Reprinted in In Search of Lovecraft, 1991. Posthumous collaboration with Lovecraft."Nemo Me Impune Lacessit". Whispers, No. 15–16 (Vol. 4, No. 3–4), March 1982."When Artists Die""Look to the Skies""The Dream-World of H.P. Lovecraft""We tire of tyrants...”"A Walk in Providence""H.P.L.’s Gravestone""So Little Time Beneath the Stars""Impermanence""Better Days?""What Good Is a Book?""Roses Blooming in November""Here at Swan Point""Tomorrow""H. P. Lovecraft: The House and the Shadows." The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, May 1966. (Memoir of Lovecraft.)"H.P.L. and Films". 1972. Reprinted in In Search of Lovecraft, 1991."The Lovecraftian Saga". 1976. Reprinted in In Search of Lovecraft, 1991."H. P. Lovecraft and Samuel Johnson: A Comparison". 1978. Reprinted in In Search of Lovecraft, 1991."The Timeless Lovecraft". 1979. Reprinted in In Search of Lovecraft, 1991."'The Outsider'". 1979. Reprinted in In Search of Lovecraft, 1991."On the Literary Influences Which Shaped Lovecraft’s Works". S.T. Joshi, ed., H. P. Lovecraft: Four Decades of Criticism. Ohio State University Press, 1980. ISBN 0-8214-0577-2, ISBN 978-0-8214-0577-2."An Introduction to the Cthulhu Mythos". Fantasy Empire Presents H. P. Lovecraft. Tampa FL: New Media Publishing, 1984.Strange Desires. Lion Books, 1954. (Edited short-story anthology.)Strange Barriers. Lion Books, 1955. Reprinted: Pyramid Books, 1961. (Edited short-story anthology.)H.P. Lovecraft: The House and the Shadows. West Warwick RI: Necronomicon Press, 1982. ASIN B0006YAHLC. (1966 essay in chapbook.)In Search Of Lovecraft. West Warwick RI: Necronomicon Press, 1991. ISBN 0-940884-39-9, ISBN 978-0-940884-39-7. (Collection of essays, fiction, and poetry.)Outré. (Science fiction fanzine.) 