Famous American writer who, following Edgar Poe, developed the genre of “scary” stories. Born in 1842 into a farmer's family (Ohio). He worked in a printing house and as a worker in a brick factory. Participation in the war between the North and South suggested to him the plots of many stories. He also wrote poems, essays, and articles. In 1871, he published his first story, “The Valley of Ghosts,” in the Overland Monthly magazine, which brought world fame to Bret Harte and Jack London. Journalism did not give him wealth. An attempt to become a businessman was also unsuccessful. With money from admirers, he publishes the collections “In the Heights of Life” (1891), “Can This Be?” (1892), Fantastic Fables (1899). In 1909–1912 The first and only collected works are published in 12 volumes with a circulation of... 250 copies. In 1913, Bierce went to Mexico as a war correspondent and went missing there. His disappearance was surrounded by legends.