Howard Phillips Lovecraft was born in Providence, United States, on August 20, 1890. He was an American writer, author of horror and science fiction novels and stories. He is considered a great innovator of the horror story, to which he contributed his own mythology (the Cthulhu myths), developed in collaboration with other authors and still in force. His work is a classic of cosmic horror, a trend that departs from the traditional theme of supernatural horror (Satanism, ghosts), incorporating science fiction elements (alien races, time travel, existence of other dimensions). Lovecraft also cultivated poetry, essays and epistolary literature. He is considered one of the most influential authors of the twentieth century in the genre of fantasy literature.