Nautical Fiction Index

The Focus of this Bibliography.

This is a list of novels - along with some short stories, poetry and drama - covering the sea. It includes war, sailing, steam and contemporary stories. The bibliography is arranged alphabetically by author, with annotations for each cited item. Whenever possible, the citation is for the first edition.

NEW : Nautical Film Index
Covers Merchant Marine & Navy activity in narrative movies.

Sources consulted.

The Nautical Fiction List. The primary source of materials for this bibliography.

Cruel Seas : World War 2 Merchant Marine-Related Nautical Fiction. Design elements and citations from this site are incorporated into this bibliography.

Historic Naval Fiction. Covers the Age of Sail and the transition to steam.

SFE: Encyclopedia of Science Fiction. Comprehensive coverage of the fantastic.

Searchable Sea Literature. Works by North American authors who write about the ocean.

Fantastic Fiction. Bibliographies for over 30,000 authors. Vital for discovering sequel and series titles.

Sea Fiction Guide by Myron J. Smith, Jr., and Robert C. Weller. Scarecrow Press, 1976. Riddled with mistakes, misattributions and misspellings. I've corrected those errors on this bibliography

Ports of call : a study of the American nautical novel by Gordon Milne. University Press of America, 1986.

Nelson's Navy in Fiction and Film: Depictions of British Sea Power in the Napoleonic Era by Sue Parrill. McFarland, 2009.

The Naval Novel : a Literary Genre in Historical Perspective by John B. Hattendorf. Stone Tower, 2023.

Hot Straight and Normal : a Submarine Bibliography by Ron Martini. Writer's Showcase, 2001. 2nd ed.

Comments, corrections & contributions.

Send all of the above to 

Mark Stackpole
Library Technologist
California Maritime Academy Library
Vallejo, CA 94590.