author
Covington Clarke
b. 1892
Best known for fast-moving aviation adventures, this early 20th-century writer published under a pen name while also writing other fiction under his real name. His stories often mix flying, danger, and the kind of brisk action that made boys' adventure books so popular between the wars.
1 Audiobook
Aces Up
by Covington Clarke
About the author
Covington Clarke was the pen name of Homer Clarke Venable, an American lawyer and writer born in Liberty, Missouri, on April 1, 1891. Reference sources describe him as a prolific author of boys' flying adventures in the 1920s and early 1930s, while noting that he also published some adult fiction under his own name.
His better-known books under the Clarke name include Desert Wings (1930) and Mystery Flight of the Q2 (1932). The latter is remembered in science-fiction reference works for blending aviation adventure with a lost-civilization story, showing that his work could range beyond straightforward action tales.
Some library and catalog records list him as born in 1892, but stronger reference sources identify his lifespan as 1891–1953. He died on May 14, 1953, in Virginia.