The Book of the Damned was the first published nonfiction work of the author Charles Fort. Dealing with various types of anomalous phenomena including UFOs, strange falls of both organic and inorganic materials from the sky, odd weather patterns, the possible existence of creatures generally held to be mythological, disappearances of people under strange circumstances, and many other phenomena, the book is historically considered to be the first written in the specific field of anomalistics.The title of the book referred to what he termed the "damned" data - data which had been damned, or excluded, by modern science because of its not conforming to accepted guidelines. Fort believed that mainstream scientists are trend followers who believe in what is accepted and popular, and never look for a truth that may be contrary to what they believe. Fort was one of the first major writers to deal extensively with paranormal and thus The Book of the Damned should be considered an important and formulative work. Charles Hoy Fort was an American writer and researcher into anomalous phenomena. Today, the terms Fortean and Forteana are used to characterize various such phenomena.