Charles Dickens was an enormously inventive and prolific author, writing more than 26 major works (15 of them were novels). During the Victorian era he was dismissed by critics but adored by fans. But in his personal life, Dickens was, well, as Dickensian as any of the fictional characters he created. Like any genius, Dickens had his share of idiosyncrasies.
Dickens manifested obsessive compulsive disorder: before he could write, he would have to arrange furniture, especially tables and chairs, in very specific ways. He had a photographic memory that would allow him to remember the exact location of the furniture in each room.
When he traveled, Dickens would spend the first hour rearranging the furniture in his room, whether he was a guest at a private home or a hotel.
Like many OCD individuals, Dickens was a neat freak. He was very intolerant of untidy people and messiness. When guests left a room, he would quickly get up clean after them.
Dickens was also very superstitious: he touched everything three times for luck. He considered that Friday was the luckiest day of the week.
Dickens always slept with his head facing north, explaining to a friend that he could not sleep any other way.
Dickens had a morbid fascination with morgues — studying the corpses of accident and murder victims. He also visited the scenes of famous murders.
The Origin of the Name Scrooge
Words Invented by Dickens
The Inspiration for Dickens’s A Christmas Carol
What is a First Edition of A Christmas Carol Worth?
A Christmas Carol and It’s a Wonderful Life
A Christmas Carol by the Numbers
Why Read Dickens?
Atkins Bookshelf 
The greats always make their own rules. Which of his novels are your favourites?
Hi Alex: True. My favorite novels are (in no particular order): Nicholas Nickleby, David Copperfield, Bleak House, Great Expectations, and of course, A Christmas Carol.
I have a soft spot for Hard Times and I’d consider Little Dorrit his worst. I’ve never read the first two but should. Is Jaggers among your favourite non main characters?
The first two are quintessential Dickens. Of all his 15 novels, David Copperfield is the most autobiographical, and thus his favorite: “like many fond parents, I have in my heart of hearts a favourite child. And his name is David Copperfield.”