CAEN, France, Feb. 18 (UPI) -- French writer Alain Robbe-Grillet, known for developing the "new novel" genre, died Monday at age 85 following a brief hospitalization for a heart ailment.

Robbe-Grillet, best known for "Les Gommes (The Erasers)" -- his 1953 debut novel -- and "Le Voyeur," had been admitted to Caen University Hospital during the weekend, the BBC reported.

While most noted as a narrative novelist, he also worked as a movie scriptwriter and director. He studied agricultural engineering and was employed as a statistician and agronomist before turning to writing, the British network said.

His last novel, "Un Roman Sentimental (A Sentimental Novel)," was published last year.