James Patrick Kelly
Encyclopedia
James Patrick Kelly is an American
science fiction author who began publishing in the 1970s and remains to this day an important figure in the science fiction field.
Kelly made his first fiction sale in 1975, and has since been a major force in the science fiction field. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame
in 1972, with a B.A. in English Literature. After graduating from college, he worked as a full-time proposal writer until 1977. He attended the Clarion Workshop
twice; once in 1974 and again in 1976. Throughout the 1980s, he and friend John Kessel
became involved in the humanist/cyberpunk
debate. While Kessel and Kelly were both humanists, Kelly also wrote several cyberpunk
-like stories, such as "The Prisoner of Chillon" (1985) and "Rat" (1986). His story "Solstice" (1985) was published in Bruce Sterling
's anthology Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology
.
Kelly has been awarded several of science fiction's highest honors. He won the Hugo Award
for his novelette "Think Like a Dinosaur" (1995) and again for his novelette "1016 to 1
" (1999). Most recently, his 2005 novella, Burn
, won the 2006 Nebula Award
. Other stories by him have won the Asimov's Reader Poll and the SF Chronicle Award. He is frequently on the final ballot for the Nebula Award
, the Locus Poll Award and the Theodore Sturgeon
Memorial Award. He frequently teaches and participates in science fiction workshops, such as Clarion and the Sycamore Hill Writer's Workshop
. He has served on the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts since 1998 and chaired the council in 2004.
He is currently on the Popular Fiction faculty for the Stonecoast MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of Southern Maine
.
He is a frequent contributor to Asimov's Science Fiction
, and for the past several years has contributed a non-fiction column to Asimov's, "On the Net." He has had a story in the June issue of Asimov's for the past twenty years. In addition to his writing, Kelly has recently turned his hand to editing (with his friend and writer John Kessel
), with several reprint anthologies: Feeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology, Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology
and The Secret History of Science Fiction. Through these anthologies, Kelly and Kessel have brought together a wide spectrum of both traditional genre authors and authors who are considered to be more mainstream, including Don DeLillo
, George Saunders
, Jonathan Lethem
, Aimee Bender
, Michael Chabon
and Steven Millhauser
.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
science fiction author who began publishing in the 1970s and remains to this day an important figure in the science fiction field.
Kelly made his first fiction sale in 1975, and has since been a major force in the science fiction field. He graduated magna cum laude from the University of Notre Dame
University of Notre Dame
The University of Notre Dame du Lac is a Catholic research university located in Notre Dame, an unincorporated community north of the city of South Bend, in St. Joseph County, Indiana, United States...
in 1972, with a B.A. in English Literature. After graduating from college, he worked as a full-time proposal writer until 1977. He attended the Clarion Workshop
Clarion Workshop
Clarion is a six-week workshop for new and aspiring science fiction and fantasy writers. Originally an outgrowth of Knight and Wilhelm's Milford Writers' Conference, held at their home in Milford, Pennsylvania, USA, it was founded in 1968 by Robin Scott Wilson at Clarion State College in...
twice; once in 1974 and again in 1976. Throughout the 1980s, he and friend John Kessel
John Kessel
John Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
became involved in the humanist/cyberpunk
Cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a postmodern and science fiction genre noted for its focus on "high tech and low life." The name is a portmanteau of cybernetics and punk, and was originally coined by Bruce Bethke as the title of his short story "Cyberpunk," published in 1983...
debate. While Kessel and Kelly were both humanists, Kelly also wrote several cyberpunk
Cyberpunk
Cyberpunk is a postmodern and science fiction genre noted for its focus on "high tech and low life." The name is a portmanteau of cybernetics and punk, and was originally coined by Bruce Bethke as the title of his short story "Cyberpunk," published in 1983...
-like stories, such as "The Prisoner of Chillon" (1985) and "Rat" (1986). His story "Solstice" (1985) was published in Bruce Sterling
Bruce Sterling
Michael Bruce Sterling is an American science fiction author, best known for his novels and his work on the Mirrorshades anthology, which helped define the cyberpunk genre.-Writings:...
's anthology Mirrorshades: The Cyberpunk Anthology
Mirrorshades
Mirrored sunglasses are sunglasses with a reflective optical coating on the outside of the lenses to make them appear like small mirrors. The lenses typically give the wearer's vision a brown or grey tint...
.
Kelly has been awarded several of science fiction's highest honors. He won the Hugo Award
Hugo Award
The Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
for his novelette "Think Like a Dinosaur" (1995) and again for his novelette "1016 to 1
10^16 to 1
"1016 to 1" is a science fiction novelette published in 1999 by James Patrick Kelly. It was the winner of the 2000 Hugo Award for Best Novelette. It was also nominated for the 2000 Locus award and Asimov's Reader Poll.-Plot summary:...
" (1999). Most recently, his 2005 novella, Burn
Burn (novella)
"Burn" is a science fiction novella published in 2005 by James Patrick Kelly. It won the 2007 Nebula Award for Best Novella.-Plot summary:The story follows Prosper Gregory Leung, a farmer who has been recruited to help fight forest fires on his home planet of Walden...
, won the 2006 Nebula Award
Nebula Award
The Nebula Award is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the previous year...
. Other stories by him have won the Asimov's Reader Poll and the SF Chronicle Award. He is frequently on the final ballot for the Nebula Award
Nebula Award
The Nebula Award is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the previous year...
, the Locus Poll Award and the Theodore Sturgeon
Theodore Sturgeon
Theodore Sturgeon was an American science fiction author.His most famous novel is More Than Human .-Biography:...
Memorial Award. He frequently teaches and participates in science fiction workshops, such as Clarion and the Sycamore Hill Writer's Workshop
Sycamore Hill Writer's Workshop
Sycamore Hill Writer's Workshop is a workshop for science fiction writers. Since its origin in 1985, it has been held in Raleigh, North Carolina; Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania; and most recently in Little Switzerland, North Carolina....
. He has served on the New Hampshire State Council on the Arts since 1998 and chaired the council in 2004.
He is currently on the Popular Fiction faculty for the Stonecoast MFA Program in Creative Writing at the University of Southern Maine
University of Southern Maine
The University of Southern Maine is a multi-campus public urban comprehensive university and part of the University of Maine System. USM's three primary campuses are located in Portland, Gorham, and Lewiston...
.
He is a frequent contributor to Asimov's Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction
Asimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, and for the past several years has contributed a non-fiction column to Asimov's, "On the Net." He has had a story in the June issue of Asimov's for the past twenty years. In addition to his writing, Kelly has recently turned his hand to editing (with his friend and writer John Kessel
John Kessel
John Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
), with several reprint anthologies: Feeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology, Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology
Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology
Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology is a collection of postcyberpunk short stories, published by Tachyon Publications and edited by James Patrick Kelly and John Kessel...
and The Secret History of Science Fiction. Through these anthologies, Kelly and Kessel have brought together a wide spectrum of both traditional genre authors and authors who are considered to be more mainstream, including Don DeLillo
Don DeLillo
Don DeLillo is an American author, playwright, and occasional essayist whose work paints a detailed portrait of American life in the late 20th and early 21st centuries...
, George Saunders
George Saunders
George Saunders is a New York Times bestselling American writer of short stories, essays, novellas and children's books. His writing has appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's, McSweeney's and GQ, among other publications...
, Jonathan Lethem
Jonathan Lethem
Jonathan Allen Lethem is an American novelist, essayist and short story writer. His first novel, Gun, with Occasional Music, a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, was published in 1994. It was followed by three more science fiction novels...
, Aimee Bender
Aimee Bender
Aimee Bender is an American novelist and short story writer, known for her surreal plots and characters.-Biography:Bender received her undergraduate degree from the University of California at San Diego, and a Master of Fine Arts from the distinguished creative writing MFA program at University of...
, Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon
Michael Chabon born May 24, 1963) is an American author and "one of the most celebrated writers of his generation", according to The Virginia Quarterly Review....
and Steven Millhauser
Steven Millhauser
Steven Millhauser is an American novelist and short story writer. He won the 1997 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction for his novel Martin Dressler. The prize brought many of his older books back into print.-Life and career:...
.
Selected Works
- "Dea Ex Machina" (Galaxy Science FictionGalaxy Science FictionGalaxy Science Fiction was an American digest-size science fiction magazine, published from 1950 to 1980. It was founded by an Italian company, World Editions, which was looking to break in to the American market. World Editions hired as editor H. L...
, April 1975) - Planet of Whispers (Bluejay Books, 1984)
- Freedom Beach (with John KesselJohn KesselJohn Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
) (Tor BooksTor BooksTor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
, 1985) - "The Prisoner of Chillon" (Asimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 1986) - "Rat" (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, June 1986)
- "Glass Cloud" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 1987) - Look Into the Sun (Tor BooksTor BooksTor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
, 1989) - Heroines (collection) (1990)
- "Mr. BoyMr. Boy"Mr. Boy" is a science fiction novella written by James Patrick Kelly. Originally published in the June 1990 issue of Asimov's Science Fiction, it was subsequently reprinted in The Year's Best Science Fiction: Eighth Annual Collection , Modern Classic Short Novels of Science Fiction , Visions of...
" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 1990) - "The Propagation of Light in a Vacuum" (Universe 1Universe 1Universe 1 is an anthology of original science fiction short stories edited by Terry Carr, the initial volume in a series of seventeen. It was first published in paperback by Ace Books in 1971, with a British hardcover facsimile edition following from Dennis Dobson in 1975.The book collects twelve...
, 1990) - "Pogrom" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, Jan 1991) - Wildlife (Tor BooksTor BooksTor Books is one of two imprints of Tom Doherty Associates LLC, based in New York City. It is noted for its science fiction and fantasy titles. Tom Doherty Associates also publishes mainstream fiction, mystery, and occasional military history titles under its Forge imprint. The company was founded...
, 1994) - "Think Like a DinosaurThink Like a Dinosaur"Think Like a Dinosaur" is a science fiction novelette written by James Patrick Kelly. Originally published in the June 1995 issue of Asimov's Science Fiction magazine, it was subsequently featured in:* Year's Best SF "Think Like a Dinosaur" (1995) is a science fiction novelette written by James...
" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 1995) (Hugo AwardHugo AwardThe Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
winner) - Think Like a Dinosaur and Other Stories (collection) (Golden Gryphon PressGolden Gryphon PressGolden Gryphon Press is an independent publishing company, specializing in science fiction, fantasy, dark fantasy and cross-genre novels. It was founded in 1996 by Jim Turner, former editor at Arkham House, and is currently run by his brother Gary and his wife, Geri Turner.The company has...
, 1997) - "10^16 to 110^16 to 1"1016 to 1" is a science fiction novelette published in 1999 by James Patrick Kelly. It was the winner of the 2000 Hugo Award for Best Novelette. It was also nominated for the 2000 Locus award and Asimov's Reader Poll.-Plot summary:...
" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 1999) (Hugo AwardHugo AwardThe Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
winner) - "Ninety Percent of Everything" (with Jonathan LethemJonathan LethemJonathan Allen Lethem is an American novelist, essayist and short story writer. His first novel, Gun, with Occasional Music, a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, was published in 1994. It was followed by three more science fiction novels...
and John KesselJohn KesselJohn Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
) (F&SF, Sep 1999) - "Undone" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 2001) - "The Pyramid of Amirah" (F&SF, March 2002)
- Strange But Not a Stranger (collection) (Golden Gryphon PressGolden Gryphon PressGolden Gryphon Press is an independent publishing company, specializing in science fiction, fantasy, dark fantasy and cross-genre novels. It was founded in 1996 by Jim Turner, former editor at Arkham House, and is currently run by his brother Gary and his wife, Geri Turner.The company has...
, 2002) - "Bernardo's House" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 2003) - "Men Are Trouble" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 2004) - "The Edge of Nowhere" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 2005) - BurnBurn (novella)"Burn" is a science fiction novella published in 2005 by James Patrick Kelly. It won the 2007 Nebula Award for Best Novella.-Plot summary:The story follows Prosper Gregory Leung, a farmer who has been recruited to help fight forest fires on his home planet of Walden...
(Tachyon PublicationsTachyon PublicationsTachyon Publications is an independent press specializing in science fiction and fantasy books. Founded in San Francisco in 1995 by Jacob Weisman, Tachyon books have tended toward high-end literary works, short story collections, and anthologies....
, 2005) (Nebula AwardNebula AwardThe Nebula Award is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the previous year...
winner) - "The Leila Torn Show" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 2006) - Feeling Very Strange: The Slipstream Anthology (co-edited with John KesselJohn KesselJohn Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
) (Tachyon PublicationsTachyon PublicationsTachyon Publications is an independent press specializing in science fiction and fantasy books. Founded in San Francisco in 1995 by Jacob Weisman, Tachyon books have tended toward high-end literary works, short story collections, and anthologies....
, 2006), featuring stories by Aimee BenderAimee BenderAimee Bender is an American novelist and short story writer, known for her surreal plots and characters.-Biography:Bender received her undergraduate degree from the University of California at San Diego, and a Master of Fine Arts from the distinguished creative writing MFA program at University of...
, Michael ChabonMichael ChabonMichael Chabon born May 24, 1963) is an American author and "one of the most celebrated writers of his generation", according to The Virginia Quarterly Review....
, Ted ChiangTed ChiangTed Chiang is an American speculative fiction writer. His Chinese name is Chiang Feng-nan.He was born in Port Jefferson, New York and graduated from Brown University with a Computer Science degree. He currently works as a technical writer in the software industry and resides in Bellevue, near...
, Carol EmshwillerCarol EmshwillerCarol Emshwiller is an American writer of avant garde short stories and science fiction who has won prizes ranging from the Nebula Award to the Philip K. Dick Award. Ursula K...
, Jeffrey FordJeffrey FordJeffrey Ford is an American writer in the Fantastic genre tradition, although his works have spanned genres including Fantasy, Science Fiction and Mystery. His work is characterized by a sweeping imaginative power, humor, literary allusion, and a fascination with tales told within tales...
, Karen Joy FowlerKaren Joy FowlerKaren Joy Fowler is an American author of science fiction, fantasy, and literary fiction. Her work often centers on the nineteenth century, the lives of women, and alienation....
, Theodora GossTheodora GossTheodora Goss is a Hungarian American writer of fantasy short stories. Her stories have been nominated for major awards, including the 2007 Nebula Award for "Pip and the Fairies," and the 2005 World Fantasy Award for Best Short Fiction for "The Wings of Meister Wilhelm." She won the 2004...
, Jonathan LethemJonathan LethemJonathan Allen Lethem is an American novelist, essayist and short story writer. His first novel, Gun, with Occasional Music, a genre work that mixed elements of science fiction and detective fiction, was published in 1994. It was followed by three more science fiction novels...
, Kelly LinkKelly LinkKelly Link is an American editor and author of short stories. While some of her fiction falls more clearly within genre categories, many of her stories might be described as slipstream or magic realism: a combination of science fiction, fantasy, horror, mystery, and realism...
, M. Rickert, Benjamin RosenbaumBenjamin RosenbaumBenjamin Rosenbaum is an American science fiction, fantasy, and literary fiction writer and computer programmer, whose stories have been finalists for the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, the Theodore Sturgeon Award, the BSFA award, and the World Fantasy Award...
, George SaundersGeorge SaundersGeorge Saunders is a New York Times bestselling American writer of short stories, essays, novellas and children's books. His writing has appeared in The New Yorker, Harper's, McSweeney's and GQ, among other publications...
, Bruce SterlingBruce SterlingMichael Bruce Sterling is an American science fiction author, best known for his novels and his work on the Mirrorshades anthology, which helped define the cyberpunk genre.-Writings:...
, Jeff VanderMeerJeff VanderMeerJeffrey Scott VanderMeer is an American writer, editor and publisher.He is best known for his contributions to the New Weird and his stories about the city of Ambergris, in books like City of Saints and Madmen.-Biography:...
, and Howard WaldropHoward WaldropHoward Waldrop is a science fiction author who works primarily in short fiction.Waldrop's stories combine elements such as alternate history, American popular culture, the American South, old movies , classical mythology, and rock 'n' roll music. His style is sometimes obscure or elliptical...
. - Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology (co-edited with John KesselJohn KesselJohn Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
) (Tachyon PublicationsTachyon PublicationsTachyon Publications is an independent press specializing in science fiction and fantasy books. Founded in San Francisco in 1995 by Jacob Weisman, Tachyon books have tended toward high-end literary works, short story collections, and anthologies....
, 2007) - "Surprise Party" (Asimov'sAsimov's Science FictionAsimov's Science Fiction is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy and perpetuates the name of author and biochemist Isaac Asimov...
, June 2008) - The Wreck of the Godspeed and Other Stories (Golden Gryphon PressGolden Gryphon PressGolden Gryphon Press is an independent publishing company, specializing in science fiction, fantasy, dark fantasy and cross-genre novels. It was founded in 1996 by Jim Turner, former editor at Arkham House, and is currently run by his brother Gary and his wife, Geri Turner.The company has...
, August 2008) - The Secret History of Science Fiction (co-edited with John KesselJohn KesselJohn Kessel is an American author of science fiction and fantasy. He is a prolific short story writer and the author of two solo novels, Good News From Outer Space and Corrupting Dr...
) (Tachyon PublicationsTachyon PublicationsTachyon Publications is an independent press specializing in science fiction and fantasy books. Founded in San Francisco in 1995 by Jacob Weisman, Tachyon books have tended toward high-end literary works, short story collections, and anthologies....
, 2009)
Stories
- "Why School Buses Are Yellow" by James Patrick Kelly
- "Barry Westphall Crashes the Singularity" by James Patrick Kelly
- "The Best Christmas Ever" by James Patrick Kelly (Archive.org copy)
Interviews
- An Interview with James Patrick Kelly and John Kessel conducted by John Joseph Adams
- James Patrick Kelly - Audio Interview
- SciFi.com Interview
- AISFP 55 - James Patrick Kelly Interviewed by Matthew Wayne Selznick - Audio Interview