Robert James Sawyer is a
CanadianCanada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
science fictionScience fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
writer. He has had 20 novels published, and his short fiction has appeared in
Analog Science Fiction and FactAnalog Science Fiction and Fact is an American science fiction magazine. As of 2011, it is the longest running continuously published magazine of that genre...
,
Amazing StoriesAmazing Stories was an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction...
,
On SpecOn Spec is a digest-sized, perfect-bound, Canadian quarterly magazine publishing stories and poetry in science fiction, fantasy, and allied genres broadly grouped under the "speculative ficton" umbrella. Based in Edmonton, Alberta, On Spec was founded in 1989 by a small group of Edmonton writers...
,
NatureNature, first published on 4 November 1869, is ranked the world's most cited interdisciplinary scientific journal by the Science Edition of the 2010 Journal Citation Reports...
, and many anthologies. Sawyer has won over forty awards for his fiction, including the
Nebula 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...
(1995), the
Hugo 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...
(2003), and the John W. Campbell Memorial Award (2006).
Sawyer was born in
OttawaOttawa is the capital of Canada, the second largest city in the Province of Ontario, and the fourth largest city in the country. The city is located on the south bank of the Ottawa River in the eastern portion of Southern Ontario...
and is now a resident of Mississauga.
Style and themes
Sawyer's work frequently explores the intersection between science and religion, with
rationalismIn epistemology and in its modern sense, rationalism is "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification" . In more technical terms, it is a method or a theory "in which the criterion of the truth is not sensory but intellectual and deductive"...
frequently winning out over
mysticismMysticism is the knowledge of, and especially the personal experience of, states of consciousness, i.e. levels of being, beyond normal human perception, including experience and even communion with a supreme being.-Classical origins:...
(see especially
Far-SeerFar-Seer is a novel written by Canadian science fiction author, Robert J. Sawyer. It is the first book of the Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy, and is followed by two sequels: Fossil Hunter, and Foreigner...
, The Terminal Experiment, Calculating God, and the three volumes of the Neanderthal Parallax [Hominids, Humans, and Hybrids], plus the short story "The Abdication of Pope Mary III," originally published in Nature, July 6, 2000).
He has a great fondness for paleontology, as evidenced in his
Quintaglio Ascension trilogyThe Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy is a series of award-winning novels written by acclaimed Canadian science fiction author, Robert J. Sawyer...
(Far-Seer, Fossil Hunter, and Foreigner), about an alien world to which dinosaurs from Earth were transplanted, and his time-travel novel End of an Era. In addition, the main character of Calculating God is a paleontologist, Wake features a chase scene at the
Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and PaleoanthropologyThe Institute of Vertebrate Paleontology and Paleoanthropology of China is a prominent research institution and collections repository for fossils, including many dinosaur and pterosaurand cat poo specimens...
in Beijing, and the Neanderthal Parallax novels deal with an alternate version of Earth where Neanderthals did not become extinct.
Sawyer often explores the notion of copied or uploaded human consciousness, most fully in his novel Mindscan, but also in
FlashforwardFlashforward is a science fiction novel by Canadian author Robert J. Sawyer first published in 1999. The novel is set in 2009. At CERN, the Large Hadron Collider accelerator is performing a run to search for the Higgs boson. The experiment has a unique side effect: the entire human race loses...
, Golden Fleece, The Terminal Experiment, "Identity Theft", "Biding Time", and "Shed Skin".
His interest in consciousness studies is also apparent in Wake, which deals with the spontaneous emergence of consciousness in the infrastructure of the World Wide Web. His interest in quantum physics, and especially quantum computing, inform the short stories "You See But You Do Not Observe" (a
Sherlock HolmesSherlock Holmes is a fictional detective created by Scottish author and physician Sir Arthur Conan Doyle. The fantastic London-based "consulting detective", Holmes is famous for his astute logical reasoning, his ability to take almost any disguise, and his use of forensic science skills to solve...
pasticheA pastiche is a literary or other artistic genre or technique that is a "hodge-podge" or imitation. The word is also a linguistic term used to describe an early stage in the development of a pidgin language.-Hodge-podge:...
) and "Iterations," and the novels Factoring Humanity and Hominids.
SETIThe search for extraterrestrial intelligence is the collective name for a number of activities people undertake to search for intelligent extraterrestrial life. Some of the most well known projects are run by the SETI Institute. SETI projects use scientific methods to search for intelligent life...
, the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence, plays a role in the plots of Golden Fleece, Factoring Humanity, Mindscan, Rollback, the novelette "Ineluctable," and the short stories "You See But You Do Not Observe" and "Flashes." Sawyer gives cosmology a thorough workout in his far-future Starplex.
Real-life science institutions are often used as settings by Sawyer, including
TRIUMFTRIUMF is Canada’s national laboratory for particle and nuclear physics. Its headquarters are located on the south campus of the University of British Columbia in Vancouver, British Columbia. TRIUMF houses the world's largest cyclotron, source of 500 MeV protons, which was named an IEEE Milestone...
in End of an Era,
CERNThe European Organization for Nuclear Research , known as CERN , is an international organization whose purpose is to operate the world's largest particle physics laboratory, which is situated in the northwest suburbs of Geneva on the Franco–Swiss border...
in
FlashforwardFlashforward is a science fiction novel by Canadian author Robert J. Sawyer first published in 1999. The novel is set in 2009. At CERN, the Large Hadron Collider accelerator is performing a run to search for the Higgs boson. The experiment has a unique side effect: the entire human race loses...
, the
Royal Ontario MuseumThe Royal Ontario Museum is a museum of world culture and natural history in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. With its main entrance facing Bloor Street in Downtown Toronto, the museum is situated north of Queen's Park and east of Philosopher's Walk in the University of Toronto...
in Calculating God, the
Sudbury Neutrino ObservatoryThe Sudbury Neutrino Observatory is a neutrino observatory located 6,800 feet underground in Vale Inco's Creighton Mine in Sudbury, Ontario, Canada. The detector was designed to detect solar neutrinos through their interactions with a large tank of heavy water. The detector turned on in May 1999,...
in Hominids and its sequels, and the
Arecibo ObservatoryThe Arecibo Observatory is a radio telescope near the city of Arecibo in Puerto Rico. It is operated by SRI International under cooperative agreement with the National Science Foundation...
in Rollback.
Another Sawyer hallmark is the mortally ill main character. Pierre Tardivel in Frameshift suffers from
Huntington's diseaseHuntington's disease, chorea, or disorder , is a neurodegenerative genetic disorder that affects muscle coordination and leads to cognitive decline and dementia. It typically becomes noticeable in middle age. HD is the most common genetic cause of abnormal involuntary writhing movements called chorea...
, Thomas Jericho in Calculating God has lung cancer, and Jacob Sullivan in Mindscan has an
arteriovenous malformationArteriovenous malformation or AVM is an abnormal connection between veins and arteries, usually congenital. This pathology is widely known because of its occurrence in the central nervous system, but can appear in any location. An arteriovenous malformation is a vascular anomaly. It is a...
in his brain; one of the main characters in Rollback vividly suffers from that most fatal illness of all, old age. Sawyer nonetheless is known for tales that end on an upbeat, and even transcendent, note.
Sawyer is unusual even among Canadian SF writers for the blatantly Canadian settings and concerns addressed in his novels, all of which are issued by New York houses. His politics are often described as liberal by Canadian standards (although he contributed a story called "The Hand You're Dealt" to the Libertarian SF anthology Free Space, and another called "The Right's Tough" to the Libertarian SF anthology Visions of Liberty). He holds citizenship in both Canada and the United States, and has been known to criticize the politics of both countries. He often has American characters visiting Canada (such as Karen Bessarian in Mindscan and Caitlin Decter in Wake) or Canadian characters visiting the U.S. (such as Pierre Tardivel in Frameshift and Mary Vaughan in Humans and Hybrids) as a way of comparing and contrasting the perceived values of the two countries.
Sawyer's simple style and clear prose have been compared by
Orson Scott CardOrson Scott Card is an American author, critic, public speaker, essayist, columnist, and political activist. He writes in several genres, but is primarily known for his science fiction. His novel Ender's Game and its sequel Speaker for the Dead both won Hugo and Nebula Awards, making Card the...
to those of
Isaac AsimovIsaac Asimov was an American author and professor of biochemistry at Boston University, best known for his works of science fiction and for his popular science books. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time, having written or edited more than 500 books and an estimated 90,000...
. He has a tendency to include pop-culture references in his novels (his fondness for the original
Star TrekStar Trek is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry, produced by Desilu Productions . Star Trek was telecast on NBC from September 8, 1966, through June 3, 1969...
,
The Six Million Dollar ManThe Six Million Dollar Man is an American television series about a former astronaut with bionic implants working for the OSI...
, and
Planet of the ApesPlanet of the Apes is a 1968 American science fiction film directed by Franklin J. Schaffner, based on the 1963 French novel La Planète des singes by Pierre Boulle. The film stars Charlton Heston, Roddy McDowall, Kim Hunter, Maurice Evans, James Whitmore, James Daly and Linda Harrison...
is impossible to miss).
SF/Mystery crossovers
Sawyer's work often crosses over from science fiction to mystery; he won both Canada's top SF award (the
Aurora AwardThe Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
) and its top mystery-fiction award (the Arthur Ellis Award) for his 1993 short story "Just Like Old Times." Illegal Alien is a courtroom drama with an extraterrestrial defendant; Hominids puts one Neanderthal on trial by his peers for the apparent murder of another Neanderthal; Mindscan has the rights of uploaded consciousnesses explored in a Michigan probate court; and Golden Fleece,
Fossil HunterFossil Hunter is a novel written by acclaimed Canadian science fiction author, Robert J. Sawyer. It is the sequel to Far-Seer and is the second book of the Quintaglio Ascension Trilogy...
, The Terminal Experiment, Frameshift, and
FlashforwardFlashforward is a science fiction novel by Canadian author Robert J. Sawyer first published in 1999. The novel is set in 2009. At CERN, the Large Hadron Collider accelerator is performing a run to search for the Higgs boson. The experiment has a unique side effect: the entire human race loses...
are all, in part, murder mysteries. Of Sawyer's shorter SF works, the novella "Identity Theft" and the short stories "Biding Time," "Flashes," "Iterations," "Shed Skin," "The Stanley Cup Caper," "You See But You Do Not Observe," "The Hand You're Dealt," and the aforementioned "Just Like Old Times" are all also crime or mystery fiction.
Editing and scholarly work
In addition to his own writing, Sawyer edits the
Robert J. Sawyer Books science-fiction imprint for Red Deer Press, part of Canadian publisher
Fitzhenry & WhitesideFitzhenry & Whiteside is a Canadian book publishing company, located in Markham, Ontario. It publishes trade titles in children's and young adult fiction, textbooks, reference, history, biography, photography, sports and poetry....
; contributes to
The New York Review of Science FictionThe New York Review of Science Fiction is a monthly literary journal of science fiction that was established in 1988. It includes works of science fiction criticism, essays, and in-depth critical reviews of new works of fiction and scholarship. It is published by Dragon Press and the managing...
; is The Canadian Encyclopedias authority on science fiction; and is a judge for L. Ron Hubbard's
Writers of the FutureWriters of the Future is a science fiction and fantasy story contest that was originated by L. Ron Hubbard in the early 1980s. Hubbard...
contest.
Film and television
In May 2009,
ABCThe American Broadcasting Company is an American commercial broadcasting television network. Created in 1943 from the former NBC Blue radio network, ABC is owned by The Walt Disney Company and is part of Disney-ABC Television Group. Its first broadcast on television was in 1948...
ordered 13 episodes of hour-long dramatic TV series FlashForward for the 2009-2010 season, based on Sawyer's similarly titled novel, after successful production in February and March 2009 of a pilot episode scripted by
David S. GoyerDavid Samuel Goyer is an American screenwriter, film director and comic book writer.-Early life:Goyer was born and raised in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He attended Hebrew school and has described himself as "half Jewish"...
and
Brannon BragaBrannon Braga is an American television producer and screenwriter, currently working as showrunner and executive producer on Terra Nova...
, directed by Goyer, and starring
Joseph FiennesJoseph Fiennes is an English film and stage actor. He is perhaps best known for his portrayals of William Shakespeare in Shakespeare in Love, Sir Robert Dudley in Elizabeth, Commisar Danilov in Enemy at the Gates, Martin Luther in Luther, Merlin in Camelot, and his portrayal of Mark Benford in the...
and
Sonya WalgerSonya Walger is an English actress known for her roles in the ABC series Lost as Penelope "Penny" Widmore, and as Olivia Benford on ABC's FlashForward.-Education:...
. After some adjustments, the first season was set to consist of 22 episodes. Sawyer is story consultant on each episode of the series and penned the 19th episode, titled "Course Correction".
Sawyer wrote the original series bible for
Charlie JadeCharlie Jade is a science fiction television program filmed mainly in Cape Town, South Africa. It stars Jeffrey Pierce in the title role, as a detective from a parallel universe who finds himself trapped in our universe. This is a Canadian and South African co-production filmed in conjunction with...
, an hour-long science-fiction TV series that first aired in 2005-2006, and he did conceptual work in 2003 for reviving
RobotechRobotech is an 85-episode science fiction anime adaptation produced by Harmony Gold USA in association with Tatsunoko Production Co., Ltd. and first released in the United States in 1985...
. He has also written and narrated documentaries about science fiction for
CBC RadioCBC Radio generally refers to the English-language radio operations of the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. The CBC operates a number of radio networks serving different audiences and programming niches, all of which are outlined below.-English:CBC Radio operates three English language...
's Ideas series, and he hosted the 17-part weekly half-hour documentary series Supernatural Investigator for Canada's
Vision TVVisionTV is a Canadian English language Category A specialty channel that broadcasts multi-faith, multicultural, and general entertainment programming aimed at the 45 and over demographic....
, which premiered January 27, 2009. He provided analysis of the British science fiction series
Doctor WhoDoctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
for the
CBCThe Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, commonly known as CBC and officially as CBC/Radio-Canada, is a Canadian crown corporation that serves as the national public radio and television broadcaster...
's online documentary The Planet of the Doctor, frequently comments on science fiction movies for
TVOntarioTVOntario, often referred to only as TVO , is a publicly funded, educational English-language television station and media organization in the Canadian province of Ontario. It is operated by the Ontario Educational Communications Authority, a Crown corporation owned by the Government of Ontario...
's
Saturday Night at the MoviesSaturday Night at the Movies is a weekly television series on TVOntario, the public educational television network in Ontario, Canada. The series presents classic movies, followed by interview and feature segments with directors, actors and other people involved in making the films presented...
, and co-edited an essay collection in honor of the fortieth anniversary of Star Trek with
David GerroldJerrold David Friedman , better known by his pen name David Gerrold, is an American science fiction author who started his career in 1966 while a college student by submitting an unsolicited story outline for the television series Star Trek. He was invited to submit several premises, and the one...
, titled Boarding the Enterprise.
Teaching and public speaking
Sawyer has taught science-fiction writing at the
University of TorontoThe University of Toronto is a public research university in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, situated on the grounds that surround Queen's Park. It was founded by royal charter in 1827 as King's College, the first institution of higher learning in Upper Canada...
,
Ryerson UniversityRyerson University is a public research university located in downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Its urban campus is adjacent to Yonge-Dundas Square located at the busiest intersection in Downtown Toronto. The majority of its buildings are in the blocks northeast of the square in Toronto's Garden...
,
Humber CollegeHumber College Institute of Technology & Advanced Learning is a polytechnic college in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. Humber offers more than 150 programs including: bachelor’s degree, diploma, certificate, post-graduate certificate and apprenticeship programs, across 40 fields of study. Humber serves...
, and the
Banff CentreThe Banff Centre, formerly known as The Banff Centre for Continuing Education, is an arts, cultural, and educational institution and conference complex located in Banff, Alberta...
. In 2000, he served as Writer-in-Residence at the
Richmond Hill, OntarioRichmond Hill is a town located in Southern Ontario, Canada in the central portion of York Region, Ontario. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area, being located about halfway between Toronto and Lake Simcoe...
, Public Library. In 2003, he was Writer-in-Residence at the Toronto Public Library's Merril Collection of Science Fiction, Speculation and Fantasy (the first person to hold this post since
Judith MerrilJudith Josephine Grossman , who took the pen-name Judith Merril about 1945, was an American and then Canadian science fiction writer, editor and political activist....
herself in 1987). In 2006, he was Writer-in-Residence at the
Odyssey Writing WorkshopFounded in 1996 by World Fantasy Award winning editor Jeanne Cavelos, the Odyssey Writing Workshop is held annually on the campus of Saint Anselm College in Goffstown, New Hampshire. The workshop runs for six weeks, combining peer-to-peer feedback from students and guest lecturers.Some well...
. Also in 2006, he was the Edna Staebler Writer-in-Residence at the Kitchener Public Library in the Region of Waterloo, Ontario, following on the Region of Waterloo's choice of Sawyer's Hominids as the "One Book, One Community" title that all 490,000 residents were encouraged to read in 2005. In 2007 he was the Berton House Writer-in-Residence at Berton House in Dawson City. In 2009, he was the first-ever Writer-in-Residence at the Canadian Light Source, Canada's national synchrotron facility in
SaskatoonSaskatoon is a city in central Saskatchewan, Canada, on the South Saskatchewan River. Residents of the city of Saskatoon are called Saskatonians. The city is surrounded by the Rural Municipality of Corman Park No. 344....
.
Sawyer is a frequent keynote speaker about technology topics, and has served as a consultant to Canada's Federal Department of Justice on the shape future genetics laws should take.
Canadian cultural significance
Sawyer has long been an advocate of Canadian science fiction. He lobbied hard for the creation of the Canadian Region of the
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of AmericaScience Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, or SFWA is a nonprofit association of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. It was founded in 1965 by Damon Knight under the name Science Fiction Writers of America, Inc. and it retains the acronym SFWA after a very brief use of the SFFWA...
. The Canadian Region was established in 1992, and Sawyer served for three years on SFWA's Board of Directors as the first Canadian Regional Director (1992–1995). He also edited the newsletter of the Canadian Region, called Alouette in honor of Canada's first satellite; the newsletter was nominated for an
Aurora AwardThe Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for best
fanzineA fanzine is a nonprofessional and nonofficial publication produced by fans of a particular cultural phenomenon for the pleasure of others who share their interest...
.
International reception
In addition to his popularity at home, Sawyer's work is well received internationally. All of his novels have been issued by New York publishing houses and translated editions have appeared in Bulgarian, Chinese, Czech, Dutch, French, German, Italian, Japanese, Korean, Polish, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, and Spanish. Sawyer has won major international awards for his writing including the
Hugo 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...
(selected by attending and supporting members of
WorldconWorldcon, or more formally The World Science Fiction Convention, is a science fiction convention held each year since 1939 . It is the annual convention of the World Science Fiction Society...
), the
Nebula 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...
(selected by members of
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of AmericaScience Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, or SFWA is a nonprofit association of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. It was founded in 1965 by Damon Knight under the name Science Fiction Writers of America, Inc. and it retains the acronym SFWA after a very brief use of the SFFWA...
) and the jury-selected
John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction NovelThe John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel for best science fiction novel was created in 1973 by writers and critics Harry Harrison and Brian W. Aldiss to honor Campbell's name...
.
Professional associations
In 1998, Sawyer was elected president of SFWA on a platform that promised a referendum on various contentious issues, including periodic membership requalification and the creation of a
Nebula 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...
for best script; he won, defeating the next-closest candidate, past-SFWA-president
Norman SpinradNorman Richard Spinrad is an American science fiction author.Born in New York City, Spinrad is a graduate of the Bronx High School of Science. In 1957 he entered City College of New York and graduated in 1961 with a Bachelor of Science degree as a pre-law major. In 1966 he moved to San Francisco,...
, by a 3:2 margin. However, Sawyer's actual time in office was marked by considerable opposition to membership requalification and negative reaction to his dismissing, with the majority support of the Board of Directors, one paid SFWA worker and one volunteer. He resigned after completing half of his one-year term, and was automatically succeeded by then-incumbent vice-president
Paul LevinsonPaul Levinson is an American author and professor of communications and media studies at Fordham University in New York City. Levinson's novels, short fiction, and non-fiction works have been translated into twelve languages....
. Prior to resigning, Sawyer's promised referendum was held, resulting in significant changes to SFWA's bylaws and procedures, most notably allowing appropriate non-North American sales to count as membership credentials, allowing appropriate electronic sales to count as membership credentials, and creating a
Nebula 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...
for best script.
Sawyer has been active in other writers' organizations, including the
Crime Writers of CanadaCrime Writers of Canada is a national organization for Canadian crime writers, founded by Howard Engel.-Arthur Ellis Awards:Its annual awards are the Arthur Ellis Awards. The award statue itself is wooden model of a hanging man. The arms and legs move when the statue's string is pulled.The award is...
, the
Horror Writers AssociationThe Horror Writers Association is a worldwide non-profit organization of professional writers and publishing professionals dedicated to promoting the interests of Horror and Dark Fantasy writers. It was formed in the 1980s with the help of many of the field's greats, including Joe Lansdale, Robert...
, and the
Writers' Union of CanadaThe Writers' Union of Canada , founded in 1973, describes itself as supporting "the country's authors by advocating for their rights, freedoms, and economic well-being." Its members are professional writers who must have published at least one book through a commercial publisher.The Union addresses...
(for which he has served on the membership committee), and he is a member of the
Writers Guild of CanadaThe Writers Guild of Canada represents more than 1,800 professional writers working in film, television, radio, and multimedia production in Canada...
, which represents Canadian scriptwriters.
Major awards
- 1991 Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Best Long Work in English, for Golden Fleece
- 1992 Homer Award for Best Novel, for Far-Seer
- 1993 Arthur Ellis Award for Best Short Story, for "Just Like Old Times"
- 1993 Homer Award for Best Novel, for Fossil Hunter
- 1995 Le Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire for Best Foreign Short Story, "You See But You Do Not Observe"
- 1995 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...
for Best Novel, for The Terminal Experiment
- 1995 Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Best Long Work in English, for The Terminal Experiment
- 1996 Seiun Award
The is a Japanese science fiction award for the best science fiction published in Japan during the preceding year, as voted by attendees of the Japan Science Fiction Convention. "Seiun" is the Japanese word for "nebula", but the award is not related to the American Nebula Award. It was named after...
for Best Foreign Novel, for End of an Era
- 1996 Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Best Long Work in English, for Starplex
- 1997 Science Fiction Chronicle Reader Award for Best Short Story, for "The Hand You're Dealt"
- 1999 Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Best Long Work in English, for Flashforward
- 2000 Seiun Award for Best Foreign Novel, for Frameshift
- 2002 Seiun Award for Best Foreign Novel, for Illegal Alien
- 2003 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 Best Novel, for Hominids
- 2005 Analog Analytical Laboratory Award for Best Short Story, for "Shed Skin"
- 2005 Aurora Award for Best Work in English (Other) for Relativity
- 2006 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best Science Fiction Novel, for Mindscan
- 2007 Toronto Public Library Celebrates Reading Award
- 2007 Galaxy Award (China) for "Most Popular Foreign Author"
- 2007 Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Best Short Work in English, for "Biding Time"
- 2010 Aurora Award
The Prix Aurora Awards are given out annually for the best Canadian science fiction and fantasy literary works, artworks, fan activities from that year, and are awarded in both English and French...
for Best Long Form in English, for Wake
- 2010 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...
nominee in the Best NovelThe Hugo Awards are given every year by the World Science Fiction Society 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 once officially...
category for Wake
External links