Charlie Jane Anders
American science fiction author and commentator (born 1969)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Charlie Jane Anders (born July 24, 1969) is an American writer specializing in speculative fiction. She has written several novels as well as shorter fiction. Her novels, including as All the Birds in the Sky and The City in the Middle of the Night, received critical acclaim and won major literary awards including the Nebula Award for Best Novel and Locus Award for Best Science Fiction Novel. All three novels in her young adult trilogy Unstoppable have won the Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book.
- Writer
- editor
- presenter
- performance artist
- publisher
All the Birds in the Sky
Charlie Jane Anders | |
|---|---|
Anders at Worldcon 75 in 2017 | |
| Born | July 24, 1969 |
| Occupation |
|
| Genre | Science fiction, short story, fiction, non-fiction |
| Notable works | Choir Boy All the Birds in the Sky |
| Website | |
| charliejaneanders | |
Anders's fiction has received numerous literary awards, including the Crawford Award, Hugo Award, Lambda Literary Award, Locus Award, Nebula Award, and Theodore Sturgeon Award.
Early life, education and career
Anders was born in a small farm town near Storrs, Connecticut on July 24, 1969[1][2][3] and grew up in nearby Mansfield.[4] She studied English and Asian Literature at the University of Cambridge,[5] and studied in China[1][4] before moving to San Francisco in the early 2000s.[1] Anders co-founded Other magazine, the "magazine of pop culture and politics for the new outcasts", with Annalee Newitz, and served as publisher during the magazine's run from 2002 to 2007.[6] In 2006, she was a co-founding editor of the science fiction blog io9,[7] a position she left in April 2016 to focus on novel writing.[8]
Literary career
Anders has had science fiction published in Tor.com, Strange Horizons, and Flurb. Additional (non-science-fiction) literary work has been published in McSweeney's and Zyzzyva. Anders's work has appeared in Salon,[9] The Wall Street Journal,[10] Publishers Weekly,[11] San Francisco Bay Guardian,[12] Mother Jones,[13] and the San Francisco Chronicle.[14] She has had stories and essays in anthologies such as Sex For America: Politically Inspired Erotica,[15] The McSweeney's Joke Book of Book Jokes,[16] and That's Revolting!: Queer Strategies for Resisting Assimilation.[17]
Her first novel, Choir Boy, appeared in 2005 from Soft Skull Press; a young adult story about a boy transitioning gender in order to sing. In 2014, Tor Books acquired two novels from Anders.[18] All the Birds in the Sky was published in 2016 and The City in the Middle of the Night was published 2019.[19]
In August 2025, her most recent novel Lessons in Magic and Disaster was published.[20]
Unstoppable trilogy
Tor Teen acquired Unstoppable, a young adult trilogy from Anders, in 2017.[21] The first novel, Victories Greater Than Death, was published in 2021, and the second, Dreams Bigger Than Heartbreak, in 2022. The third novel, Promises Stronger Than Darkness, was published in 2023.[22]
Other work
In addition to her work as an author and publisher, Anders is a longtime event organizer. She organized a "ballerina pie fight" in 2005 for Other magazine;[23] co-organized the Cross-Gender Caravan, a national transgender and genderqueer author tour;[24] and a Bookstore and Chocolate Crawl in San Francisco.[25] She emcees "Writers with Drinks", an award-winning San Francisco-based monthly reading series begun in 2001 that features authors from a wide range of genres[26] and has been noted for its "free-associative author introductions".[27]
She has been a juror for the James Tiptree Jr. Award and for the Lambda Literary Award. She formerly published the satirical website godhatesfigs.com[28] which was featured by The Sunday Times as website of the week.[29]
A television adaptation of Anders' Six Months, Three Days was being prepared for NBC in 2013,[needs update] with the script written by Eric Garcia.[30]
In March 2018,[31] with her partner and co-host Annalee Newitz, Anders launched the podcast Our Opinions Are Correct, which "explor[es] the meaning of science fiction, and how it's relevant to real-life science and society."[32] The podcast won the Hugo Award for Best Fancast in 2019, 2020 and 2022.[33][34][35]
Anders co-created the Marvel Comics character Shela Sexton, also known as Escapade, a trans mutant super hero. The character debuted in Marvel's Voices: Pride #1 in June 2022.[36][37]
Awards and honors
Literary awards
Fancasts
| Year | Work | Award | Category | Result | Ref. |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019 | Our Opinions Are Correct (with Annalee Newitz) | Hugo Award | Fancast | Won | [67] |
| 2020 | Won | [54] | |||
| 2022 | Won | [60] |
Bibliography
Novels
- —— (2005). Choir Boy. Soft Skull Press. ISBN 9781932360813.
- —— (2016). All the Birds in the Sky. Tor Books. ISBN 9780765379948.
- —— (2019). The City in the Middle of the Night. Tor Books. ISBN 9780765379962.
- —— (2025). Lessons in Magic and Disaster. Tor Books. ISBN 9781250867322.
Unstoppable
- —— (2021). Victories Greater Than Death. Tor Teen. ISBN 9781250317315.
- —— (2022). Dreams Bigger Than Heartbreak. Tor Teen. ISBN 9781250317391.
- —— (2023). Promises Stronger Than Darkness. Tor Teen. ISBN 9781250317506.
Short story collections
- —— (2017). Six Months, Three Days, Five Others. Tor.com. ISBN 9780765394897.
- —— (2021). Even Greater Mistakes. Tor Books. ISBN 9781250766502.
Short fiction
| Year | Title | Scope[a] | First published | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | "Love Might Be Too Strong a Word" | —— (June 2008). Grant, Gavin J.; Link, Kelly (eds.). "Love Might Be Too Strong a Word". Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet (22). Small Beer Press. | ||
| 2010 | "The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model" | —— (August 11, 2010). "The Fermi Paradox Is Our Business Model". Tor.com. | ||
| 2011 | "Source Decay" | —— (January 3, 2011). "Source Decay". Strange Horizons. | ||
| "Fairy Werewolf vs. Vampire Zombie" | —— (March 22, 2011). Gunn, Eileen (ed.). "Fairy Werewolf vs. Vampire Zombie". Flurb: A Webzine of Astonishing Tales (11). | |||
| "Six Months, Three Days" | Novelette | —— (June 8, 2011). "Six Months, Three Days". Tor.com. | ||
| "Mooney & Finch Somnotrope" | —— (July 12, 2011). "Mooney & Finch Somnotrope". In VanderMeer, Ann; VanderMeer, Jeff (eds.). The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities. Harper Voyager. | |||
| 2012 | "Intestate" | —— (December 17, 2012). "Intestate". Tor.com. | ||
| 2013 | "Complicated and Stupid" | —— (August 5, 2013). "Complicated and Stupid". Strange Horizons. | ||
| "Victimless Crimes" | —— (August 6, 2013). "Victimless Crimes". Apex Magazine. No. 51. | |||
| "The Master Conjurer" | —— (October 2013). "The Master Conjurer". Lightspeed Magazine. No. 41. | |||
| "The Time Travel Club" | Novelette | —— (October–November 2013). "The Time Travel Club". Asimov's Science Fiction. 37 (10–11): 20–35. | ||
| 2014 | "The Cartography of Sudden Death" | —— (January 15, 2014). "The Cartography of Sudden Death". Tor.com. | ||
| "Break! Break! Break!" | —— (March 2014). "Break! Break! Break!". Lightspeed Magazine. No. 46. | |||
| "The Unfathomable Sisterhood of Ick" | —— (June 2014). "The Unfathomable Sisterhood of Ick". Lightspeed Magazine. No. 49: Women Destroy Science Fiction!. | |||
| "Palm Strike's Last Case" | Novelette | —— (July 2014). "Palm Strike's Last Case". The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction. Vol. 127, no. 1 & 2. pp. 6–34. | ||
| "Rock Manning Can't Hear You" | —— (September 1, 2014). "Rock Manning Can't Hear You". In Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh (eds.). The End Is Now. pp. 55–68. | |||
| "The Day It All Ended" | —— (September 9, 2014). "The Day It All Ended". In Cramer, Kathryn; Finn, Ed (eds.). Hieroglyph: Stories and Visions for a Better Future. William Morrow. pp. 477–488. | |||
| "As Good As New" | —— (September 10, 2014). "As Good As New". Tor.com. | |||
| 2015 | "The Last Movie Ever Made" | —— (May 1, 2015). "The Last Movie Ever Made". In Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh (eds.). The End Has Come. Broad Reach. | ||
| "Ghost Champagne" | Novelette | —— (July 2015). "Ghost Champagne". Uncanny Magazine (5). | ||
| "Rat Catcher's Yellows" | —— (August 18, 2015). "Rat Catcher's Yellows". In Adams, John Joseph; Wilson, Daniel H. (eds.). Press Start to Play. Vintage Books. | |||
| 2016 | "Captain Roger in Heaven" | Novelette | —— (2016). "Captain Roger in Heaven" (PDF). Catamaran Literary Reader. No. 14. | |
| "Reliable People" | —— (Fall 2016). "Reliable People". Conjunctions. No. 67. | |||
| "Because Change Was the Ocean and We Lived By Her Mercy" | —— (July 2016). "Because Change Was the Ocean and We Lived By Her Mercy". In Strahan, Jonathan (ed.). Drowned Worlds. Solaris. | |||
| "Clover" | —— (October 25, 2016). "Clover". Tor.com. | Follows All the Birds in the Sky. | ||
| 2017 | "A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime" | Novelette | —— (April 2017). "A Temporary Embarrassment in Spacetime". In Adams, John Joseph (ed.). Cosmic Powers. Saga Press. | |
| "Don't Press Charges and I Won't Sue" | —— (October 30, 2017). "Don't Press Charges and I Won't Sue". Boston Review. | |||
| 2018 | Rock Manning Goes for Broke | Novella | —— (July 2018). Rock Manning Goes for Broke. Subterranean Press. | Follows "Rock Manning Can't Hear You". |
| "The Minnesota Diet" | —— (January 17, 2018). "The Minnesota Diet". Future Tense. | |||
| 2019 | "This Is Why We Can't Have Nasty Things" | —— (2019). "This Is Why We Can't Have Nasty Things". ZYZZYVA (117). | ||
| "The Bookstore at the End of America" | —— (February 5, 2019). "The Bookstore at the End of America". In Adams, John Joseph; LaValle, Victor (eds.). A People's Future of the United States. One World. | |||
| 2020 | "If You Take My Meaning" | —— (February 26, 2020). "If You Take My Meaning". Tor.com. | Follows City in the Middle of the Night. | |
| "The Visitmothers" | —— (December 8, 2020). "The Visitmothers". In Rogue, Lydia (ed.). Trans-Galactic Bike Ride: Feminist Bicycle Science Fiction Stories of Transgender and Nonbinary Adventurers. Elly Blue Publishing. | |||
| 2021 | "My Breath Is a Rudder" | —— (November 9, 2021). "My Breath Is a Rudder". Even Greater Mistakes. Titan Books. | ||
| "Power Couple" | —— (November 9, 2021). "Power Couple". Even Greater Mistakes. Titan Books. | |||
Non-fiction
- —— (2002). The Lazy Crossdresser. California: Greenery Press. ISBN 9781890159375. (published as Charles Anders)
- ——; Newitz, Annalee (2006). She's Such a Geek: Women Write About Science, Technology, and Other Nerdy Stuff. California: Seal Press. ISBN 9781580051903.
- —— (2021). Never Say You Can't Survive: How to Get Through Hard Times By Making Up Stories. New York: Tordotcom. ISBN 9781250800015.
Interviews
- Sirius, R.U. (January 31, 2007). "Girls Are Geeks, Too". 10 Zen Monkeys. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
Critical studies and reviews of Anders' work
- "Choir Boy: Charlie Anders". Softskull.com. Softskull Press. Archived from the original on October 19, 2012. Retrieved January 6, 2017.
- Woyke, Elizabeth. "Other". The New York Review of Magazines. Archived from the original on February 23, 2015. Retrieved April 16, 2015.
Notes
- Short stories unless otherwise noted.
