George R. R. Martin

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George R. R. Martin
Born
20 September 1948
Bayonne, New Jersey, United States

George Raymond Richard Martin (sometimes called GRRM by fans; born September 20, 1948 in Bayonne, New Jersey) is an American writer of science fiction and fantasy, and also a screenwriter and producer. He has been an instructor in journalism (in which he holds a master's degree) and a chess tournament director.

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Biography

Martin was a prolific author of short fiction in the 1970s, and won several Hugo Awards and Nebula Awards before he started to turn his attention to novels late in the decade. Although much of his work is fantasy or horror, a number of his earlier works are science fiction occurring in a loosely-defined future history.

In the 1980s he turned to work in television and as an editor. On television, he worked on the new Twilight Zone and Beauty and the Beast series. As an editor, he oversaw the lengthy Wild Cards cycle, which took place in a shared universe in which an alien virus bestowed strange powers or disfigurements on a slice of humanity during World War II, affecting the history of the world thereafter (the premise was inspired by comic book superheroes and a Superworld superhero role-playing game of which Martin was gamemaster). Contributors to the Wild Cards series included Stephen Leigh, Lewis Shiner, Howard Waldrop, Walter Jon Williams and Roger Zelazny. His own contributions to the series often featured Thomas Tudbury, "The Great and Powerful Turtle," a powerful psychokinetic whose flying "shell" consisted of an armored VW Beetle.

Martin's short story of the same name was adapted into the feature film Nightflyers (1987).

In 1996 Martin returned to writing novel-length stories, beginning his lengthy cycle A Song of Ice and Fire (ostensibly inspired by the Wars of the Roses), to great critical acclaim. In November of 2005, A Feast for Crows, the fourth book in this series, became The New York Times #1 Bestseller and also achieved #1 ranking on The Wall Street Journal bestseller list.

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Themes

Image:George R. R. Martin.jpg Martin's work is rarely cheerful; critics have described it as "dark" and "cynical." His first novel, Dying of the Light, set the tone for most of his future work; it is set on a mostly abandoned world that is slowly becoming uninhabitable as it moves away from its sun. This story, and many of Martin's others, have a strong sense of melancholy. His characters are often unhappy, or at least unsatisfied.

His characters are also multi-faceted, each with surprisingly intricate pasts, inspirations, and ambitions. No one is given an unrealistic string of luck, however, so misfortune, injury, and death (and even false death) can befall any character, no matter how attached the reader has become. Some of his characters are tragic heroes, meaning they have traits that inevitably lead to their downfall.

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Fandom

In addition to writing, Martin is known for his regular attendance at science fiction conventions and his accessibilty to fans. In the early 70's, critic and writer Thomas Disch identified Martin as a member of the "Labor Day Group", writers who congregated at the annual Worldcon, usually held around Labor Day.

Martin's fan group, the Brotherhood without Banners, is known for throwing lavish and raucous parties at the conventions he attends, most notably at Worldcon and Boskone. For the last two Worldcons running (as of 2005), the party they have thrown has been voted "Best of Worldcon".

The Brotherhood Without Banners is sometimes known among other fans as "George's Cult", because of their highly enthusiastic and evangelistic nature. It is also remarkable for skewing relatively young, contravening the general "greying" trend of literary science fiction fandom. According to the BWB website, the organization currently numbers approximately 500 members.

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Bibliography

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Novels

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Novellas

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Collections

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Wild Cards (as editor)

  • Wild Cards I (1987)
  • Wild Cards II: Aces High (1987)
  • Wild Cards III: Jokers Wild (1987)
  • Wild Cards IV: Aces Abroad (1988)
  • Wild Cards V: Down & Dirty (1988)
  • Wild Cards VI: Ace in the Hole (1990)
  • Wild Cards VII: Dead Man's Hand (1990)
  • Wild Cards VIII: One-Eyed Jacks (1991)
  • Wild Cards IX: Jokertown Shuffle (1991)
  • Wild Cards X: Double Solitaire (1992)
  • Wild Cards XI: Dealer's Choice (1992)
  • Wild Cards XII: Turn of the Cards (1993)
  • Wild Cards: Card Sharks (1993)
  • Wild Cards: Marked Cards (1994)
  • Wild Cards: Black Trump (1995) (these three books are a trilogy)
  • Wild Cards: Deuces Down (2002)
  • Wilds Cards: Death Draws Five (2006)
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Awards

A more complete list of Martin's awards and nominations can be found at The Locus Index to Science Fiction Awards.

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Footnotes

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External links

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General sites:

Forums:

Interviews:

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