Carolyn Ives Gilman (born 1954) is an American historian and author of science fiction and fantasy. She has been nominated for the

Nebula Award The Nebula Awards annually recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy published in the United States. The awards are organized and awarded by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA), a nonprofit association of pr ...

three times, and the

Hugo Award The Hugo Award is an annual literary award for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year, given at the World Science Fiction Convention (Worldcon) and chosen by its members. The award is administered by th ...

twice. Her short fiction has been published in a number of magazines and publications, including ''

Fantasy and Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional un ...

'', Interzone,

Realms of Fantasy ''Realms of Fantasy'' was a professional bimonthly fantasy speculative fiction magazine published by Sovereign Media, then Tir Na Nog Press, and Damnation Books, which specialized in fantasy fiction (including some horror), related nonfiction (wi ...

and ''

Full Spectrum ''Full Spectrum'' is a series of five anthologies of fantasy and science fiction short stories published between 1988 and 1995 by Bantam Spectra. The first anthology was edited by Lou Aronica and Shawna McCarthy; the second by Aronica, McCarthy, ...

'', along with a number of "year's best" anthologies. She is also the author of science fiction novels such as '' Halfway Human'' (1998), which is noted for its "groundbreaking" exploration of gender.

Historian

Gilman currently lives in

Washington, D.C. Washington, D.C., formally the District of Columbia and commonly known as Washington or D.C., is the capital city and federal district of the United States. The city is on the Potomac River, across from Virginia, and shares land borders with ...

where she works as a historian at the

National Museum of the American Indian The National Museum of the American Indian is a museum in the United States devoted to the culture of the Indigenous peoples of the Americas. It is part of the Smithsonian Institution group of museums and research centers. The museum has three ...

, specializing in 18th- and early 19th-century North American history. She previously worked as a historian at the

Missouri Historical Society The Missouri Historical Society was founded in St. Louis on August 11, 1866. Founding members created the historical society "for the purpose of saving from oblivion the early history of the city and state". Organization The Missouri Historica ...

Writing

Her first novel, '' Halfway Human'', was a new entry into the genre of Gender Science Fiction, portraying a world in which humans have three genders: male, female, and neuter. It has been called "one of the most compelling explorations of gender and power in recent SF"Locus Magazine, as quoted i
Goodreads author page
/ref> and compared favorably to the work of

Ursula K. Le Guin Ursula Kroeber Le Guin ( ; Kroeber; October 21, 1929 – January 22, 2018) was an American author. She is best known for her works of speculative fiction, including science fiction works set in her Hainish universe, and the ''Earthsea'' fantas ...

. The book placed 2nd in the 1999

Locus Award for Best First Novel The Locus Award for Best First Novel is one of the annual Locus Awards presented by the science fiction and fantasy magazine '' Locus''. Awards presented in a given year are for works published in the previous calendar year. The award for Best Fir ...

, and was nominated for the

James Tiptree Jr. Award The Otherwise Award, originally known as the James Tiptree Jr. Award, is an American annual literary prize for works of science fiction or fantasy that expand or explore one's understanding of gender. It was initiated in February 1991 by science ...

. Her work is known for vivid portrayals and deconstructions of the culture of the peoples in her stories.

Bibliography

Novels

;''Twenty Planets'' series *'' Halfway Human'' (New York: Avon Books, 1998) *''Arkfall'' (Rockville, Maryland: Phoenix Pick, 2010) *''The Ice Owl'' (Rockville, Maryland: Phoenix Pick, 2012) * ''Dark Orbit'' (New York: Tor Books, 2016) ;''Isles of the Forsaken'' series *''Isles of the Forsaken'' (Toronto, Ontario: ChiZine Publications, 2011) *''Ison of the Isles'' (Toronto, Ontario: ChiZine Publications, 2012)

Collections

Short fiction

Non-fiction

*''Lewis and Clark: Across the Divide'' (Smithsonian Books, 2003)

Critical studies and reviews of Gilman's work

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Gilman, Carolyn 1954 births Living people American science fiction writers The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction people American women science fiction and fantasy writers 20th-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers American women historians 20th-century American historians 21st-century American historians Novelists from Missouri American women novelists