Charles Harness
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Charles Leonard Harness (December 29, 1915 – September 20, 2005)Clute, John

''
The Independent ''The Independent'' is a British online newspaper. It was established in 1986 as a national morning printed paper. Nicknamed the ''Indy'', it began as a broadsheet and changed to tabloid format in 2003. The last printed edition was publis ...
'', October 11, 2005.
was an American
science fiction Science fiction (often shortened to sci-fi or abbreviated SF) is a genre of speculative fiction that deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts. These concepts may include information technology and robotics, biological manipulations, space ...
writer.


Biography

Harness was born in
Colorado City, Texas Colorado City ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Mitchell County, Texas, United States. Its population was 3,991 at the 2020 census. History Colorado City originated as a ranger camp in 1877. It grew into a cattlemen's center and has ...
, and grew up just outside it, then later in
Fort Worth Fort Worth is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the county seat of Tarrant County, Texas, Tarrant County, covering nearly into Denton County, Texas, Denton, Johnson County, Texas, Johnson, Parker County, Texas, Parker, and Wise County, Te ...
. He earned degrees in
chemistry Chemistry is the scientific study of the properties and behavior of matter. It is a physical science within the natural sciences that studies the chemical elements that make up matter and chemical compound, compounds made of atoms, molecules a ...
and
law Law is a set of rules that are created and are enforceable by social or governmental institutions to regulate behavior, with its precise definition a matter of longstanding debate. It has been variously described as a science and as the ar ...
from
George Washington University The George Washington University (GW or GWU) is a Private university, private University charter#Federal, federally-chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. Originally named Columbian College, it was chartered in 1821 by ...
and worked as a
patent attorney A patent attorney is an attorney who has the specialized qualifications necessary for representing clients in obtaining patents and acting in all matters and procedures relating to patent law and practice, such as filing patent applications and o ...
in
Connecticut Connecticut ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It borders Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York (state), New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. ...
and
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 ...
, from 1947 to 1981. Several of Harness's works draw on his background as a lawyer. Harness died in 2005, at the age of 89, in
North Newton, Kansas North Newton is a city in Harvey County, Kansas, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population of the city was 1,814. It is located between the north side of the city of Newton (separate entity) and the south side of Interstate I-1 ...
.


Writing career

Harness's first story, "Time Trap" (1948), shows many of his recurring themes, among them
art Art is a diverse range of cultural activity centered around ''works'' utilizing creative or imaginative talents, which are expected to evoke a worthwhile experience, generally through an expression of emotional power, conceptual ideas, tec ...
,
time travel Time travel is the hypothetical activity of traveling into the past or future. Time travel is a concept in philosophy and fiction, particularly science fiction. In fiction, time travel is typically achieved through the use of a device known a ...
, and a hero undergoing a quasi- transcendental experience. His first novel, ''
The Paradox Men ''The Paradox Men'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Charles L. Harness, his first novel. Initially published as a novella, "Flight into Yesterday", in the May 1949 issue of '' Startling Stories'', it was republished as ''The Parad ...
'', was his most famous. It was first published under the name ''Flight into Yesterday'', as a
novella A novella is a narrative prose fiction whose length is shorter than most novels, but longer than most novelettes and short stories. The English word ''novella'' derives from the Italian meaning a short story related to true (or apparently so) ...
in the May 1949 issue of ''
Startling Stories ''Startling Stories'' was an American pulp science fiction magazine, published from 1939 to 1955 by publisher Ned Pines' Standard Magazines. It was initially edited by Mort Weisinger, who was also the editor of '' Thrilling Wonder Stories ...
'' (pp. 9–79). It was expanded to a full-length novel (Bouregy & Curl, 1953), and was renamed ''The'' ''Paradox Men'' by Donald Wollheim and reprinted as the first half of
Ace Double American company Ace Books began publishing genre fiction starting in 1952. Initially these were mostly in tête-bêche format with the ends of the two parts meeting in the middle and with a divider between them which functioned as the rear cover ...
#D-118 in 1955."I Did it For the Money" (Charles L. Harness inverview)
'' Locus'', December 1998.
Much later Harness thanked Wollheim for the title that "turned out to be irresistible". The "science-fiction classic"''Flight into Yesterday'' (1953) by Charles Harness
. FantasticFiction.co.uk.
is both "a tale dominated by space-opera extravagances" and "a severely articulate narrative analysis of the implications of
Arnold J. Toynbee Arnold Joseph Toynbee (; 14 April 1889 – 22 October 1975) was an English historian, a philosopher of history, an author of numerous books and a research professor of international history at the London School of Economics and King's Coll ...
's ''
A Study of History A, or a, is the first letter and the first vowel letter of the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, and others worldwide. Its name in English is '' a'' (pronounced ), plural ''aes''. It is similar in shape to the Ancient ...
''". Boucher and McComas described it as "fine swashbuckling adventure ... so infinitely intricate that you may never quite understand what it's about". P. Schuyler Miller described it as "action-entertainment, fast-paced enough that you don't stop to bother with inconsistencies or improbabilities". In his introduction in the 1967 Four Square
paperback A paperback (softcover, softback) book is one with a thick paper or paperboard cover, also known as wrappers, and often held together with adhesive, glue rather than stitch (textile arts), stitches or Staple (fastener), staples. In contrast, ...
reprint of the novel,
Brian Aldiss Brian Wilson Aldiss (; 18 August 1925 – 19 August 2017) was an English writer, artist and anthology editor, best known for science fiction novels and short stories. His byline reads either Brian W. Aldiss or simply Brian Aldiss, except for oc ...
terms it a major example of the "Widescreen Baroque" style in science fiction, and
John Clute John Frederick Clute (born 12 September 1940) is a Canadian-born author and critic specializing in science fiction and fantasy literature who has lived in both England and the United States since 1969. He has been described as "an integral part ...
terms it "the kind of tale which transforms traditional space opera into an arena where a vast array of characters can act their hearts out, where anything can be said with a wink or dead seriously, and any kind of story be told". In ''
Trillion Year Spree ''Trillion Year Spree: The History of Science Fiction'', commonly referred to as ''Trillion Year Spree,'' is a 1986 book by Brian W. Aldiss and David Wingrove. It is a book-length history of science fiction. The book is an expanded version of Aldi ...
'', Aldiss and Wingrove report the novel "plays high, wide, and handsome with space and time, buzzes around the solar system like a demented hornet, ndis witty, profound, and trivial all in one breath". ''The Paradox Men'' features the concept of force fields which protect people against high-velocity weapons like guns but not against knives or swords, an idea later used in
Frank Herbert Franklin Patrick Herbert Jr. (October 8, 1920February 11, 1986) was an American science-fiction author, best known for his 1965 novel Dune (novel), ''Dune'' and its five sequels. He also wrote short stories and worked as a newspaper journalist, ...
's ''
Dune A dune is a landform composed of wind- or water-driven sand. It typically takes the form of a mound, ridge, or hill. An area with dunes is called a dune system or a dune complex. A large dune complex is called a dune field, while broad, flat ...
'' (1965). In 1953, Harness also published his most famous single story, "The Rose", which first appeared in the British magazine '' Authentic Science Fiction'', then as the main novella in a UK mass-market paperback collection assembled and introduced by Michael Moorcock. The story did not appear in the United States until 1969. Other Harness' stories include "An Ornament to his Profession", "The Alchemist" and "Stalemate in Space". His story "The New Reality" has been called "SF's best Adam & Eve story" by
Brian Stableford Brian Michael Stableford (25 July 1948 – 24 February 2024) was a British academic, critic and science fiction writer who published a hundred novels and over a hundred volumes of translations. His earlier books were published under the name Br ...
. His novel ''Redworld'' is one of the very few science fiction novels in which all characters are aliens. Harness's ideas influenced numerous writers and he continued to publish until 2001, being nominated for multiple Hugo and
Nebula A nebula (; or nebulas) is a distinct luminescent part of interstellar medium, which can consist of ionized, neutral, or molecular hydrogen and also cosmic dust. Nebulae are often star-forming regions, such as in the Pillars of Creation in ...
awards. In 2004 he was named
Author Emeritus Author Emeritus was an honorary title annually bestowed by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association upon a living writer "as a way to recognize and appreciate senior writers in the genres of science fiction and fantasy who have made signi ...
by the
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, doing business as Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association and commonly known as SFWA ( or ) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. Whi ...
.


Awards

*"The Rose", novella nominated for the
Retro-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 ...
in 2004 *"The Alchemist", novella nominated for the Hugo and Nebula awards for 1966 *"An Ornament to His Profession", novelette nominated for the Hugo and Nebula awards for 1966 *"Probable Cause", novella nominated for the Nebula award for 1969 *"Summer Solstice", novella nominated for the Hugo award in 1985


Bibliography


Short stories

*"Time Trap", ''Astounding Stories'' (August 1948) *"Flight into Yesterday", ''Startling Stories'' (May 1949) *"Summer Solstice", ''Terry Carr's Best Science Fiction of the Year'' (June 1984)


Novels

*''Flight into Yesterday'' (1953); based on a 1949 novella; reprinted as ''
The Paradox Men ''The Paradox Men'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Charles L. Harness, his first novel. Initially published as a novella, "Flight into Yesterday", in the May 1949 issue of '' Startling Stories'', it was republished as ''The Parad ...
'', 1955 by
Ace Books Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by A. A. Wyn, Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mystery fiction, mysteries and western (genre), westerns, and soon branched out int ...
and thereafter *''The Ring of Ritornel'' (1968) *''Wolfhead'' (1978) *''The Catalyst'' (1980) *''Firebird'' (1981) *''The Venetian Court'' (1982) *''Redworld'' (1986) *''Krono'' (1988) *''Lurid Dreams'' (1990) *''Lunar Justice'' (1991) *''Drunkard's Endgame'' (1999) (in ''Rings'', an omnibus edition of four novels by Harness from
NESFA Press NESFA Press is the publishing arm of the New England Science Fiction Association, Inc. The NESFA Press primarily produces three types of books: * Books honoring the guest(s) of honor at their annual convention, Boskone, and at some Worldcons an ...
) *''Cybele, With Bluebonnets'' (2002)


Collections

*''The Rose'' (1966) *''An Ornament to His Profession'' (1998) (
NESFA Press NESFA Press is the publishing arm of the New England Science Fiction Association, Inc. The NESFA Press primarily produces three types of books: * Books honoring the guest(s) of honor at their annual convention, Boskone, and at some Worldcons an ...
reprint collection, )


References


External links

* * *
Charles Harness
at FantasticFiction.co.uk * {{DEFAULTSORT:Harness, Charles L. 1915 births 2005 deaths 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American male novelists American science fiction writers Novelists from Texas Novelists from Connecticut Novelists from Washington, D.C. 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers