David Mark Weber (born October 24, 1952) is 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 ...
and
fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures.
The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...
author. He has written several science-fiction and fantasy books series, the best-known of which is the
Honor Harrington science-fiction series. His
first novel, which he worked on with Steve White, sold in 1989 to
Baen Books. Baen remains Weber's major publisher.
Writing career
Born in
Cleveland, Ohio
Cleveland is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located along the southern shore of Lake Erie, it is situated across the Canada–United States border, Canada–U.S. maritime border ...
, on October 24, 1952,
Weber began writing while in
fifth grade.
Some of Weber's first jobs within the writing/advertising world began after high school when he worked as copywriter, typesetter, proofreader, and paste-up artist. He later earned an undergraduate degree from
Warren Wilson College
Warren Wilson College (WWC) is a private liberal arts college in Swannanoa, North Carolina. It is known for its curriculum that combines academics, work, and service as every student must complete a required course of study, work an on-campus j ...
in Asheville, North Carolina and an
M.A. in history from
Appalachian State University
Appalachian State University (), or App State, is a Public university, public research university in Boone, North Carolina, United States. It was founded as a normal school, teachers' college in 1899 by brothers B. B. and D. D. Dougherty and th ...
in Boone, North Carolina.
Weber's first published novels grew out of his work as a wargame designer for the
Task Force
A task force (TF) is a unit or formation established to work on a single defined task or activity. Originally introduced by the United States Navy, the term has now caught on for general usage and is a standard part of NATO terminology. Many ...
board wargame ''
Starfire''.
Weber used the ''Starfire'' universe as a setting for short stories that he wrote for the company's ''
Nexus'' magazine, and he also wrote the ''Starfire'' novel ''Insurrection'' (1990) with
Stephen White after ''Nexus'' was canceled; this book was the first in a tetralogy that concluded with their final collaboration, ''The Shiva Option'' (2002), which was included in
''The New York Times'' Best Seller list.
Weber was influenced by
C. S. Forester,
Patrick O'Brian
Patrick O'Brian (12 December 1914 – 2 January 2000), born Richard Patrick Russ, was an English novelist and translator, best known for his Aubrey–Maturin series. These sea novels are set in the Royal Navy during the Napoleonic Wars and ...
,
Keith Laumer,
H. Beam Piper,
Robert A. Heinlein,
Roger Zelazny,
Christopher Anvil and
Anne McCaffrey
Anne Inez McCaffrey (1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011) was an American writer known for the ''Dragonriders of Pern'' science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction (Best Novella, ''Weyr Search'', 1968) an ...
.
Weber's novels range from
epic fantasy
High fantasy, or epic fantasy, is a subgenre of fantasy defined by the epic nature of its setting or by the epic stature of its characters, themes, or plot. Brian Stableford, ''The A to Z of Fantasy Literature'', (p. 198), Scarecrow Pres ...
(''Oath of Swords'', ''The War God's Own'') to
space opera
Space opera is a subgenre of science fiction that emphasizes Space warfare in science fiction, space warfare, with use of melodramatic, risk-taking space adventures, relationships, and chivalric romance. Set mainly or entirely in outer space, i ...
(''Path of the Fury'', ''The Armageddon Inheritance'') to
alternate history
Alternate history (also referred to as alternative history, allohistory, althist, or simply A.H.) is a subgenre of speculative fiction in which one or more historical events have occurred but are resolved differently than in actual history. As ...
(''1632'' series with
Eric Flint
Eric Flint (February 6, 1947 – July 17, 2022) was an American author, editor, and e-publisher. The majority of his works are alternate history science fiction, but he also wrote humorous fantasy adventures. His works have been listed on ' ...
) and
military science fiction
Military science fiction is a subgenre of science fiction and military fiction that depicts the use of science fiction technology, including spaceships and science fiction weapons, weapons, for military purposes and usually principal characters ...
with in-depth characterization.
A lifetime military history buff, David Weber has carried his interest of history into his fiction. He is said to be interested in most periods of history, with a strong emphasis on the military and diplomatic aspects.
Weber prefers to write about strong characters. He develops a character's background story in advance in considerable detail because he wants to achieve that degree of comfort level with the character.
Weber has said he writes primarily in the evenings and at night.
Weber says he makes an effort to accept as many invitations to science fiction conferences and conventions as he can, because he finds the direct feedback from readers that he gets at conventions extremely useful. He makes a habit of
Tuckerizing people from fandom, particularly in the Honor Harrington books (see, e.g.,
Jordin Kare).
In 2008, Weber donated his archive to the Department of Rare Books and Special Collections at
Northern Illinois University.
Weber received four
Dragon Awards
Personal life
Weber and his wife, Sharon, live in
Greenville, South Carolina
Greenville ( ; ) is a city in Greenville County, South Carolina, United States, and its county seat. With a population of 70,720 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, it is the List of municipalities in South Carolina, sixth-most pop ...
with their three children and "a passel of dogs".
Weber is a
lay speaker in the
United Methodist Church
The United Methodist Church (UMC) is a worldwide mainline Protestant Christian denomination, denomination based in the United States, and a major part of Methodism. In the 19th century, its main predecessor, the Methodist Episcopal Church, was ...
, and he tries to explore in his writing how religions (both real-life and fictional) can be forces for good on the one hand, and misused to defend evil causes on the other.
Weber belongs to the American
Small Business Administration
The United States Small Business Administration (SBA) is an independent agency of the United States government that provides support to entrepreneurs and small businesses. The mission of the Small Business Administration is "to maintain and str ...
, the
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), and the
National Rifle Association of America.
[David G. Hartwell, Kathryn Cramer (2007). ''The Space Opera Renaissance''. Macmillan, p. 145.]
Published works
Weber's main works are contained in the following series:
*
Honorverse
The Honorverse is a military science fiction book series, its two subseries, two prequel series, and anthologies created by David Weber and published by Baen Books. They are centered on the space navy career of the principal protagonist Ho ...
* Dahak
* War God
* Empire of Man
*
Safehold
References
External links
*
*
Baen Books' catalogue for David Weber
{{DEFAULTSORT:Weber, David
1952 births
20th-century American short story writers
20th-century American novelists
21st-century American short story writers
21st-century American novelists
American fantasy writers
American male novelists
American male short story writers
American science fiction writers
*
Living people
Military science fiction writers
Writers from Cleveland
*
American United Methodists
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers
Novelists from Ohio
Appalachian State University alumni