Gordon Van Gelder (born 1966) 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 ...

editor. From 1997 until 2014, Van Gelder was editor and later publisher of ''

The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction ''The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (usually referred to as ''F&SF'') is a U.S. fantasy fiction magazine, fantasy and science-fiction magazine, first published in 1949 by Mystery House, a subsidiary of Lawrence E. Spivak, Lawrence Spiv ...

'', for which he has twice won the Hugo Award for Best Editor Short Form. He was also a managing editor of ''

The New York Review of Science Fiction ''The New York Review of Science Fiction'' is a monthly literary magazine of science fiction that was established in 1988. It includes works of science fiction criticism, essays, and in-depth critical reviews of new works of fiction and scholarsh ...

'' from 1988 to 1993, for which he was nominated for 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 ...

a number of times. In 2015, Van Gelder stepped down as editor of ''Fantasy & Science Fiction'' in favor of Charles Coleman Finlay, and remained publisher until early 2025.

Biography

He was born in 1966. After graduating from

Princeton University Princeton University is a private university, private Ivy League research university in Princeton, New Jersey, United States. Founded in 1746 in Elizabeth, New Jersey, Elizabeth as the College of New Jersey, Princeton is the List of Colonial ...

(where he edited a science fiction magazine called ''Infinity''), Van Gelder started working as an editorial assistant at

St. Martin's Press St. Martin's Press is a book publisher headquartered in Manhattan in New York City. It is headquartered in the Equitable Building (New York City), Equitable Building. St. Martin's Press is considered one of the largest English-language publishe ...

in 1988, later rising to full editor. In January 1997, he became the editor of ''

'' upon the resignation of

Kristine Kathryn Rusch Kristine Kathryn Rusch (born June 4, 1960) is an American writer and editor. She writes under various pseudonyms in multiple genres, including science fiction, fantasy, mystery, romance, and mainstream. Rusch won the Hugo Award for Best Nove ...

. He continued working at St. Martin's until October 2000, when he bought the magazine from Edward L. Ferman to become its publisher. During his tenure, ''F&SF'' became the second longest-running science fiction magazine, surpassing ''

Amazing Stories ''Amazing Stories'' is an American science fiction magazine launched in April 1926 by Hugo Gernsback's Experimenter Publishing. It was the first magazine devoted solely to science fiction. Science fiction stories had made regular appearance ...

'' in total number of issues published. It is exceeded only by '' Astounding/Analog''. Van Gelder also began focusing on the publication of themed anthologies drawing from the magazine's back list rather than the best-of annuals published when Ferman was the magazine's publisher. He later edited a collection of notable stories from F&SF, ''The Very Best of Fantasy & Science Fiction'', published by Tachyon Publications. Van Gelder has made some behind-the-scenes changes to ''F&SF''. While the Fermans published the magazine through Mercury Press, Van Gelder founded his own press, Spilogale Inc., named for a genus of

spotted skunk The genus ''Spilogale'' includes all skunks commonly known as spotted skunks. Currently, there are four accepted extant species: ''S. gracilis'', ''S. putorius'', ''S. pygmaea'', and ''S. angustifrons''. New research, however, proposes that ther ...

. He has also moved the editorial offices from

New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...

Jersey City Jersey City is the List of municipalities in New Jersey, second-most populous

New Jersey New Jersey is a U.S. state, state located in both the Mid-Atlantic States, Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern United States, Northeastern regions of the United States. Located at the geographic hub of the urban area, heavily urbanized Northeas ...

. Van Gelder currently lives in

Hoboken, New Jersey Hoboken ( ; ) is a City (New Jersey), city in Hudson County, New Jersey, Hudson County in the U.S. state of New Jersey. Hoboken is part of the New York metropolitan area and is the site of Hoboken Terminal, a major transportation hub. As of the ...

. He has been an administrator of the Philip K. Dick Award since 1995 and an administrator of the World Fantasy Award since 2014. In 2011,

OR Books OR Books is a New York City-based independent publishing house founded by John Oakes and Colin Robinson in 2009. The company sells digital and Print on demand, print-on-demand books directly to the customer and focuses on creative promotion throug ...

released an anthology edited by Van Gelder,
Welcome to the Greenhouse: Science Fiction on Climate Change
', with an introduction by journalist

Elizabeth Kolbert Elizabeth Kolbert (born July 6, 1961) is an American journalist, author, and visiting fellow at Williams College. She is best known for her Pulitzer Prize-winning book '' The Sixth Extinction: An Unnatural History'', and as an observer and com ...

Family

Richard Van Gelder, his father, was Curator of Mammalogy at the

American Museum of Natural History The American Museum of Natural History (AMNH) is a natural history museum on the Upper West Side of Manhattan in New York City. Located in Theodore Roosevelt Park, across the street from Central Park, the museum complex comprises 21 interconn ...

. Lawrence Van Gelder, an uncle of Van Gelder, was a senior editor at ''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''NYT'') is an American daily newspaper based in New York City. ''The New York Times'' covers domestic, national, and international news, and publishes opinion pieces, investigative reports, and reviews. As one of ...

'' until his retirement in 2008. Van Gelder is also distantly related to noted

jazz Jazz is a music genre that originated in the African-American communities of New Orleans, Louisiana, in the late 19th and early 20th centuries. Its roots are in blues, ragtime, European harmony, African rhythmic rituals, spirituals, h ...

recording engineer

Rudy Van Gelder Rudolph Van Gelder (November 2, 1924 – August 25, 2016) was an American recording engineer who specialized in jazz. Over more than half a century, he recorded several thousand sessions, with musicians including Booker Ervin, John Coltrane, Mil ...

.Night Shade Message Boards: June 2005: Bedfellows
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Bibliography

Books

* * * * * * * *

Articles

*''F&SF'

*"A Few Thoughts on Jack Cady's ''The Off Season''" October 1, 2015. *"The New Yorker Festival Panel 'Nouveau Science Fiction'" '' Locus'', November 2015.

Biography

Family

Bibliography

Books

Articles

References

External links