Gwenda Bond (born July 12, 1976) is an American author of science fiction and fantasy, young adult, and romance novels. A novelist since 2012, she is also a member of the

Clarion Workshop The Clarion Workshop is an American six-week workshop for aspiring science fiction and fantasy writers. Originally an outgrowth of Damon Knight's and Kate Wilhelm's Milford Writer's Workshop, Milford Writer's Conference, held at their home in Milfo ...

faculty for 2022, and has been a judge for the Bradbury Prize, the

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year at the eponymous ann ...

, the

Otherwise 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 ...

, and the SLF Fountain Award.

Biography

Bond was born on July 12, 1976 in

Jackson County, Kentucky Jackson County is a county located in the Commonwealth of Kentucky. As of the 2020 census, the population was 12,955. Its county seat is McKee. The county was formed in 1858 from land given by Madison, Estill, Owsley, Clay, Laurel, and Rockc ...

. Her parents were both principals. Bond majored in journalism at

Eastern Kentucky University Eastern Kentucky University (Eastern or EKU) is a public university in Richmond, Kentucky. It also maintains branch campuses in Corbin, Hazard, and Manchester and offers over 40 online undergraduate and graduate options. History Founding ...

, whereupon she worked for the state government in public health communications for 17 years, publishing articles and stories in her spare time. She was a spokesperson for the Kentucky Cabinet for Health and Family Services. While working, she obtained a Masters of Fine Arts degree at

Vermont College of Fine Arts Vermont College of Fine Arts (VCFA) is a private graduate-level college affiliated with California Institute of the Arts. It offers Master's degrees in a low-residency format. Its faculty includes Pulitzer Prize finalists, National Book Award wi ...

, acquired an agent, and shopped around four manuscripts before finally getting a contract in 2012 for ''Blackwood''. She has since published more than a dozen books. She is a co-founder of the Lexington Writer's Room, a nonprofit organization. Bond began her fiction publishing career with her "Dear Aunt Gwenda" series of fanciful advice columns published from 2003 to 2011 in ''

Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet ''Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet'' (''LCRW'') is a twice-yearly small press zine published by Small Beer Press, edited by Gavin Grant and Kelly Link. It contains an eclectic mix of fiction, poetry, and nonfiction, with an emphasis on specula ...

''. In 2011, she edited the summer issue of the science fiction magazine ''Subterranean Online'', published by

Subterranean Press Subterranean Press is a small press publisher in Burton, Michigan. Subterranean is best known for publishing genre fiction, primarily Horror fiction, horror, suspense and dark mystery, fantasy, and science fiction. In addition to publishing novel ...

, which was a sixth-place finalist for the

Locus Award The Locus Awards are an annual set of literary awards voted on by readers of the science fiction and fantasy magazine '' Locus'', a monthly magazine based in Oakland, California. The awards are presented at an annual banquet. Originally a poll ...

. Her first published book was the science fiction novel, ''Blackwood'', released in 2012, which was a finalist for the Locus, ultimately placing sixth. In addition to her original speculative fiction, Bond has been a prominent writer of franchise tie-in novels, including the first novel set in the ''

Stranger Things ''Stranger Things'' is an American television series created by the Duffer brothers, Duffer Brothers for Netflix. Produced by Monkey Massacre Productions and 21 Laps Entertainment, the Stranger Things season 1, first season was released on N ...

'' universe, the ''New York Times'' bestseller ''Suspicious Minds''. Since 2015, Bond has published three novels in the DC Stories Metaverse starring

Lois Lane Lois Lane is a fictional character appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. Created by writer Jerry Siegel and artist Joe Shuster, she first appeared in ''Action Comics'' Action Comics 1, #1 (June 1938). Lois is an award-winning ...

. Her nonfiction credits include pieces that have been published in ''

Publishers Weekly ''Publishers Weekly'' (''PW'') is an American weekly trade news magazine targeted at publishers, librarians, booksellers, and literary agents. Published continuously since 1872, it has carried the tagline, "The International News Magazine of ...

'', '' Locus'', ''

Salon Salon may refer to: Common meanings * Beauty salon A beauty salon or beauty parlor is an establishment that provides Cosmetics, cosmetic treatments for people. Other variations of this type of business include hair salons, spas, day spas, ...

'', the ''

Los Angeles Times The ''Los Angeles Times'' is an American Newspaper#Daily, daily newspaper that began publishing in Los Angeles, California, in 1881. Based in the Greater Los Angeles city of El Segundo, California, El Segundo since 2018, it is the List of new ...

''. She currently serves as faculty for the

for speculative fiction writers. In addition to having five times being nominated for the Locus Award, she has served as a judge for the SLF Fountain Award (2006), the

,(2008), the

(2020), and the Bradbury Prize (2022). She has been nominated for the

five times and is a winner of the RWA Veritas Award. She received the 2020 Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award with Kami Garcia and Sam Humphries for co-founding the Creators 4 Comics fundraising initiative for comic shops and independent bookstores during the early days of the COVID pandemic.

Personal life

Bond met her ex-husband, writer Christopher Rowe, with whom she has written the middle grade series, the ''Supernormal Sleuthing Service'', in 2001 at a writers conference. The two were married in 2004 and divorced in 2023. She currently lives in

Lexington, Kentucky Lexington is a Consolidated city-county, consolidated city coterminous with and the county seat of Fayette County, Kentucky, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census the city's population was 322,570, making it the List of ...

Awards

*'"Romancing the Recession," Publishers Weekly, RWA Veritas Award Winner, 2010 *''Summer 2011, Subterranean Online'', Best Magazine Locus Finalist (6th), 2012 *''Blackwood'', Best New Novel Locus Finalist (6th), 2013 *''The Woken Gods'', Best Young Adult Book Locus Finalist (8th), 2014 *''Girl on a Wire'', Best Young Adult Book Locus Finalist (9th), 2015 *''Lois Lane'', Best Young Adult Book Locus Finalist (8th), 2017 * Creators4Comics Initiative, Bob Clampett Humanitarian Award Winner, with co-founders Kami Garcia and Sam Humphries, 2020

Partial bibliography

Blackwood

*''Blackwood'' (2012) *''Strange Alchemy'' (2017)

Girl on a Wire

*''Girl on a Wire'' (2014) *''Girl in the Shadows'' (2016)

Lois Lane

*''Fallout'' (2015) *''Double Down'' (2016) *''Triple Threat'' (2017)

Match Made in Hell

*''Not Your Average Hot Guy'' (2021) *''The Date from Hell'' (2022)

Stranger Things

*''Suspicious Minds'' (2019)

Mr. & Mrs. Witch

*''Mr. and Mrs. Witch'' (2023)

The Supernatural Sleuthing Service

*''The Lost Legacy'' (2017) *''The Sphinx's Secret'' (2019)

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Bond, Gwenda 1976 births Living people American fantasy writers 21st-century American novelists American science fiction writers Eastern Kentucky University alumni Vermont College of Fine Arts alumni American women science fiction and fantasy writers Writers from Kentucky DC Comics people People from Jackson County, Kentucky American women novelists