Midori Snyder is an American writer of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy literature and drama ...

mythic fiction Mythic fiction is literature that is rooted in, inspired by, or that in some way draws from the tropes, themes, and symbolism of myth, legend, folklore, and fairy tales. The term is widely credited to Charles de Lint and Terri Windling. Mythic f ...

, and nonfiction on

myth Myth is a folklore genre consisting of narratives that play a fundamental role in a society, such as foundational tales or origin myths. Since "myth" is widely used to imply that a story is not objectively true, the identification of a narrati ...

and

folklore Folklore is shared by a particular group of people; it encompasses the traditions common to that culture, subculture or group. This includes oral traditions such as Narrative, tales, legends, proverbs and jokes. They include material culture, r ...

. She has published eight novels for children and adults, winning the

Mythopoeic Award The Mythopoeic Awards for literature and literary studies are given annually for outstanding works in the fields of myth, fantasy, and the scholarly study of these areas. Established by the Mythopoeic Society in 1971, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Awa ...

for ''The Innamorati''. Her work has been translated into French, Dutch, Italian and Turkish.

Biography

Raised in the United States and Africa, Snyder is the daughter of the French poet and professor of African Languages and Literature Emile Snyder, and Tibetan scholar Jeanette Snyder. She is also the granddaughter of Santa Fe artist Pierre Ménager. She studied African Languages and Literature at the

University of Wisconsin–Madison A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which ...

, specializing in African oral narrative traditions. She moved to Milwaukee and later resumed her studies at the

University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. ''University'' is derived from the Latin phrase ''universitas magistrorum et scholarium'', which rou ...

, subsequently receiving an M.A. in English Literature and Literary Theory. She then spent some time teaching at

Marquette University High School Marquette University High School (MUHS) is a private, all-male, Jesuit, Roman Catholic school located in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is accredited by the North Central Association Commission on Accreditation and School Improvement (NCA CASI), an ac ...

before moving to

Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southwestern United States. It is the list of U.S. states and territories by area, 6th largest and the list of U.S. states and territories by population, 14 ...

Career

Snyder's first novel, ''Soulstring'' (Ace Books, 1987), was a fairytale fantasy loosely inspired by the Scottish legend of

Tam Lin Tam (or Tamas) Lin (also called Tamlane, Tamlin, Tambling, Tomlin, Tam Lien, Tam-a-Line, Tam Lyn, or Tam Lane) is a character in a legendary ballad originating from the Scottish Borders. It is also associated with a reel of the same name, also ...

. This was followed by an imaginary world trilogy: ''New Moon'', ''Sadar's Keep'', and ''Beldan's Fire'' (published as adult fantasy by Tor Books, 1989–1993, where it was called The Queens' Quarter Series; reprinted as young adult fantasy by Firebird/Puffin, 2005, re-titled The Oran Trilogy). ''The Flight of Michael McBride'' (Tor Books, 1994) was a work of

set in the old American West, drawing upon Irish-American, Mexican, and indigenous folklore. ''Hatchling'' (Random House, 1995) was a children's book set in the world of Dinotopia. Snyder's award-winning novel ''The Innamorati'' (Tor Books, 1998) was inspired by Italian and early Roman legends and the theater of the

Commedia dell'Arte (; ; ) was an early form of professional theatre, originating from Italian theatre, that was popular throughout Europe between the 16th and 18th centuries. It was formerly called Italian comedy in English and is also known as , , and . Charac ...

. ''Hannah's Garden'' (Firebird/Puffin, 2004) is a contemporary fantasy for young adult readers about

fairies A fairy (also fay, fae, fey, fair folk, or faerie) is a type of mythical being or legendary creature found in the folklore of multiple European cultures (including Celtic, Slavic, Germanic, English, and French folklore), a form of spirit, of ...

folk music Folk music is a music genre that includes traditional folk music and the contemporary genre that evolved from the former during the 20th-century folk revival. Some types of folk music may be called world music. Traditional folk music has ...

, and family dynamics, set in rural

Wisconsin Wisconsin () is a state in the upper Midwestern United States. Wisconsin is the 25th-largest state by total area and the 20th-most populous. It is bordered by Minnesota to the west, Iowa to the southwest, Illinois to the south, Lake M ...

. With Jane Yolen, Snyder co-authored the novel ''Except the Queen'' (Roc/Penguin, 2010), a contemporary urban fantasy featuring two fey who are banished to the World as elderly women, where they find themselves embroiled in a much larger struggle for power. Snyder's short fiction and poetry has been published in a number of anthologies including '' The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror'', ''The Armless Maiden'' (for which she wrote the title story), ''The Fair Folk'', ''The Green Man'', ''The Coyote Road'', ''Black Thorn White Rose'', ''Swan Sister'', and The Borderland Series. Her essays have appeared in ''

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 (wit ...

'' and other magazines, and in ''Mirror, Mirror on the Wall: Women Writers Explore Their Favorite Fairy Tales--Expanded Edition'' (Random House, 2002). Snyder was the co-director (with

Terri Windling Terri Windling (born December 3, 1958 in Fort Dix, New Jersey) is an American editor, artist, essayist, and the author of books for both children and adults. She has won nine World Fantasy Awards, the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award, and the Bram Stok ...

) of The Endicott Studio, a nonprofit arts and literature organization founded in 1987, and co-editor of ''The Journal of Mythic Arts'', founded in 1997. She served as the 2007 jury chair for the

James Tiptree, Jr. Award The Otherwise Award, formerly 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 f ...

. Snyder lives in

Tucson, Arizona , "(at the) base of the black ill , nicknames = "The Old Pueblo", "Optics Valley", "America's biggest small town" , image_map = , mapsize = 260px , map_caption = Interactive ...

External links

*
Midori Snyder biography
at EndicottStudio *

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Snyder, Midori Year of birth missing (living people) Living people University of Wisconsin–Madison College of Letters and Science alumni 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American fantasy writers American online publication editors American women poets American women short story writers American women novelists Place of birth missing (living people) Women science fiction and fantasy writers World Fantasy Award-winning writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers 20th-century American poets 21st-century American poets 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American short story writers University of Wisconsin–Milwaukee alumni Schoolteachers from Wisconsin American women educators