Scott Westerfeld

Scott David Westerfeld (born May 5, 1963) is an American writer of young adult fiction, best known as the author of the '' Uglies'' and the ''Leviathan'' series.

Early life

Westerfeld was born in Dallas, Texas. As a child he moved to Connecticut for his father Lloyd's job as a computer programmer for UNIVAC. He saw his father working with planes for Lockheed Martin, submarines for Electric Boat, and NASA's Apollo missions; these projects made his family move across the states frequently, and he developed a penchant for storytelling to his peers and teachers who often asked him about his hometown.

Westerfeld graduated from Vassar College with an A.B. in Philosophy in 1985. He began composing music as a teenager and composes music for modern dance. In 2001, Westerfeld married Australian author Justine Larbalestier.

As of 2013, Westerfeld divided his time between Sydney, Australia and New York City.

Books

Westerfeld is best known for the '' Uglies'' series and its spin-offs. Other novels of his include '' Afterworlds'' and, for adults, '' The Risen Empire'' and '' The Killing of Worlds'', parts one and two of ''Succession''.

Westerfeld began his career writing novels for adults, but switched to YA literature with his Midnighters trilogy. He has written four YA novels that take place in New York City: ''Peeps'', ''The Last Days'', ''So Yesterday'', and ''Afterworlds''. While ''The Last Days'' is not a sequel to ''Peeps'', it follows a group of different characters in the same setting. ''So Yesterday'' is not related to these novels, but is often grouped with them because it is also set in New York City.

He has also written the ''Leviathan'' series, an alternate history trilogy set in World War I consisting of ''Leviathan'', ''Behemoth'' and ''Goliath'', plus its illustrated guide '' The Manual of Aeronautics''.

In 2017, Westerfeld produced a graphic novel with illustrations by Alex Puvilland titled ''The Spill Zone''. The graphic novel, released officially in October 2016 as an online syndication prior to the 2017 print release, tells of a photographer who ventures back into her upstate New York hometown abandoned by a mysterious event to take pictures of the occurrences happening there since.

In a blogpost in 2006, Westerfeld claimed to have ghostwritten five Goosebumps books, one of which was All-Day Nightmare, one of the entries in the Give Yourself Goosebumps series which came out in February 2000.

Several of his novels have been optioned for films. '' So Yesterday'' has been optioned to be made into a film by one of the producers of ''Fahrenheit 9/11'' and '' Bowling for Columbine''. However, this option 'slowly died', as Scott Westerfeld wrote on his blog. The ''Uglies'' series was optioned in 2006 by Twentieth Century Fox as a possible film series.''Publishers Weekly'', January 8, 2007.

Themes

A major theme in Westerfeld's work is the idea of free thinking or questioning authority. In '' Uglies,'' the protagonist Tally rebels against her society's rules first with harmless pranks and eventually by leaving the city altogether. She finds a group of runaway uglies who refuse to conform to social norms that includes undergoing cosmetic surgery. Similarly, '' So Yesterday'' examines popularity and why certain trends are considered 'cool.' The novels praises innovators who think outside the box and come up with new fashion statements entirely on their own.

Another common theme in Westerfeld's novels is coming of age. Because Westerfeld writes primarily for young adult audiences, his protagonists are usually teenagers who find themselves over the course of the novel or series. Tally in '' Uglies,'' Cal in ''Peeps'' and Hunter in ''So Yesterday'' all struggle with finding where they belong until they come to terms with who they are.

Courage is another common theme in Westerfeld's work. His protagonists often face frightening or dangerous problems and have to rely on their own courage to overcome the problem. Often adults are not present during the time of crisis and the protagonist is left to his or her own devices. For example, Cal in ''Peeps'' is trained by adults on how to track down vampires, but he goes alone to actually catch them and must accomplish this task completely on his own.

Awards

*'' Evolution's Darling'' was a ''New York Times'' Notable Book (2000), and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award
*'' So Yesterday'' won a Victorian Premier's Award
*'' The Secret Hour'' won an Aurealis Award
*''Peeps'' and '' Uglies'' were both named as " Best Books for Young Adults" in 2006 by the American Library Association (ALA), and ''Peeps'' was in the Top Ten. ''Uglies'' was also selected for the ALA Popular Paperbacks for Young Adults 2006 list.
*''Leviathan'' won the 2010 Locus Award for Best Young Adult Fiction and was nominated for an ORCA (Oregon Reader's Choice Award) in the intermediate division. The Russian translation of ''Leviathan'' was awarded by Mir Fantastiki as Best Young Adult Fiction in 2011.

Bibliography

Adult

*'' Polymorph'' (1997)
*'' Fine Prey'' (1998)
*'' Evolution's Darling'' (2000)

''Succession'' series

* '' The Risen Empire'' (2003)
*'' The Killing of Worlds'' (2003)
The two books were re-published in 2005 in one volume, also titled ''The Risen Empire''.

Young adult

*'' So Yesterday'' (2004)
*'' Afterworlds'' (2014)
*''Horizon'' (2017)

''Midnighters'' trilogy

*'' The Secret Hour'' (2004)
*'' Touching Darkness'' (2005)
*'' Blue Noon'' (2006)

''Peeps'' series

*''Peeps'' (2005) (also known as ''Parasite Positive'' in Britain and ''V-Virus'' or ''Peeps'' in Canada)
*''The Last Days'' (2006)

''Uglies'' universe

= ''Uglies'' series

=
*'' Uglies'' (2005)
*'' Pretties'' (2005)
*'' Specials'' (2006)
*'' Extras'' (2007)

= ''Impostors'' series

=
*''Impostors'' (2018)
*''Shatter City'' (2019)
*''Mirror's Edge'' (2021)
*''Youngbloods'' (2022)

= Related works

=
*''Bogus to Bubbly: An Insider's Guide to the World of Uglies'' (2008)
*Graphic novel retellings from Shay's point of view:
**''Uglies: Shay's Story'' (with Devin Grayson and Steven Cummings) (2012)
**''Uglies: Cutters'' (with Devin Grayson and Steven Cummings) (2012)

''Leviathan'' series (illustrated by Keith Thompson)

*''Leviathan'' (2009)
*''Behemoth'' (2010)
*''Goliath'' (2011)

= Related works

=
*'' The Manual of Aeronautics'' (illustrated guide) (2012)

''Spill Zone'' graphic novel series (illustrated by Alex Puvilland)

* ''Spill Zone'' (2016)
* ''Spill Zone: The Broken Vow'' (2019)

= Related works

=
* ''Spill Night'' (short story for Free Comic Book Day) (2017)

''Zeroes'' trilogy (with Margo Lanagan and Deborah Biancotti)

*'' Zeroes'' (2015)
* ''Swarm'' (2016)
* ''Nexus'' (2018)

References

External links

*

Interview
at SFFWorld.com
* fan site
* fan site


from '' Locus'' May 2006

Novel synopses, cover art, and reviews at ''Fantasy Literature''
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Scott Westerfeld's Official Wattpad Profile

{{DEFAULTSORT:Westerfeld, Scott
1963 births
20th-century American novelists
21st-century American novelists
American children's writers
American expatriates in Australia
American science fiction writers
American writers of young adult literature
Living people
Writers from Dallas
Steampunk writers
Vassar College alumni
Novelists from Texas
American male novelists
Writers of young adult science fiction
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers