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Beth Meacham (born 1951) is an American writer and editor, best known as a longtime top editor with
Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles, and is the largest publisher of Chinese scien ...
.


Life, education and family

Meacham was born November 14, 1951 in
Newark Newark most commonly refers to: * Newark, New Jersey, city in the United States * Newark Liberty International Airport, New Jersey; a major air hub in the New York metropolitan area Newark may also refer to: Places Canada * Niagara-on-the ...
, Licking County,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
. She studied Communications in
Antioch College Antioch College is a private liberal arts college in Yellow Springs, Ohio. Founded in 1850 by the Christian Connection, the college began operating in 1852 as a non-sectarian institution; politician and education reformer Horace Mann was its f ...
in Yellow Springs,
Ohio Ohio () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States. Of the fifty U.S. states, it is the 34th-largest by area, and with a population of nearly 11.8 million, is the seventh-most populous and tenth-most densely populated. The sta ...
, where she met her husband,
Tappan King Tappan Wright King (born 1950) is an American editor and author in the field of fantasy fiction, best known for editing ''The Twilight Zone Magazine'' and its companion publication ''Night Cry'' in the late 1980s. Much of his work has appeared u ...
. They were married in 1978, and in 1980 bought a house on
Staten Island Staten Island ( ) is a borough of New York City, coextensive with Richmond County, in the U.S. state of New York. Located in the city's southwest portion, the borough is separated from New Jersey by the Arthur Kill and the Kill Van Kull an ...
, which they spent eight years rehabilitating. Due to Meacham's severe arthritis, they relocated to the drier
Southwest The points of the compass are a set of horizontal, radially arrayed compass directions (or azimuths) used in navigation and cartography. A compass rose is primarily composed of four cardinal directions—north, east, south, and west—each sepa ...
in 1989. They lived in northeast
Tucson , "(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 map ...
,
Arizona Arizona ( ; nv, Hoozdo Hahoodzo ; ood, Alĭ ṣonak ) is a state in the Southwestern United States. It is the 6th largest and the 14th most populous of the 50 states. Its capital and largest city is Phoenix. Arizona is part of the Fou ...
for 14 years before settling on a ranch south of Tucson close to the village of Corona de Tucson. They keep cats and horses.


Literary career

Meacham has written one novel with Tappan King, ''
Nightshade The Solanaceae , or nightshades, are a family of flowering plants that ranges from annual and perennial herbs to vines, lianas, epiphytes, shrubs, and trees, and includes a number of agricultural crops, medicinal plants, spices, weeds, and orna ...
'' (1976,
Pyramid A pyramid (from el, πυραμίς ') is a structure whose outer surfaces are triangular and converge to a single step at the top, making the shape roughly a pyramid in the geometric sense. The base of a pyramid can be trilateral, quadrilat ...
), in addition to a number of short stories on her own. After a stint as a travel coordinator in New York after college, she worked at the Science Fiction Shop bookstore for two years in the late 1970s. In the late 1970s and early 1980s she and her husband were regular reviewers for
Baird Searles William Baird Searles (1934–1993) was a science fiction author and critic. He was best known for his long running review columns for the magazines '' Asimov's'' (reviewing books), '' Amazing'', and ''Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (reviewing films, ...
' and Martin Last's ''SF Review Monthly''. She was an editorial assistant at
Ace Books Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns, and soon branched out into other genres, publishing its first scienc ...
from 1981 to 1983, and an editor beginning in 1978, then joined Ace in 1981 as an editorial assistant. In 1984 she became an editor for
Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company based in New York City. It primarily publishes science fiction and fantasy titles, and is the largest publisher of Chinese scien ...
, where she rose to the position of editor-in-chief. After her 1989 move west, Meacham continued working for Tor long distance as an executive editor. Among the major books she has edited she cites
Greg Bear Gregory Dale Bear (August 20, 1951 – November 19, 2022) was an American writer and illustrator best known for science fiction. His work covered themes of galactic conflict ('' Forge of God'' books), parallel universes ('' The Way'' series), ...
's '' Blood Music'',
Orson Scott Card Orson Scott Card (born August 24, 1951) is an American writer known best for his science fiction works. He is the first and (as of 2022) only person to win both a Hugo Award and a Nebula Award in consecutive years, winning both awards for both ...
's ''
Ender's Game ''Ender's Game'' is a 1985 military science fiction novel by American author Orson Scott Card. Set at an unspecified date in Earth's future, the novel presents an imperiled humankind after two conflicts with an insectoid alien species they dub ...
'', Pat Murphy's ''
The Falling Woman ''The Falling Woman'' is a 1986 contemporary psychological fantasy novel by Pat Murphy. The book won the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1987. Plot summary Elizabeth Butler is an archaeologist, and the author of several popular books that chall ...
'' and
Tim Powers Timothy Thomas Powers (born February 29, 1952) is an American science fiction and fantasy fiction, fantasy author. Powers has won the World Fantasy Award twice for his critically acclaimed novels ''Last Call (novel), Last Call'' and ''Declare''. ...
's ''
The Anubis Gates ''The Anubis Gates'' is a 1983 time travel fantasy novel by American writer Tim Powers. It won the 1983 Philip K. Dick Award and 1984 Science Fiction Chronicle Award. Plot summary In 1801 the British have risen to power in Egypt and suppress ...
''. In February 2017 Beth was the Editor Guest of Honor and Keynote Speaker at the 35th annual
Life, the Universe, & Everything ''Life, the Universe, & Everything: The Marion K. "Doc" Smith Symposium on Science Fiction and Fantasy'' is an academic conference held annually since 1983 in Provo, Utah. It is the longest-running science fiction and fantasy convention in Utah, ...
professional science fiction and fantasy arts symposium.


Bibliography


Novels

*''Nightshade'' (with Tappan King) (1976)


Short stories

*"The Tale of Ali the Camel Driver" (1992) *"One By One" (1993) (collected in
Mike Resnick Michael Diamond Resnick (; March 5, 1942 – January 9, 2020) was an American science fiction writer and editor. He won five Hugo awards and a Nebula award, and was the guest of honor at Chicon 7. He was the executive editor of the defunct ...
's alternate history anthology ''
Alternate Warriors ''Alternate Warriors'' is an alternate history anthology edited by Mike Resnick, published in the United States by Tor Books. The anthology contains 29 short stories, including Resnick's own "Mwalimu in the Squared Circle". The other stories are ...
'') *"Ashes to Ashes" (1993) *"On Tiptoe" (1993) *"A Dream Can Make a Difference" (1994) *"A Spark in the Darkness" (1994) (collected in Mike Resnick's alternate history anthology ''
Alternate Outlaws ''Alternate Outlaws'' is an alternate history anthology edited by Mike Resnick, published in the United States by Tor Books Tor Books is the primary imprint of Tor Publishing Group (previously Tom Doherty Associates), a publishing company ba ...
'') *"Glamour Profession" (1995) *"Coyote" (1996)


Anthologies edited

*''Terry's Universe'' (1988)


Nonfiction

*''A Reader's Guide to Science Fiction'' (with
Baird Searles William Baird Searles (1934–1993) was a science fiction author and critic. He was best known for his long running review columns for the magazines '' Asimov's'' (reviewing books), '' Amazing'', and ''Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (reviewing films, ...
, Martin Last and Michael Franklin) (Harpercollins, 1979, ) *''A Reader's Guide to Fantasy'' (with Michael Franklin and
Baird Searles William Baird Searles (1934–1993) was a science fiction author and critic. He was best known for his long running review columns for the magazines '' Asimov's'' (reviewing books), '' Amazing'', and ''Fantasy & Science Fiction'' (reviewing films, ...
) (Harpercollins, 1982, ) *''
Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials ''Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials'' (1979; second edition 1987) is a science fiction book by artist Wayne Barlowe, with Ian Summers and Beth Meacham (who provided the text). It contains Barlowe's visualizations of different extraterrestrial ...
'' (with
Wayne Barlowe Wayne Douglas Barlowe is an American science fiction and fantasy writer, painter, and concept artist. Barlowe's work focuses on esoteric landscapes and creatures such as citizens of hell and alien worlds. He has painted over 300 book and magazi ...
) (1979) *''DiFate's Catalog of Science Fiction Hardware'' (with
Vincent DiFate Vincent Di Fate (born November 21, 1945) is an American artist specializing in science fiction, fantasy and realistic space art (hardware art) illustration. He was inducted by the Science Fiction Hall of Fame on June 25, 2011. Di Fate was bor ...
) (1980) *''Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials'' (2nd ed.) (with
Wayne Barlowe Wayne Douglas Barlowe is an American science fiction and fantasy writer, painter, and concept artist. Barlowe's work focuses on esoteric landscapes and creatures such as citizens of hell and alien worlds. He has painted over 300 book and magazi ...
and Ian Summers) (Workman 1987, )


References


External links

*
Review of King and Meacham's novel ''Nightshade'' at The Groovy Age of Horror
{{DEFAULTSORT:Meacham, Beth 1951 births American book editors Living people Science fiction editors Women speculative fiction editors