Cherie Priest (born July 30, 1975) is an American

novelist A novelist is an author or writer of novels, though often novelists also write in other genres of both fiction and non-fiction. Some novelists are professional novelists, thus make a living writing novels and other fiction, while others aspire to ...

and

blog A blog (a truncation of "weblog") is a discussion or informational website published on the World Wide Web consisting of discrete, often informal diary-style text entries (posts). Posts are typically displayed in reverse chronological order ...

ger living in

Seattle, Washington Seattle ( ) is a port, seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the county seat, seat of King County, Washington, King County, Washington (state), Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in bo ...

Biography

Priest is a Florida native, born in

Tampa Tampa () is a city on the Gulf Coast of the U.S. state of Florida. The city's borders include the north shore of Tampa Bay and the east shore of Old Tampa Bay. Tampa is the largest city in the Tampa Bay area and the seat of Hillsborough County ...

in 1975. She graduated from Forest Lake Academy, a

Seventh-day Adventist The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventism, Adventist Protestantism, Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the Names of the days of the week#Numbered days of the week, seventh day of the ...

boarding school in

Apopka Apopka is a city in Orange County, Florida. The city's population was 55,000 at the 2020 census. It is part of the Orlando–Kissimmee–Sanford Metropolitan Statistical Area. ''Apopka'' comes from Seminole word ''Ahapopka'' for "Potato eating ...

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

in 1993. She moved around quite a bit as a child of an Army father, living in many places such as

Texas Texas (, ; Spanish language, Spanish: ''Texas'', ''Tejas'') is a state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States. At 268,596 square miles (695,662 km2), and with more than 29.1 million residents in 2 ...

Kentucky Kentucky ( , ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States and one of the states of the Upper South. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north; West Virginia and Virginia to ...

, and

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

. She moved around regularly until college. In 1998 she graduated with a

B.A. Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four yea ...

from

Southern Adventist University Southern Adventist University is a private Seventh-day Adventist university in Collegedale, Tennessee. It is owned and operated by the Southern Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. It was founded in 1892 in Graysville, Tennessee, as G ...

in Collegedale, Tennessee, and in 2001 she left the

University of Tennessee at Chattanooga The University of Tennessee at Chattanooga (UT-Chattanooga, UTC, or Chattanooga) is a public university in Chattanooga, Tennessee, United States. It was founded in 1886 and is one of four universities and two other affiliated institutions in the ...

with an

M.A. A Master of Arts ( la, Magister Artium or ''Artium Magister''; abbreviated MA, M.A., AM, or A.M.) is the holder of a master's degree awarded by universities in many countries. The degree is usually contrasted with that of Master of Science. Tho ...

in Rhetoric/Professional writing. Priest lived in

Chattanooga Chattanooga ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Hamilton County, Tennessee, United States. Located along the Tennessee River bordering Georgia, it also extends into Marion County on its western end. With a population of 181,099 in 2020, ...

for twelve years and it is there she both set her Eden Moore series and wrote the first two books. In May 2012, she and her husband Aric Annear moved back to Tennessee from Seattle, Washington. In 2017, she returned to live in Seattle. Although Priest was baptized into the

Seventh-day Adventist Church The Seventh-day Adventist Church is an Adventist Protestant Christian denomination which is distinguished by its observance of Saturday, the seventh day of the week in the Christian (Gregorian) and the Hebrew calendar, as the Sabbath, and ...

, she has no further contact with the church and claims no religious affiliation. In addition to her novels, Priest was a reviewer for the

Bram Stoker Award The Bram Stoker Award is a recognition presented annually by the Horror Writers Association (HWA) for "superior achievement" in dark fantasy and horror writing. History The Awards were established in 1987 and have been presented annually since 1 ...

-winning website ''Chiaroscuro'' and currently is a staff member of

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

. She is a regular attendee and panelist at

DragonCon Dragon Con (previously Dragon*Con and sometimes DragonCon) is a North American multigenre convention, founded in 1987, which takes place annually over the Labor Day weekend in Atlanta, Georgia. , the convention draws attendance of over 80,000, f ...

and several other genre conventions around the country such as

Penguicon Penguicon is a convention in southeastern Michigan designed originally to mix the communities of the science fiction fandom and Linux user groups. In addition to educational panels on science fiction in the media, attendees participate in prof ...

and Steamcon. She is also known for giving talks and writing articles about the hobby of

urban exploration Urban exploration (often shortened as UE, urbex and sometimes known as roof and tunnel hacking) is the exploration of manmade structures, usually abandoned ruins or hidden components of the manmade environment. Photography and historical inter ...

Awards

* In March 2006, she won the

Lulu Blooker Prize Lulu Press, Inc., doing business under trade name Lulu, is an online print-on-demand, self-publishing, and distribution platform. By 2014, it had issued approximately two million titles. The company's founder is Red Hat co-founder Bob Young. Lu ...

for Fiction for ''Four and Twenty Blackbirds'' (Tor Books, 2005), becoming the first ever winner in that category.Lulu Blooker Blog: And the Winners are
* Her 2006 short story "Wishbones" was part of the ''Aegri Somnia'' anthology by

Apex Digest ''Apex Magazine'', also previously known as ''Apex Digest'', is an American horror and science fiction magazine. This subscription webzine, ''Apex Magazine'', contains short fiction, reviews, and interviews. It has been nominated for several awa ...

, which was nominated for a

. * Her 2009 novel ''Boneshaker'' won a

Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award The Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association Award, also known as the Pacific Northwest Book Award (PNBA), is an annual award presented by the Pacific Northwest Booksellers Association to recognize "excellence in writing" from the American Pacif ...

* The

Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, doing business as Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association, commonly known as SFWA ( or ) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. While ...

announced that ''Boneshaker'' made the final ballot for the 2009

Nebula Award The Nebula Awards annually recognize the best works of science fiction or fantasy published in the United States. The awards are organized and awarded by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA), a nonprofit association of profe ...

for Best Novel. * ''Boneshaker'' was a 2010

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 and chosen by its members. The Hugo is widely considered the premier a ...

nominee in the Best Novel category. * ''Boneshaker'' won the 2010

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. In addition to the pl ...

in the Best Science Fiction Novel category.

Bibliography

Novels

Booking Agent Series

* ''Grave Reservations'', 2021, Atria Books. . * ''Flight Risk'', 2022, Atria Books. .

The Borden Dispatches

* ''Maplecroft'', 2014,

Roc Books Roc Books is a fantasy imprint of Penguin Group, as part of its New American Library. It was launched in April 1990 after Penguin Chairman Peter Mayer asked John Silbersack, the editor in chief of New American Library's science fiction (SF) prog ...

. . * ''Chapelwood'', 2015,

. .

Eden Moore series

* ''Four and Twenty Blackbirds'', **Original edition, 2003, Marietta Publishing. . **Re-released in a revised, much expanded, edition, 2005,

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 ...

. . ** Issued in the United Kingdom, February 2012,

Titan Books Titan Publishing Group is the publishing division of Titan Entertainment Group, which was established in 1981. The books division has two main areas of publishing: film and television tie-ins and cinema reference books; and graphic novels and co ...

. * ''Wings to the Kingdom'', October 2006,

. . ** Issued in the United Kingdom, May 2012,

. * '' Not Flesh Nor Feathers'', 2007,

. . **

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 B ...

described this book as "a bit talky" but also as Cherie Priest's "most assured outing yet."

Clockwork Century Universe

* ''Boneshaker'', October 2009,

. . * ''Clementine'', July 2010,

. . * ''Dreadnought'', September 2010,

. . * ''Ganymede'', September 2011,

. . * ''The Inexplicables'', November 2012, Tor Books. . * ''Fiddlehead'', November 2013, Tor Books. * ''Jacaranda'', January 2015, Subterranean Press.

Cheshire Red Reports series

* ''Bloodshot'', January 2011,

Bantam Spectra Bantam Spectra is the science fiction division of American publishing company Bantam Books, which is owned by Random House. According to their website, Spectra publishes "science fiction, fantasy, horror, and speculative novels from recogniz ...

. . ** Issued in the United Kingdom, July 2011,

. . * ''Hellbent'', September 6, 2011,

. . ** Issued in the United Kingdom, September 2011,

. . The Cheshire Red Reports concern a vampire thief called Raylene Pendle. Although she prefers to work alone, she acquires a group of misfits who join her in her adventures. These are two young children, a blind vampire and an ex-Navy Seal/Drag Queen. ''Bloodshot'' also features the world of

. The Cheshire Red reports were originally only commissioned as a two book series. There is the possibility of a third book in this series provisionally entitled ''Sawbones'' if sufficient interest is expressed.

Other novels

* ''Dreadful Skin'', March 2007,

. . * ''Fathom'', December 2008,

. . * ''Those Who Went Remain There Still'', December 2008,

. . * '' I Am Princess X'', May 2015,

Arthur A. Levine Books Scholastic Corporation () is an American multinational publishing, education, and media company that publishes and distributes books, comics, and educational materials for schools, parents, and children. Products are distributed via retail and on ...

. . * ''The Family Plot'', September 2016,

. * ''Brimstone'', April 2017,

Ace An ace is a playing card, die or domino with a single pip. In the standard French deck, an ace has a single suit symbol (a heart, diamond, spade, or club) located in the middle of the card, sometimes large and decorated, especially in the c ...

. . * ''The Agony House'', September 2018,

/ Scholastic. . *''The Toll'', July 2019, Tor Books.

Short stories and other work

* 'The Heavy', a short story. Published in

Issue #12, March 2008. * 'The Target Audience', a short story. Published in ''Noctem Aeternus'' January, 2008. * 'Following Piper', a short story. Published in Subterranean Digest issue #6. * 'Little Wards', a short story. Published i
The Edge of Propinquity
June 2006 * 'The Immigrant', a short story, part of ''Mythic #2'', October 2006 Mythic Delirium Books. * 'Bad Sushi', a short story. Published in

, Issue #10. Republished in "New Cthulhu", ed. Paula Guran, November 2011. * 'Wishbones', a short story, part of ''

Aegri Somnia ''Aegri Somnia'' is an anthology of horror stories edited by Jason Sizemore and Gill Ainsworth, and published by Apex Books in 2006. The twelve stories in this collection were all written by different authors. In 2006, ''Aegri Somnia'' was nom ...

''. December 2006

. (paperback), (hardback) * 'Tanglefoot', a short story, published online by

, 2009. First release of the Clockwork Century universe. * 'Hell's Bells,' ''Grant’s Pass'', Morrigan Books 2009 * 'The Catastrophe Box', a short story ''Son of Retro Pulp Tales'',

2010 * 'Reluctance', a short story, part of "The Mammoth Book of Steampunk", first published in the UK by Robinson, an imprint of Constable & Robinson Ltd, 2012

Articles (non-fiction)

*
Steampunk Wardrobe Customizations for the Lazy, the Poor, or the Crafty
'

Tor Tor, TOR or ToR may refer to: Places * Tor, Pallars, a village in Spain * Tor, former name of Sloviansk, Ukraine, a city * Mount Tor, Tasmania, Australia, an extinct volcano * Tor Bay, Devon, England * Tor River, Western New Guinea, Indonesia Sc ...

, October 2009 *
Steampunk for Beginners
'

BookBrowse ''BookBrowse'' is an online magazine and website that provides book reviews, author interviews, book previews, and reading guides. The magazine is independent of publishers and does not sell books that it reviews. The site offers both free and pre ...

, October 2009 *
Growing up Poe
'

Weird Tales ''Weird Tales'' is an American fantasy and horror fiction pulp magazine founded by J. C. Henneberger and J. M. Lansinger in late 1922. The first issue, dated March 1923, appeared on newsstands February 18. The first editor, Edwin Baird, prin ...

, January 2009

References

External links

Cherie Priest's Official Site

Editorial Reviews on Amazon.com

Reviews at Barnes & Noble

Interview at

Clarkesworld Magazine ''Clarkesworld Magazine'' (ISSN 1937-7843) is an American online fantasy and science fiction magazine. It released its first issue October 1, 2006 and has maintained a regular monthly schedule since, publishing fiction by authors such as Elizabe ...

(11/10) * {{DEFAULTSORT:Priest, Cherie 1975 births Living people Writers from Tampa, Florida 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American women writers American horror writers American women novelists American women short story writers American science fiction writers Women science fiction and fantasy writers University of Tennessee at Chattanooga alumni Southern Adventist University alumni Steampunk writers Women horror writers 21st-century American short story writers Novelists from Florida Former Seventh-day Adventists