Fran Wilde is an American science fiction and fantasy writer and blogger. Her

debut novel A debut novel is the first novel a novelist publishes. Debut novels are often the author's first opportunity to make an impact on the publishing industry, and thus the success or failure of a debut novel can affect the ability of the author to p ...

, ''

Updraft In meteorology, an updraft is a small-scale current of rising air, often within a cloud. Overview Localized regions of warm or cool air will exhibit vertical movement. A mass of warm air will typically be less dense than the surrounding regi ...

'', was nominated for the 2016 Nebula Award, and won the 2016

Andre Norton Award The Andre Norton Nebula Award for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction (formerly the Andre Norton Award for Young Adult Science Fiction and Fantasy) is an annual award presented by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) to the ...

and the 2016

Compton Crook Award The Compton Crook Award is presented to the best English language first novel of the year in the field of science fiction, fantasy, or horror by the members of the Baltimore Science Fiction Society at their annual science fiction convention, Baltic ...

. Her debut middle grade novel, ''Riverland'', won the 2019 Andre Norton Award, was named an NPR Best Book of 2019 and was a Lodestar Finalist. Wilde is the first person to win two Andre Norton Awards for Middle Grade and Young Adult Fiction. Her short fiction has appeared in ''

Asimov's Science Fiction ''Asimov's Science Fiction'' is an American science fiction magazine which publishes science fiction and fantasy named after science fiction author Isaac Asimov. It is currently published by Penny Publications. From January 2017, the publicatio ...

'', ''

Nature Nature, in the broadest sense, is the physical world or universe. "Nature" can refer to the phenomena of the physical world, and also to life in general. The study of nature is a large, if not the only, part of science. Although humans are ...

'', Tor.com, ''

Uncanny Magazine ''Uncanny Magazine'' is an American science fiction and fantasy online magazine, edited and published by Lynne M. Thomas and Michael Damian Thomas, based in Urbana, Illinois. Its mascot is a space unicorn. The editors-in-chief, who originally ...

'', and elsewhere. Her fiction explores themes of social class, disability, disruptive technology, and empowerment against a backdrop of engineering and artisan culture.

Early life

Wilde was born in

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania#Municipalities, largest city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the List of United States cities by population, sixth-largest city i ...

, Pennsylvania in 1972. She attended the

University of Virginia The University of Virginia (UVA) is a public research university in Charlottesville, Virginia. Founded in 1819 by Thomas Jefferson, the university is ranked among the top academic institutions in the United States, with highly selective ad ...

, earning a BA in English with honors in 1994. She then went on to earn a MFA in poetry from

Warren Wilson College Warren Wilson College (WWC) is a private liberal arts college in Swannanoa, North Carolina. It is known for its curriculum that combines academics, work, and service as every student must complete a requisite course of study, work an on-campu ...

in 1996 and a master's degree in

information architecture Information architecture (IA) is the structural design of shared information environments; the art and science of organizing and labelling websites, intranets, online communities and software to support usability and findability; and an emerging ...

and interaction design from the

University of Baltimore The University of Baltimore (UBalt, UB) is a public university in Baltimore, Maryland. It is part of the University System of Maryland. UBalt's schools and colleges provide education in business, law, public affairs, and the applied arts and sc ...

in 2001.

Career

Prior to publishing, Wilde worked as a sailing instructor, a jeweler's assistant, a teacher and professor, and a web and game developer. Her first published novel grew from a short story she developed for the 2011

Viable Paradise Viable Paradise is an annual one-week residential writing workshop held each autumn on the island of Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts and is focused on speculative fiction. The workshop began in 1997, as part of a science fiction convention pre ...

writing workshop. She has published a number of short stories and completed several novels. She writes for the blog GeekMom and runs the blog and podcast Cooking the Books. She attended Taos Toolbox in 2012 and served as an Endeavor Award judge in 2015, and a Norton Jury Member in 2016. Wilde is the writer and creator of the podcast called Machina produced by Realm. The audio drama was a twelve episode series that followed the fictional story of two companies competing to bring artificial intelligence to Mars. Wilde is the Director of the Genre Fiction MFA Concentration at Western Colorado University. Her debut novel, Updraft, was the first novel to be simultaneously nominated for a Nebula and Norton. Her work has been a finalist for six Nebula Awards, three Hugo Awards, two Locus Awards, a World Fantasy Award, and a Lodestar. Wilde is a member of 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. Whil ...

Personal life

Wilde lives and works in Philadelphia, PA with her family.

Bibliography

Novels

;Novels

Short fiction

;Short Stories

Non-fiction

*"Domestic violence and teaching my daughter to always rescue herself first," Washington Post (February 15, 2018) *"We Will See You Now," ''Uncanny Magazine'' (2018) *"Monsters and Magic can help kids through tough times. Here's how." Washington Post (August 9, 2016) *"Why are all the moms gone? A parent/writer tries to find herself in children's literature," Washington Post (August 31, 2015) *"Mom and daughter on reading together," Washington Post (July 2, 2014)

References

External links

* * *
On staying ahead of evolving technology

Geek of the Week: Fran Wilde

Catching Fran Wilde on the Updraft

Debut Tor Authors Play 'Would You Rather, SFF Edition" with John Scalzi
{{DEFAULTSORT:Wilde, Fran 1972 births Living people 21st-century American novelists 21st-century American short story writers 21st-century American women writers American science fiction writers American women novelists American women short story writers Asimov's Science Fiction people Novelists from Pennsylvania University of Baltimore alumni Warren Wilson College alumni Writers from Philadelphia