Janrae Frank was an American journalist, writer and editor known primarily for her work in

science fiction Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and futuristic concepts such as advanced science and technology, space exploration, time travel, parallel unive ...

and

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), 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 ...

. She wrote extensively on the subject of women and feminism in speculative fiction.

Life and career

Her first published short story, ''Wolves of Nakesht'', appeared in the 1980

World Fantasy Award The World Fantasy Awards are a set of awards given each year for the best fantasy literature, fantasy fiction published during the previous calendar year. Organized and overseen by the World Fantasy Convention, the awards are given each year a ...

-winning anthology ''

Amazons! ''Amazons!'' is an anthology of fantasy stories, edited by Jessica Amanda Salmonson, with a cover and frontispiece by Michael Whelan. It was first published in paperback by DAW Books in December 1979, and was the first significant fantasy anthol ...

''World Fantasy Award for ''Amazons!'' (1980)
(edited by

Jessica Amanda Salmonson Jessica Amanda Salmonson (born January 6, 1950John Clute and John Grant,Salmonson, Jessica Amanda, in ''The Encyclopedia of Fantasy'', pp. 832–833, Orbit, London / St Martin’s Press, New York (1997).) is an American author and editor of fant ...

). This story introduced her most famous character, Chimquar the Lionhawk, and featured what are arguably her central themes: gender ambiguity and women of martial puissance. Other contributions in this field include ''Women Warriors and Earth Mothers'' and ''New Eves: Science Fiction About the Extraordinary Women of Today and Tomorrow'', ''Locus'' Magazine notes on ''New Eves

an anthology of stories which traced the contributions and history of women in science fiction from the 1920s on, decade by decade. This anthology has been used in many women's study courses on science fiction. Her film journalism has been published in the cult magazine ''

Cinefantastique ''Cinefantastique'' is an American horror, fantasy, and science fiction film magazine. History The magazine originally started as a mimeographed fanzine in 1967, then relaunched as a glossy, offset printed quarterly in 1970 by publisher/editor ...

'' as well as ''Movieline''. Lately, she was better known for

dark fantasy Dark fantasy is a subgenre of fantasy literary, artistic, and cinematic works that incorporate disturbing and frightening themes of fantasy. It often combines fantasy with elements of horror or has a gloomy dark tone or a sense of horror and dr ...

series such as the ''Dark Brothers of the Light'' and the ''Journey of the Sacred King'' quartet.

Published works

Writer

Chimquar the Lionhawk

*''Wolves of Nakesht'', published in ''Amazons!'' (DAW, 1979) *''In the Darkness, Hunting'' (paperback) (Wildside Press, 2004) *''In the Darkness, Hunting: Tales of Chimquar the Lionhawk'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005)

''Dark Brothers of the Light'' series

*''Blood Rites'' ( Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''Blood Heresy'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''Blood Dawn'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''Blood Wraiths'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''Blood Paladin'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''Blood Arcane'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2006) *''Blood Harvest'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2006) *''Blood Hope'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2008) *''Blood Lies'' (Smashwords, 2011) *''Blood Journey'' (forthcoming)

''Journey of the Sacred King'' series

*''My Sister's Keeper'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''Sins of the Mother'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2005) *''My Father's House'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2006) *''Children of Wrath'' (Renaissance Ebooks, 2006)

''Lycan Blood'' series

*''Serpent's Quest'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2006) *''Fireborn Law'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2007) *''If Truth Dies'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2007) *''Kynyr's War'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2007) *''The Exile's Return'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2007) *''Kady's Vengeance'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2008) *''The Shadowed Princes'' (Renaissance eBooks, 2009)

Short fiction

*''Visiting the Neighbors'' (''I, Vampire: Interviews with the Undead'', 1994) *
The Tale That Launched a Thousand Ships
' ( Greatest Uncommon Denominator Magazine, 2007)

Essays

*''Sex, Swords, and Superstition: A Close Look at

Phyllis Ann Karr Phyllis Ann Karr (born July 25, 1944) is an American author of fantasy, Romance novel, romances, Mystery (fiction), mysteries, and non-fiction. She is best known for her "Frostflower and Thorn" series and Arthurian works. Life and family Karr w ...

's Thorn and Frostflower'' (Thrust, 1985) *''A Funny Thing Happened on the Way to This Review'' (Thrust, 1986) *''Dead in Suburbia, or Whatever Happened to Feminism in SF?'' (Thrust, 1987)

Editor

*(with

Jean Marie Stine Jean Marie Stine (born Henry Eugene Stine, 1945 in Sikeston, Missouri) is an American editor, writer, anthologist, and publisher. Career Stine worked as a book acquisitions and development editor for Newcastle Publishing and Leisure Books. For a ...

and

Forrest J Ackerman Forrest James Ackerman (November 24, 1916 – December 4, 2008) was an American magazine editor; science fiction authors, science fiction writer and literary agent; a founder of science fiction fandom; a leading expert on science fiction, horror ...

) ''New Eves: Science Fiction About the Extraordinary Women of Today and Tomorrow'' (Longmeadow Press, 1994)

Notes

External links

Godwar Central
- official website (final complete version) archived at The Wayack Machine * {{DEFAULTSORT:Frank, Janrea American science fiction writers American women short story writers 20th-century American short story writers 1954 births 2014 deaths Women science fiction and fantasy writers American women novelists 21st-century American short story writers 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers American women journalists 20th-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers