Karen Joy Fowler is an American author of science fiction, fantasy, and literary fiction. Her work often centers on the nineteenth century, the lives of women, and alienation. She is best known as the author of the best-selling novel '' The Jane Austen Book Club'' that was made into a movie of the same name.

Biography

Fowler was born in Bloomington, Indiana, and spent the first eleven years of her life there. Her family then moved to Palo Alto, California. Fowler attended the University of California, Berkeley, and majored in political science. After having a child during the last year of her master's program, she spent seven years devoted to child-raising. Feeling restless, Fowler decided to take a dance class, and then a creative writing class at the University of California, Davis. Realizing that she was never going to make it as a dancer, Fowler began to publish science fiction stories, making a name for herself with the short story "Recalling Cinderella" (1985) in ''

L Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future Volume 1 L, or l, is the twelfth letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is ''el'' (pronounced ), plural ''els''. History Lamedh ...

'' (1985) and ''Artificial Things'' (1986), a collection of short stories.

Writing career

She began publishing sf with "Recalling Cinderella" in ''

L Ron Hubbard Presents Writers of the Future, Vol I L, or l, is the twelfth Letter (alphabet), letter in the Latin alphabet, used in the English alphabet, modern English alphabet, the alphabets of other western European languages and others worldwide. Its name in English is English alphabet#Let ...

'' (anth 1985) edited by Algis Budrys Her first novel, ''Sarah Canary'' (1991), was published to critical acclaim. The novel involves a group of people alienated by nineteenth century America experiencing a peculiar kind of

first contact First contact may refer to: *First contact (astronomy), the moment in astronomical transit when the apparent positions of the two bodies first touch *First contact (anthropology), the first meeting of two cultures previously unaware of one another ...

. One character is Chinese American, another putatively mentally ill, a third a feminist, and lastly Sarah herself, an extraterrestrial. Fowler meant for Sarah Canary to "read like a science fiction novel to a science fiction reader" and "like a mainstream novel to a mainstream reader." Fowler's intentions were to leave room for the readers’ own interpretation of the text.

James Tiptree, Jr. Award

Fowler also collaborated with Pat Murphy to found the

James Tiptree, Jr. Award The Otherwise Award, formerly known as the James Tiptree Jr. Award, is an American annual literary prize for works of science fiction or fantasy that expand or explore one's understanding of gender. It was initiated in February 1991 by science f ...

in 1991, a literary prize for science fiction or fantasy that "expands or explores our understanding of gender." The prize is named for science fiction author

Alice Sheldon Alice Bradley Sheldon (born Alice Hastings Bradley; August 24, 1915 – May 19, 1987) was an American science fiction and fantasy author better known as James Tiptree, Jr., a pen name she used from 1967 to her death. It was not publicly known un ...

who wrote under the pen name James Tiptree, Jr. Fowler drew inspiration not only from Sheldon's work, but also from the fact that Sheldon's mother was an adventurer, going on several trips to Africa including a gorilla hunting expedition in 1920. As such, she serves as the inspiration for the protagonist in Fowler's "What I Didn't See." The award's main focus is to recognize the authors, male or female, who challenge and reflect shifting gender roles.

Other genre works

Her other genre works also tended to focus on odd corners of the nineteenth century experiencing the unexpected or fantastic. Her second novel, ''The Sweetheart Season'' (1996) is a romantic comedy infused with historical and fantasy elements. Her 1998 collection, ''Black Glass'', won a World Fantasy Award, and her 2010 collection ''What I Didn't See, and Other Stories'' also won a World Fantasy Award. Her 2004 novel ''The Jane Austen Book Club'' become a critical and popular success including being on ''The New York Times'' bestsellers list. Although it is not a science fiction or fantasy work, science fiction does play an integral part to the novel's plot. Fowler was an instructor at the Clarion Workshop 2007 in San Diego. She was one of the two Guests of Honor at Readercon 2007. In 2008, she won the

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 the second time for Best Short Story for her 2007 story "

Always Always may refer to: Film and television * ''Always'', a 1985 film directed by Henry Jaglom * ''Always'' (1989 film), a 1989 romantic comedy-drama directed by Steven Spielberg * ''Always'' (2011 film), a 2011 South Korean film, also known as '' ...

". Her short story "The Pelican Bar" won a Shirley Jackson Award in 2009 and a World Fantasy Award in 2010. Fowler's novel, ''

We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves ''We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves'' is a 2013 novel by the American writer Karen Joy Fowler. The novel won the 2014 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction and was also short-listed for the 2014 Man Booker Prize. Plot Rosemary, while attending U ...

'' (2013) won the Pen/Faulkner Award for 2014, and has been nominated for a 2014 Nebula Award as well. It was shortlisted for the

2014 Man Booker Prize The 2014 Man Booker Prize for fiction was awarded at a ceremony on 14 October 2014. Until 2014, only novels written in English and from authors in the Commonwealth, including the UK, the Republic of Ireland and Zimbabwe were eligible for considerat ...

. She received a World Fantasy Life Achievement Award at the 2020 convention. Fowler's most recent novel, '' ooth', wa
longlisted
for the 2022 Man Booker Prize.

"What I Didn't See"

Fowler was inspired to write her short story "What I Didn't See" after doing research about chimpanzees for her book ''We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves''. During her research, Fowler came across an essay by Donna Haraway which discusses a 1920 expedition that was carried out by the curator of the New York National Museum of History. One of the men on the expedition wanted a woman in the group to kill a gorilla in order to ultimately protect these species. He reasoned that if women could carry out this action, gorillas would no longer be seen as a fearsome animal, and the thrill of killing them would be gone. Fowler's reaction was one of appalled interest, and she was inspired to write "What I Didn't See" by these findings. It won the short story Nebula Award in 2003.

Awards and honors

*1985

Published Winner Publishing is the activity of making information, literature, music, software and other content available to the public for sale or for free. Traditionally, the term refers to the creation and distribution of printed works, such as books, newsp ...

for "Recalling Cinderella," a new writer short story winner in '' L. Ron Hubbard Presents: Writer's of the Future Vol 1'' edited by Algis Budrys *1998 World Fantasy Award for ''Black Glass'', a collection of short stories. *2004

for "What I Didn't See", a short story. *2008

for "Always", a short story. *2009 Shirley Jackson Award for "The Pelican Bar", a short story *2010 World Fantasy Award for ''What I Didn't See, and Other Stories'', a collection of short stories. *2014 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction for ''We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves'', a novel. *2014 Specsavers National Book Awards "International Author of the Year" winner for ''We Are All Completely Beside Ourselves'' *2017 World Fantasy Award for ''The Best American Science Fiction and Fantasy 2016'' for Best Anthology (nominee)

Bibliography

Novels

* ''Sarah Canary'' (1991) - novel concerning a mysterious woman in 1873 Pacific Northwest. * ''The War of the Roses'' (1991) - Chapter book publication of the novelette. * ''The Sweetheart Season'' (1996) - Fantasy novel about the Sweetwheat Sweethearts, a female baseball team from 1947 Minnesota. * ''Sister Noon'' (2001) - Novel set in 1890s San Francisco. * '' The Jane Austen Book Club'' (2004) - Six members of an early 21st-century book club discuss

Jane Austen Jane Austen (; 16 December 1775 – 18 July 1817) was an English novelist known primarily for her six major novels, which interpret, critique, and comment upon the British landed gentry at the end of the 18th century. Austen's plots of ...

books. * ''Wit's End'' (Putnam, 2008) - A young woman visits her godmother, one of America's most successful mystery writers. * ''

'' (A Marian Wood Book/Putnam, 2013) - 2014 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction Winner, shortlisted for the

* ''Booth'' (Putnam, 2022) - The story of the family of Shakespearean actors best known for their connection to Lincoln's assassin John Wilkes Booth. Longlisted for the

2022 Booker Prize The 2022 Booker Prize was a literary award given for the best English novel of the year. It was announced on 17 October 2022, during a ceremony hosted by Sophie Duker at the Roundhouse in London. The longlist was announced on 26 July 2022. The s ...

Collections

* ''Artificial Things'' (1986) - collection of 13 short stories. * ''Peripheral Vision'' (1990) - collection of 5 stories, 1 original. Author's Choice Monthly #6 * ''Letters from Home'' (1991) with Pat Cadigan and Pat Murphy. Collection of short fiction by Fowler, Cadigan, and Murphy. * ''Black Glass'' (1997) - collection of 15 short stories, 2 original. Includes the contents from ''Peripheral Vision'' and ''Letters from Home''. * ''What I Didn't See and Other Stories'' (2010) - collection of 12 short stories, 1 original.

As editor

* ''MOTA 3: Courage'' (2003) - anthology of short fiction. * ''The James Tiptree Award Anthology 1'' (2005), with Debbie Notkin, Pat Murphy and

Jeffrey D. Smith Jeffrey may refer to: * Jeffrey (name), including a list of people with the name *Jeffrey (1995 film), ''Jeffrey'' (1995 film), a 1995 film by Paul Rudnick, based on Rudnick's play of the same name *Jeffrey (2016 film), ''Jeffrey'' (2016 film), a 2 ...

. Anthology of winners of the

. Tachyon Publications. * ''The James Tiptree Award Anthology 2'' (2006), with Debbie Notkin, Pat Murphy and Jeffrey D. Smith. Tachyon Publications. * ''The James Tiptree Award Anthology 3'' (2007), with Debbie Notkin, Pat Murphy and Jeffrey D. Smith. Tachyon Publications.

References

External links

* *
Book Reporter
biography
The James Tiptree, Jr. Award Home Page
{{DEFAULTSORT:Fowler, Karen Joy 1950 births Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American fantasy writers American science fiction writers American women novelists PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction winners Nebula Award winners John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer winners Palo Alto High School alumni People from Davis, California Women science fiction and fantasy writers World Fantasy Award-winning writers Writers from Bloomington, Indiana 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers University of California, Davis alumni Novelists from California Novelists from Indiana Weird fiction writers