Maureen F. McHugh (born February 13, 1959
) is an American
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 ...
writer.
Career
McHugh's first published story was published as a ''Twilight Zone'' under a male pseudonym in 1988.
It was followed by a pair of publications under her own name in ''
Isaac Asimov's Science Fiction Magazine
''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 publication ...
'' in 1989. Since then, she has written four novels and over twenty short stories.
Her first novel, ''
China Mountain Zhang
''China Mountain Zhang'' is a 1992 science fiction novel by American writer Maureen F. McHugh. The novel is made up of several stories loosely intertwined.
Title
The novel's title derives from the name of the protagonist, a young gay man of mi ...
'' (1992), was nominated for both the
Hugo
Hugo or HUGO may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
* ''Hugo'' (film), a 2011 film directed by Martin Scorsese
* Hugo Award, a science fiction and fantasy award named after Hugo Gernsback
* Hugo (franchise), a children's media franchise based on ...
and 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 ...
, and won the
James Tiptree, Jr. Award.
In 1996 she won a
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 ...
for her short story "
The Lincoln Train" (1995). Her short story collection ''Mothers and Other Monsters'' was shortlisted as a finalist for the
Story Prize The Story Prize is an annual book award established in 2004 that honors the author of an outstanding collection of short fiction with a $20,000 cash award. Each of two runners-up receives $5,000. Eligible books must be written in English and first p ...
in December, 2005.
McHugh has worked as a writer and/or managing editor for numerous
alternate reality game
An alternate reality game (ARG) is an interactive networked narrative that uses the real world as a platform and employs transmedia storytelling to deliver a story that may be altered by players' ideas or actions.
The form is defined by inten ...
projects, including
Year Zero
A year zero does not exist in the Anno Domini (AD) calendar year system commonly used to number years in the Gregorian calendar (nor in its predecessor, the Julian calendar); in this system, the year is followed directly by year . However, the ...
and
I Love Bees
''I Love Bees'' (also known as ''ilovebees'' or ''ILB'' for short) was an alternate reality game (ARG) that served as both a real-world experience and viral marketing campaign for the release of developer Bungie's 2004 video game ''Halo 2''. The ...
for
42 Entertainment
42 Entertainment is an American company based in Burbank which specializes in creating and producing alternate reality games (ARGs). The company was founded in 2003 as an independently owned, creative content and interactive agency under the nam ...
. Since 2009 she has been a partner at No Mimes Media, an alternate reality game company that she co-founded with
Steve Peters and Behnam Karbassi.
Novels
*''
China Mountain Zhang
''China Mountain Zhang'' is a 1992 science fiction novel by American writer Maureen F. McHugh. The novel is made up of several stories loosely intertwined.
Title
The novel's title derives from the name of the protagonist, a young gay man of mi ...
'' (1992)
James Tiptree, Jr. Award,
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 ...
,
Lambda Literary Award
Lambda Literary Awards, also known as the "Lammys", are awarded yearly by Lambda Literary to recognize the crucial role LGBTQ writers play in shaping the world. The Lammys celebrate the very best in LGBTQ literature.The awards were instituted i ...
*''Half the Day Is Night'' (1994)
*''Mission Child'' (1998
Reviewby
Jo Walton
Jo Walton (born 1964) is a Welsh and Canadian fantasy and science fiction writer and poet. She is best known for the fantasy novel ''Among Others'', which won the Hugo Award, Hugo and Nebula Awards in 2012, and ''Tooth and Claw (novel), Tooth ...
.
*''Nekropolis'' (2001
Reviewby James Schellenberg.
Stories (Partial List)
*"Kites" (1989)
*"Baffin Island" (1989)
*"The Queen of Marincite" (1990)
*"Render unto Caesar" (1992)
*"Protection" (1992)
*"The Missionary's Child" (1992)
*"The Beast" (1992)
*"Tut's Wife" (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 1993 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 ...
'')
*"A Foreigner's Christmas in China" (1993)
*"Whispers" (1993)
*"A Coney Island of the Mind" (1993)
*"Virtual Love" (1994)
*"Nekropolis" (1994)
*"The Ballad of Ritchie Valenzuela" (1994) (collected in Mike Resnick's 1994 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 ...
'')
*"
The Lincoln Train" (1995) (collected in Mike Resnick's 1997 alternate history anthology ''
Alternate Tyrants
''Alternate Tyrants'' is a 1997 Tor alternate history anthology, edited by Mike Resnick. The anthology contains 20 short stories, with each story by a different author, and presents a scenario where an individual becomes a tyrant or dictato ...
'')
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 ...
,
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 ...
*"Joss" (1995)
*"In the Air" (1995)
*"Learning to Breathe" (1995)
*"Homesick" (1996)
*"The Cost to Be Wise" (1996)
*"Interview: On Any Given Day" (2001)
*"Presence" (2002)
*"Ancestor Money" (2003)
*"Eight-Legged Story" (2003)
*"Frankenstein's Daughter" (2003)
*"Cannibal Acts" (2017)
Collections
*''Mothers and Other Monsters'',
Small Beer Press
Small Beer Press is a publisher of fantasy and literary fiction, based in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was founded by Gavin Grant and Kelly Link in 2000 and publishes novels, collections, and anthologies. It also publishes the zine ''Lady Churc ...
(2005)
*''After the Apocalypse'',
Small Beer Press
Small Beer Press is a publisher of fantasy and literary fiction, based in Northampton, Massachusetts. It was founded by Gavin Grant and Kelly Link in 2000 and publishes novels, collections, and anthologies. It also publishes the zine ''Lady Churc ...
(2011)
Shirley Jackson Award
The Shirley Jackson Awards are literary awards named after Shirley Jackson in recognition of her legacy in writing. These awards for outstanding achievement in the literature of psychological suspense, horror and the dark fantastic are presented ...
, Best Single-Author Collection.
Alternate Reality Games
*''
Year Zero
A year zero does not exist in the Anno Domini (AD) calendar year system commonly used to number years in the Gregorian calendar (nor in its predecessor, the Julian calendar); in this system, the year is followed directly by year . However, the ...
'': Writer (2007)
*''
Last Call Poker
''Gun'' is a Western (genre)#Revisionist Western, Western-themed Action-adventure game, action-adventure video game developed by Neversoft and Video game publisher, published by Activision for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 2, Xbox (console), Xb ...
'': Writer and Managing Editor (2005)
*''
I Love Bees
''I Love Bees'' (also known as ''ilovebees'' or ''ILB'' for short) was an alternate reality game (ARG) that served as both a real-world experience and viral marketing campaign for the release of developer Bungie's 2004 video game ''Halo 2''. The ...
'': Writer and Managing Editor (2004)
References
External links
Maureen McHugh's blogNo Mimes Media*
{{DEFAULTSORT:McHugh, Maureen F.
1959 births
20th-century American novelists
20th-century American women writers
21st-century American novelists
21st-century American women writers
American science fiction writers
American women novelists
American women short story writers
Hugo Award-winning writers
Lambda Literary Award winners
Living people
Women science fiction and fantasy writers
20th-century American short story writers
21st-century American short story writers
Alternate reality games
Transmediation