Robert Edward Vardeman (sometimes called Vardebob) (born 1947) 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 ...
fan and
writer
A writer is a person who uses written words in different writing styles and techniques to communicate ideas. Writers produce different forms of literary art and creative writing such as novels, short stories, books, poetry, travelogues, p ...
.
Career
Robert E. Vardeman was born in
Mineral Wells, Texas
Mineral Wells is a city in Palo Pinto and Parker Counties in the U.S. state of Texas. The population was 16,788 at the 2010 census (14,644 in Palo Pinto and 2144 in Parker). The city is named for mineral wells in the area, which were highly popu ...
, but is a longtime resident of
Albuquerque
Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
,
New Mexico
)
, population_demonym = New Mexican ( es, Neomexicano, Neomejicano, Nuevo Mexicano)
, seat = Santa Fe
, LargestCity = Albuquerque
, LargestMetro = Tiguex
, OfficialLang = None
, Languages = English, Spanish ( New Mexican), Navajo, Ker ...
. He graduated from the
University of New Mexico
The University of New Mexico (UNM; es, Universidad de Nuevo México) is a public research university in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Founded in 1889, it is the state's flagship academic institution and the largest by enrollment, with over 25,400 ...
with a
B.S.
A Bachelor of Science (BS, BSc, SB, or ScB; from the Latin ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for programs that generally last three to five years.
The first university to admit a student to the degree of Bachelor of Science was the University of ...
in
physics
Physics is the natural science that studies matter, its fundamental constituents, its motion and behavior through space and time, and the related entities of energy and force. "Physical science is that department of knowledge which r ...
and a
M.S.
A Master of Science ( la, Magisterii Scientiae; abbreviated MS, M.S., MSc, M.Sc., SM, S.M., ScM or Sc.M.) is a master's degree in the field of science awarded by universities in many countries or a person holding such a degree. In contrast to ...
in materials science. He worked for
Sandia National Laboratories
Sandia National Laboratories (SNL), also known as Sandia, is one of three research and development laboratories of the United States Department of Energy's National Nuclear Security Administration (NNSA). Headquartered in Kirtland Air Force Ba ...
in the
Solid State Physics
Solid-state physics is the study of rigid matter, or solids, through methods such as quantum mechanics, crystallography, electromagnetism, and metallurgy. It is the largest branch of condensed matter physics. Solid-state physics studies how the l ...
Research Department before becoming a full-time writer. He got his start in writing by writing for
science fiction fanzines
A science-fiction fanzine is an amateur or semi-professional magazine published by members of science-fiction fandom, from the 1930s to the present day. They were one of the earliest forms of fanzine, within one of which the term "''fanzine''" was ...
, and was nominated for the 1972
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
Best Fan Writer. Vardeman is one of the founders of
Bubonicon, a
science fiction convention
Science fiction conventions are gatherings of fans of the speculative fiction genre, science fiction. Historically, science fiction conventions had focused primarily on literature, but the purview of many extends to such other avenues of expres ...
in
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque ( ; ), ; kee, Arawageeki; tow, Vakêêke; zun, Alo:ke:k'ya; apj, Gołgéeki'yé. abbreviated ABQ, is the most populous city in the U.S. state of New Mexico. Its nicknames, The Duke City and Burque, both reference its founding in ...
.
Pseudonyms
The first volume in Vardeman's ''Keys to Paradise'' fantasy series was credited to the pseudonym "Daniel Moran", the publisher possibly being unaware of author
Daniel Keys Moran
Daniel Keys Moran (born November 30, 1962), also known by his initials DKM, is an American computer programmer and science fiction writer.
Biography
Moran was born in Los Angeles to Richard Joseph Moran and Marilynn Joyce Moran. He has three ...
, but the second book in that series then stated that Vardeman was "writing as Daniel Moran." Vardeman started publishing two other series under pseudonyms in the late 1980s – the fantasy series ''After the Spell Wars'' under the name F.J. Hale, and the Star Frontier science fiction series under the name of Edward S. Hudson. Both of these series were partially republished under Vardeman's own name. He also wrote ''Gateway to Doom'' (1983) from
Tom Swift III
Tom Swift III is the unofficial name of this series of juvenile science fiction adventure novels, the third to feature a protagonist named Tom Swift. Unlike the previous series, it was not published by the Grosset & Dunlap, but was published by W ...
, and ''The Microbots'' (1992) and ''Mutant Beach'' (1992), part of the
Tom Swift IV
Tom Swift IV is the unofficial name of a series of juvenile science fiction adventure novels, the fourth to feature a protagonist named Tom Swift. The series ran for thirteen titles from 1991 to 1993, and were published by Simon & Schuster imprint ...
series of books under the house pen name, Victor Appleton; as well as writing numerous westerns under the pen names Karl Lassiter and Jackson Lowry. He also wrote in the mid-1970s for Book Creations, Inc., under house pseudonym Paul Kenyon for ''
The Baroness'' series, but the book was canceled before publication. Similar work includes eight novels written for the
Nick Carter adventure series, the novel ''Sea Fire'' under the name Cliff Garnett, more than 100 novels written for a major western series, plus eight novels written for another western series that was less enduring.
Works
He is the author of more than fifty fantasy and science fiction novels.
An anthology of his short fiction, ''Stories From Desert Bob's Reptile Ranch'', was published in 2007.
''Star Trek''
He wrote the original story novels ''
Mutiny on the Enterprise
''Mutiny on the Enterprise'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Robert E. Vardeman, part of the ''Star Trek: The Original Series
''Star Trek'' is an American science fiction television series created by Gene Roddenberry that foll ...
'' focusing on
Captain Kirk
James Tiberius Kirk is a fictional character in the '' Star Trek'' media franchise. Originally played by Canadian actor William Shatner, Kirk first appeared in '' Star Trek'' serving aboard the starship USS ''Enterprise'' as captain. Kirk lea ...
battling his own crew, and ''
The Klingon Gambit'', another official Star Trek novel.
Science fiction and fantasy
Vardeman's fantasy series include ''
The War of Powers The War of Powers is a series of six epic fantasy fiction novels, co-written by American authors Robert E. Vardeman and Victor Milán. The books were first published from 1980 to 1982. David Langford characterized the series as "968 pages of junk fo ...
'' (six volumes co-authored with
Victor Milán
Victor Woodward Milán (August 3, 1954 – February 13, 2018) was an American writer known for libertarian science fiction and an interest in cybernetics.
Life and career
Milán was born in Tulsa, Oklahoma.
In 1986 Milán won the Prometheus A ...
), ''Cenotaph Road'' (six volumes of
science fantasy
Science fantasy is a hybrid genre within speculative fiction that simultaneously draws upon or combines tropes and elements from both science fiction and fantasy. In a conventional science fiction story, the world is presented as being scientif ...
), ''Swords of Raemllyn'' (nine volumes co-authored with Geo. W. Proctor), ''The Jade Demons'' (four books), ''The Keys to Paradise'' trilogy, ''The Demon Crown'' trilogy, and a British-published trilogy called ''The Accursed''. Vardeman also wrote the novelizations of the fantasy game series, ''
God of War
A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions.
Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been po ...
'' and ''
Ruins of Power'', a ''
MechWarrior: Dark Age'' story.
Vardeman's science fiction works include the ''Weapons of Chaos'', ''Masters of Space'' and ''Biowarriors'' trilogies, and the stand-alone novels ''The Sandcats of Rhyl'', ''Road to the Stars'', and ''Ancient Heavens''. The 1991
techno-thriller
A techno-thriller or technothriller is a hybrid genre drawing from science fiction, Thriller (genre), thrillers, spy fiction, action (fiction), action, and War novel, war novels. They include a disproportionate amount (relative to other genres) o ...
''Death Fall'' is a related novel, although works set in a contemporary setting are often not categorized as science fiction.
Mysteries
Vardeman also wrote a series of three mystery novels involving the "psychic detective" Peter Thorne: ''The Screaming Knife'', ''The Resonance of Blood'' and ''Death Channels''.
Game tie-ins
Vardeman has written a number of game-related tie in works, including:
*''Dark Legacy'' (1996) – for the ''Magic: The Gathering'' game
*''The Great Helium War'' (1998) – for the ''Crimson Skies'' game
*''Hell Heart'' (2000) – for the ''Vor: The Maelstrom'' game
*''Ruins of Power'' (2003) – for the ''Mechwarrior: Dark Age'' branch of the ''Battletech'' game
*''
God of War
A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions.
Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been po ...
'' (2010) – novelization of the game of the same name with
Matthew Stover
Matthew Woodring Stover (born 1962) is an American fantasy and science fiction novelist. He is most well known for his four ''Star Wars'' novels, including the novelization of '' Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith''. He has also writ ...
*''
God of War II
''God of War II'' is an action-adventure hack and slash video game developed by Santa Monica Studio and published by Sony Computer Entertainment (SCE). First released for the PlayStation 2 (PS2) console on March 13, 2007, it is the second inst ...
'' (2013) – novelization of the sequel
References
External links
*
*
Robert E. Vardemanat ''
The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction
''The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction'' (SFE) is an English language reference work on science fiction
Science fiction (sometimes shortened to Sci-Fi or SF) is a genre of speculative fiction which typically deals with imaginative and f ...
''
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vardeman, Robert E.
Living people
1947 births
20th-century American novelists
21st-century American novelists
American male novelists
American materials scientists
20th-century American physicists
American science fiction writers
Writers from Albuquerque, New Mexico
Science fiction fans
Star Trek fiction writers
University of New Mexico alumni
American male short story writers
20th-century American short story writers
21st-century American short story writers
20th-century American male writers
21st-century American male writers