Sharon Shinn (born 1957) is an American novelist who writes combining aspects of

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 ...

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

romance Romance (from Vulgar Latin , "in the Roman language", i.e., "Latin") may refer to: Common meanings * Romance (love), emotional attraction towards another person and the courtship behaviors undertaken to express the feelings * Romance languages, ...

. She has published more than a dozen novels for adult and young adult readers. Her works include the Shifting Circles Series, the Samaria Series, the Twelve Houses Series, and a rewriting of

Jane Eyre ''Jane Eyre'' ( ; originally published as ''Jane Eyre: An Autobiography'') is a novel by the English writer Charlotte Brontë. It was published under her pen name "Currer Bell" on 19 October 1847 by Smith, Elder & Co. of London. The first ...

, ''Jenna Starborn''. She works as a journalist in

St. Louis, Missouri St. Louis () is the second-largest city in Missouri, United States. It sits near the confluence of the Mississippi River, Mississippi and the Missouri Rivers. In 2020, the city proper had a population of 301,578, while the Greater St. Louis, ...

and is a graduate of

Northwestern University Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world. Charte ...

. Shinn is a die-hard

St. Louis Cardinals The St. Louis Cardinals are an American professional baseball team based in St. Louis. The Cardinals compete in Major League Baseball (MLB) as a member club of the National League (NL) Central division. Since the 2006 season, the Cardinals ha ...

and

St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams were a professional American football team of the National Football League (NFL). They played in St. Louis from 1995 to the 2015 season, before moving back to Los Angeles, where the team had played from 1946 to 1994. The arr ...

fan and is also a big fan of the TV Show ''

Lost Lost may refer to getting lost, or to: Geography *Lost, Aberdeenshire, a hamlet in Scotland * Lake Okeechobee Scenic Trail, or LOST, a hiking and cycling trail in Florida, US History *Abbreviation of lost work, any work which is known to have bee ...

''. She is a frequent attender of science-fiction/fantasy conventions. Her first Guest of Honor stint at a convention was ArmadilloCon 26. She was also the Guest of Honor at the convention Capricon 29. In 2009, she donated her archive to the department of Rare Books and Special Collections at

Northern Illinois University Northern Illinois University (NIU) is a public research university in DeKalb, Illinois. It was founded as Northern Illinois State Normal School on May 22, 1895, by Illinois Governor John P. Altgeld as part of an expansion of the state's system ...

. In Laurell K Hamilton's novel ''

Obsidian Butterfly Obsidian () is a naturally occurring volcanic glass formed when lava extrusive rock, extruded from a volcano cools rapidly with minimal crystal growth. It is an igneous rock. Obsidian is produced from felsic lava, rich in the lighter elements s ...

'' of her Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter series,

Anita Blake Anita Blake is the title and viewpoint character of the '' Anita Blake: Vampire Hunter'' series by Laurell K. Hamilton. The series takes place in a parallel world in which supernatural characters like vampires and werewolves exist alongside reg ...

mentions that she reads Sharon Shinn's novels to help her deal with her phobia of flying.

Awards

* William L. Crawford Award (awarded by the

International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts The International Association for the Fantastic in the Arts (IAFA), founded in 1982 is a nonprofit association of scholars, writers, and publishers of science fiction, fantasy, and horror in literature, film, and the other arts. Its principal acti ...

for best first fantasy novel) (1996) * Twice nominated for the

John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer The ''Astounding'' Award for Best New Writer (formerly the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer) is given annually to the best new writer whose first professional work of science fiction or fantasy was published within the two previous ...

(1995, 1996) * ''Summers at Castle Auburn'' named to the ALA list of Best Books (2002).

Works

Safe-Keepers series

#'' The Safe-Keeper's Secret'' (

Puffin Books Puffin Books is a longstanding children's imprint of the British publishers Penguin Books. Since the 1960s, it has been among the largest publishers of children's books in the UK and much of the English-speaking world. The imprint now belongs t ...

, 2004) #'' The Truth-Teller's Tale'' (Puffin Books, 2005) #'' The Dream-Maker's Magic'' (

Viking Press Viking Press (formally Viking Penguin, also listed as Viking Books) is an American publishing company owned by Penguin Random House. It was founded in New York City on March 1, 1925, by Harold K. Guinzburg and George S. Oppenheim and then acquire ...

, 2006)

Samaria series

#''

Archangel Archangels () are the second lowest rank of angel in the hierarchy of angels. The word ''archangel'' itself is usually associated with the Abrahamic religions, but beings that are very similar to archangels are found in a number of other relig ...

'' (

Ace Books Ace Books is a publisher of science fiction (SF) and fantasy books founded in New York City in 1952 by Aaron A. Wyn. It began as a genre publisher of mysteries and westerns, and soon branched out into other genres, publishing its first scienc ...

, 1996) #'' Jovah's Angel'' (Ace Books, 1997) #'' The Alleluia Files'' (Ace Books, 1997) #''Angelica'' (Ace Books, 2003) Although this is the fourth novel in the Samaria series, it is set before the first book ''Archangel''. #'' Angel-Seeker'' (Ace Books, 2004) This novel is set immediately after the first book ''Archangel''.

Twelve Houses series

* ''Flame'' (

, 2009) in Quatrain #'' Mystic and Rider'' (

, 2005) #'' The Thirteenth House'' (Ace Books, 2006) #'' Dark Moon Defender'' (Ace Books, 2006) #'' Reader and Raelynx'' (Ace Books, 2007) #'' Fortune and Fate'' (Ace Books, 2008)

Elemental Blessings series

#''Troubled Waters'' (

, 2010) #''Royal Airs'' (Ace Books, 2013) #''Jeweled Fire'' (

, 2015) #''Unquiet Land'' (

, 2016)

Shifting Circle series

#''The Shape of Desire'' (

, 2012) #''Still Life With Shape Shifter'' (Ace Books, 2012) #''The Turning Season'' (Ace Books, 2014)

Uncommon Echoes series

#''Echo in Onyx'' (audiobook, Audible, March 2019; trade paperback and ebook, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency, August 2019) #''Echo in Emerald'' (audiobook, Audible, March 2019; trade paperback and ebook, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency, 2019) #''Echo in Amethyst'' (audiobook, Audible, March 2019; trade paperback and ebook, Ethan Ellenberg Literary Agency, 2019)

Other novels

* ''The Shape-Changer's Wife'' (

, 1995) * '' Heart of Gold'' (Ace Books, 2000) * '' Wrapt in Crystal'' (Ace Books, 2000) * '' Summers at Castle Auburn'' (Ace Books, 2002) * '' Jenna Starborn'' (Ace Books, 2003) * '' General Winston's Daughter'' (

, 2007) * ''Gateway'' (

, 2009) * ''Shattered Warrior'' (

First Second Books First Second Books is an American publisher of graphic novels. An imprint of Roaring Brook Press, part of Holtzbrinck Publishers, First Second publishes fiction, biographies, personal memoirs, history, visual essays, and comics journalism. It als ...

, 2017), a graphic novel illustrated by Molly Knox Ostertag

Anthologies and collections

References

External links

*
On the Plain of Sharon
fan site
Sharon Shinn at Fantastic Fiction

*

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Shinn, Sharon 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American fantasy writers American romantic fiction writers American science fiction writers American women short story writers American women novelists 1957 births Living people Date of birth missing (living people) Women science fiction and fantasy writers Women romantic fiction writers 20th-century American women writers 21st-century American women writers People from Wichita, Kansas Writers from St. Louis Writers from Kansas 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American short story writers Novelists from Missouri