Scott David Westerfeld (born May 5, 1963) is an American writer of young adult fiction, best known as the author of the ''

Uglies ''Uglies'' is a 2005 science fiction novel by Scott Westerfeld. It is set in a future post scarcity dystopian world in which everyone is considered an "ugly," but then turned "Pretty" by extreme cosmetic surgery when they reach the age of 16. ...

'' and the ''

Leviathan Leviathan (; he, לִוְיָתָן, ) is a sea serpent noted in theology and mythology. It is referenced in several books of the Hebrew Bible, including Psalms, the Book of Job, the Book of Isaiah, the Book of Amos, and, according to some ...

'' series.

Early life

Westerfeld was born in Dallas, Texas. As a child he moved to

Connecticut Connecticut () is the southernmost state in the New England region of the Northeastern United States. It is bordered by Rhode Island to the east, Massachusetts to the north, New York to the west, and Long Island Sound to the south. Its capita ...

for his father Lloyd's job as a computer programmer. He saw his father working with planes, submarines, and the Apollo missions. Westerfeld graduated from

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely foll ...

with a BA in Philosophy in 1985. He began composing music as a teenager and composes music for modern dance. In 2001, Westerfeld married Australian author

Justine Larbalestier Justine Larbalestier ( )' (born 23 September 1967) is an Australian writer of young adult fiction best known for her 2009 novel, '' Liar''. Personal life Larbalestier was born and raised in Sydney. She now alternates residence between Sydney ...

. As of 2013, Westerfeld divided his time between Sydney, Australia and New York City.

Books

Westerfeld is best known for the ''

'' series, including the spin-off

graphic novel A graphic novel is a long-form, fictional work of sequential art. The term ''graphic novel'' is often applied broadly, including fiction, non-fiction, and anthologized work, though this practice is highly contested by comic scholars and industry ...

series ''Shay's Story''. Other novels of his include '' Afterworlds'' and, for adults, ''

The Risen Empire ''The Risen Empire'' is a science fiction novel by American writer Scott Westerfeld. Setting and plot The novel is set in an undefined distant future (although it is implied to exist roughly 5,000 years from now), in which there is a galactic emp ...

'' and '' The Killing of Worlds'', parts one and two of ''Succession''. Westerfeld began his career writing novels for adults, but switched to YA literature with his Midnighters trilogy. He has written four YA novels that take place in New York City: ''Peeps'', ''The Last Days'', ''So Yesterday'', and ''Afterworlds''. While ''The Last Days'' is not a sequel to ''Peeps'', it follows a group of different characters in the same setting. ''So Yesterday'' is not related to these novels, but is often grouped with them because it is also set in New York City. He has also written the ''Leviathan'' series, an alternate history trilogy set in

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

consisting of ''

'', '' Behemoth'' and '' Goliath'', plus its illustrated guide '' The Manual of Aeronautics''. In 2017, Westerfeld produced a graphic novel with illustrations by Alex Puvilland titled ''The Spill Zone''. The graphic novel, released officially in October 2016 as an online syndication prior to the 2017 print release, tells of a photographer who ventures back into her upstate New York hometown abandoned by a mysterious event to take pictures of the occurrences happening there since. In a blogpost in 2006, Westerfeld claimed to have ghostwritten five Goosebumps books, one of which was All-Day Nightmare, one of the entries in the Give Yourself Goosebumps series which came out in February 2000. Several of his novels have been optioned for films. '' So Yesterday'' has been optioned to be made into a film by one of the producers of '' Fahrenheit 9/11'' and ''

Bowling for Columbine ''Bowling for Columbine'' is a 2002 documentary film written, produced, directed, and narrated by Michael Moore. The film explores what Moore suggests are the primary causes for the Columbine High School massacre in 1999 and other acts of gun ...

''. However, this option 'slowly died', as Scott Westerfeld wrote on his blog. The ''Uglies'' series was optioned in 2006 by

Twentieth Century Fox 20th Century Studios, Inc. (previously known as 20th Century Fox) is an American film production company headquartered at the Fox Studio Lot in the Century City area of Los Angeles. As of 2019, it serves as a film production arm of Walt Dis ...

as a possible film series.''Publishers Weekly'', January 8, 2007.

Themes

A major theme in Westerfeld's work is the idea of free thinking or questioning authority. In ''

,'' the protagonist Tally rebels against her society's rules first with harmless pranks and eventually by leaving the city altogether. She finds a group of runaway uglies who refuse to conform to social norms that includes undergoing cosmetic surgery. Similarly, '' So Yesterday'' examines popularity and why certain trends are considered 'cool.' The novels praises innovators who think outside the box and come up with new fashion statements entirely on their own. Another common theme in Westerfeld's novels is coming of age. Because Westerfeld writes primarily for young adult audiences, his protagonists are usually teenagers who find themselves over the course of the novel or series. Tally in ''

,'' Cal in ''

Peeps Peeps are a marshmallow confection marketed since 1953 in the United States and Canada in the shape of chicks, bunnies and other animals as well as holiday shapes — by Pennsylvania-headquartered Just Born Quality Confections. Originally ...

'' and Hunter in ''So Yesterday'' all struggle with finding where they belong until they come to terms with who they are. Courage is another common theme in Westerfeld's work. His protagonists often face frightening or dangerous problems and have to rely on their own courage to overcome the problem. Often adults are not present during the time of crisis and the protagonist is left to his or her own devices. For example, Cal in ''

'' is trained by adults on how to track down vampires, but he goes alone to actually catch them and must accomplish this task completely on his own.

Awards

*''

Evolution's Darling ''Evolution's Darling'' is a science fiction novel by Scott Westerfeld Scott David Westerfeld (born May 5, 1963) is an American writer of young adult fiction, best known as the author of the ''Uglies'' and the '' Leviathan'' series. Early lif ...

'' was a ''

New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid ...

'' Notable Book (2000), and won a Special Citation for the 2000 Philip K. Dick Award *'' So Yesterday'' won a Victorian Premier's Award *'' The Secret Hour'' won an

Aurealis Award The Aurealis Award for Excellence in Speculative Fiction is an annual literary award for Australian science fiction, fantasy and horror fiction. Only Australians are eligible for the award. History The Aurealis Award was established in 1995 by ...

*''

'' and ''

'' were both named as "Best Books for Young Adults" in 2006 by the

American Library Association The American Library Association (ALA) is a nonprofit organization based in the United States that promotes libraries and library education internationally. It is the oldest and largest library association in the world, with 49,727 members ...

*''

'' won the 2010

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 ...

for Best Young Adult Fiction and was nominated for an ORCA (Oregon Reader's Choice Award) in the intermediate division. The Russian translation of ''Leviathan'' was awarded by

Mir Fantastiki ''Mir Fantastiki'' (russian: Мир фантастики), officially abbreviated as ''MirF'', is a Russian monthly science fiction and fantasy magazine. The name also refers to the website run by the magazine, Mirf.ru. ''Mir Fantastiki'' litera ...

as Best Young Adult Fiction in 2011.

Bibliography

Adult

*'' Polymorph'' (1997) *''

Fine Prey ''Fine Prey'' is a science fiction novel by Scott Westerfeld Scott David Westerfeld (born May 5, 1963) is an American writer of young adult fiction, best known as the author of the ''Uglies'' and the '' Leviathan'' series. Early life Westerf ...

'' (1998) *''

'' (2000) ''Succession'' series * ''

'' (2003) *'' The Killing of Worlds'' (2003) The two books were re-published in 2005 in one volume, also titled ''The Risen Empire''.

Young adult

*'' So Yesterday'' (2004) *'' Afterworlds'' (2014) *''Horizon'' (2017) ''Midnighters'' trilogy *'' The Secret Hour'' (2004) *'' Touching Darkness'' (2005) *'' Blue Noon'' (2006) ''Peeps'' series *''

'' (2005) (also known as ''Parasite Positive'' in Britain and ''V-Virus'' or ''Peeps'' in Canada) *''

The Last Days ''The Last Days'' is a 1998 documentary film directed by James Moll and produced by June Beallor and Kenneth Lipper; Steven Spielberg, in his role as founder of the Shoah Foundation, was one of the film's executive producers. The film tells th ...

'' (2006) ''Uglies'' universe ''Uglies'' series *''

'' (2005) *''

Pretties ''Pretties'' is a 2005 science fiction novel and the second book of the ''Uglies'' Trilogy written by Scott Westerfeld. The premise of the novel relies on a future set in a future dystopian world in which everyone is turned "Pretty" by extreme ...

'' (2005) *'' Specials'' (2006) *'' Extras'' (2007) ''Impostors'' series *''Impostors'' (2018) *''Shatter City'' (2019) *''Mirror's Edge'' (2021) *''Youngbloods (2022)'' Related works *''Bogus to Bubbly: An Insider's Guide to the World of Uglies'' (2008) *Graphic novel retellings from Shay's point of view: **''Uglies: Shay's Story'' (with Devin Grayson and

Steven Cummings Steven Cummings is an American comic book artist. Biography Presented his first professional work by DC Comics editor Bob Schreck, Steven Cummings penciled an unpublished inventory issue of Green Lantern featuring John Stewart. This work opene ...

) (2012) **''Uglies: Cutters'' (with Devin Grayson and Steven Cummings) (2012) ''Leviathan'' series (illustrated by Keith Thompson) *''

'' (2009) *'' Behemoth'' (2010) *'' Goliath'' (2011) Related works *'' The Manual of Aeronautics'' (illustrated guide) (2012) ''Spill Zone'' graphic novel series (illustrated by Alex Puvilland) * ''Spill Zone'' (2016) * ''Spill Zone: The Broken Vow'' (2019) Related works * ''Spill Night'' (short story for Free Comic Book Day) (2017) ''Zeroes'' trilogy (with Margo Lanagan and

Deborah Biancotti Deborah Biancotti is an Australian writer of speculative fiction. Biography Biancotti was born in 1971 in Cairns, Queensland, Australia. Her first work was published in 2000 with her short story "The First and Final Game" which was featured in ...

) *'' Zeroes'' (2015) * ''Swarm'' (2016) * ''Nexus'' (2018)

References

Locus Locus (plural loci) is Latin for "place". It may refer to: Entertainment * Locus (comics), a Marvel Comics mutant villainess, a member of the Mutant Liberation Front * ''Locus'' (magazine), science fiction and fantasy magazine ** ''Locus Award' ...

'' May 2006
Novel synopses, cover art, and reviews at ''Fantasy Literature''
* *
Scott Westerfeld's Official Wattpad Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Westerfeld, Scott 1963 births 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American children's writers American expatriates in Australia American science fiction writers American writers of young adult literature Living people People from Dallas Steampunk writers Vassar College alumni Novelists from Texas American male novelists Writers of young adult science fiction 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers