Steven Gould
Encyclopedia
Steven Charles Gould is an American science fiction author
and teacher. He has written eight novels and is best known for his 1992 novel Jumper
, which was made into a film
and released in 2008. He is married to science fiction writer Laura J. Mixon
and lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico
.
, Arizona
on February 7, 1955 to James Alan and Carita Louise Gould. His father was an Army officer; when Gould was in junior high his father was stationed at Fort Shafter
in Hawaii for three years. The whole family learned to scuba dive there and Gould went diving frequently. That hobby later informed scenes in his novels Greenwar and Blind Waves. Greenwar was a collaboration with his wife, Laura J. Mixon.
Gould attended Texas A&M University
and has set much of his writing in Texas. Aggiecon
, which is held in College Station on the Texas A&M campus, was the first science fiction convention Gould attended, and he was chair of Aggiecon V in 1975.
Gould submitted the first short story he wrote to Analog
; it was rejected with a personal note from then-editor Ben Bova
, who encouraged Gould to let him see his future work. The second story Gould wrote, "The Touch of Their Eyes," was read aloud by Theodore Sturgeon
at a writing workshop at AggieCon in 1979. Sturgeon made one correction ("Calvary and Cavalry are two different things") and suggested that Gould submit it to Stan Schmidt
, who had become editor at Analog in late 1978. Gould did, and the story was published by Analog in 1980.
Gould was director of the south/central region of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
from 1986–1989. In 1989 he married Laura J. Mixon and moved with her to New York City, where her job supported them while he finished his first novel, Jumper. He was also a guest lecturer at Texas A&M in 1990. Gould and Mixon have two daughters. They live in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Gould practices and teaches aikido
, which was featured in his most recent book, 7th Sigma. The young protagonist becomes an Uchideshi ("inside student"), as the first step toward his coming-of-age and other adventures.
since 2000.
, for the short story "Rory" in 1985, and the novelette "Peaches for Mad Molly" in 1989. "Peaches for Mad Molly" was also on the shortlist for the Nebula Award
that year. His first published short story, "The Touch of Their Eyes", was also nominated for the Analog Award for Best Short Story in 1980.
Gould's first novel, Jumper, was nominated for the Compton Crook Award
(Balticon - Best 1st Novel) and came in second for the Locus Award
for Best First Novel.
Gould's second book, Wildside, was awarded the Hal Clement Award for best young adult science fiction novel in 1997. The National Library Association has also recognized Jumper and Wildside as best books for young adults.
Author
An author is broadly defined as "the person who originates or gives existence to anything" and that authorship determines responsibility for what is created. Narrowly defined, an author is the originator of any written work.-Legal significance:...
and teacher. He has written eight novels and is best known for his 1992 novel Jumper
Jumper (novel)
Jumper is a 1992 science fiction novel by Steven Gould. The novel was published in mass market paperback in October 1993 and re-released in February 2008 to coincide with the release of the film adaptation. It tells the story of David, a teenager who escapes an abusive household using his ability...
, which was made into a film
Jumper (film)
Jumper is a 2008 American science fiction film, loosely based on the 1992 science fiction novel of the same name by Steven Gould. The film is directed by Doug Liman and stars Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson, Max Thieriot, AnnaSophia Robb, and Diane Lane...
and released in 2008. He is married to science fiction writer Laura J. Mixon
Laura J. Mixon
Laura J. Mixon is a chemical and environmental engineer better known as a science fiction writer. She writes about the impact of technology and environmental changes on personal identity and social structures. Her work has been the focus of academic studies on the intersection of technology,...
and lives in Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque, New Mexico
Albuquerque is the largest city in the state of New Mexico, United States. It is the county seat of Bernalillo County and is situated in the central part of the state, straddling the Rio Grande. The city population was 545,852 as of the 2010 Census and ranks as the 32nd-largest city in the U.S. As...
.
Biography
Steven Charles Gould was born in Fort HuachucaFort Huachuca
Fort Huachuca is a United States Army installation under the command of the United States Army Installation Management Command. It is located in Cochise County, in southeast Arizona, about north of the border with Mexico. Beginning in 1913, for 20 years the fort was the base for the "Buffalo...
, Arizona
Arizona
Arizona ; is a state located in the southwestern region of the United States. It is also part of the western United States and the mountain west. The capital and largest city is Phoenix...
on February 7, 1955 to James Alan and Carita Louise Gould. His father was an Army officer; when Gould was in junior high his father was stationed at Fort Shafter
Fort Shafter
Fort Shafter is in Honolulu CDP, City and County of Honolulu, Hawai‘i, extending up the interfluve between Kalihi and Moanalua valleys, as well as onto the coastal plain at Māpunapuna. Fort Shafter is the headquarters of the United States Army Pacific Command, the MACOM of U.S. Army forces in...
in Hawaii for three years. The whole family learned to scuba dive there and Gould went diving frequently. That hobby later informed scenes in his novels Greenwar and Blind Waves. Greenwar was a collaboration with his wife, Laura J. Mixon.
Gould attended Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University
Texas A&M University is a coeducational public research university located in College Station, Texas . It is the flagship institution of the Texas A&M University System. The sixth-largest university in the United States, A&M's enrollment for Fall 2011 was over 50,000 for the first time in school...
and has set much of his writing in Texas. Aggiecon
AggieCon
AggieCon is the oldest and largest student-run science fiction convention in the United States. Held annually since 1969 by Cepheid Variable at Texas A&M University's Memorial Student Center, it has grown to become one of the larger conventions in Texas...
, which is held in College Station on the Texas A&M campus, was the first science fiction convention Gould attended, and he was chair of Aggiecon V in 1975.
Gould submitted the first short story he wrote to Analog
Analog Science Fiction and Fact
Analog Science Fiction and Fact is an American science fiction magazine. As of 2011, it is the longest running continuously published magazine of that genre...
; it was rejected with a personal note from then-editor Ben Bova
Ben Bova
Benjamin William Bova is an American science-fiction author and editor. He is the recipient of six Hugo Awards for Best Professional Editor for his work at Analog Science Fiction in the 1970's.-Personal life:...
, who encouraged Gould to let him see his future work. The second story Gould wrote, "The Touch of Their Eyes," was read aloud by Theodore Sturgeon
Theodore Sturgeon
Theodore Sturgeon was an American science fiction author.His most famous novel is More Than Human .-Biography:...
at a writing workshop at AggieCon in 1979. Sturgeon made one correction ("Calvary and Cavalry are two different things") and suggested that Gould submit it to Stan Schmidt
Stanley Schmidt
Stanley Albert Schmidt is an American science fiction author. Since 1978 he has been the editor of the SF magazine Analog Science Fiction and Fact.-Biography:...
, who had become editor at Analog in late 1978. Gould did, and the story was published by Analog in 1980.
Gould was director of the south/central region of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America
Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America, or SFWA is a nonprofit association of professional science fiction and fantasy writers. It was founded in 1965 by Damon Knight under the name Science Fiction Writers of America, Inc. and it retains the acronym SFWA after a very brief use of the SFFWA...
from 1986–1989. In 1989 he married Laura J. Mixon and moved with her to New York City, where her job supported them while he finished his first novel, Jumper. He was also a guest lecturer at Texas A&M in 1990. Gould and Mixon have two daughters. They live in Albuquerque, New Mexico.
Gould practices and teaches aikido
Aikido
is a Japanese martial art developed by Morihei Ueshiba as a synthesis of his martial studies, philosophy, and religious beliefs. Aikido is often translated as "the Way of unifying life energy" or as "the Way of harmonious spirit." Ueshiba's goal was to create an art that practitioners could use to...
, which was featured in his most recent book, 7th Sigma. The young protagonist becomes an Uchideshi ("inside student"), as the first step toward his coming-of-age and other adventures.
Writing workshops
Gould has been an instructor at the annual one-week speculative fiction workshop Viable ParadiseViable Paradise
Viable Paradise is an annual one-week residential writing workshop held each autumn on the island of Martha's Vineyard in Massachusetts. It is focused on speculative fiction....
since 2000.
Novels
- JumperJumper (novel)Jumper is a 1992 science fiction novel by Steven Gould. The novel was published in mass market paperback in October 1993 and re-released in February 2008 to coincide with the release of the film adaptation. It tells the story of David, a teenager who escapes an abusive household using his ability...
(Tor, 1992): Teleportation - Wildside (Tor, 1996): Alternative universe, set in Texas: a group of high school graduates find a hole into an alternative reality, a pristine world unspoiled by man and human-caused extinctions. They start a gold business and are discovered by the government.
- Greenwar (Forge, 1997; Tor, 1998) with Laura J. Mixon: Deep sea energy and environmental issues
- Helm (Tor, 1998): Mind control, the destruction of Earth's ecosystem
- Blind Waves (Tor, 2000): Melted icecaps, investigation into violence against refugees out at sea and in a floating city; set in Texas
- ReflexReflex (novel)Reflex is the 2004 sequel to the best-selling 1992 novel Jumper by Steven Gould.-Synopsis:Since the conclusion of Jumper, David Rice, a young man with the ability to teleport, has married Millie and occasionally works for the National Security Agency, only accepting jobs that he finds to be morally...
(2004): Sequel to Jumper - Jumper: Griffin's StoryJumper: Griffin's Story (novel)Jumper: Griffin's Story is a novel by Steven Gould released August 21, 2007, as a tie-in to the movie Jumper. It follows the character Griffin as he deals with the death of his parents and the relentless pursuit of the Paladins through his adolescent and teenage years...
(2007): Backstory of a character from JumperJumper (film)Jumper is a 2008 American science fiction film, loosely based on the 1992 science fiction novel of the same name by Steven Gould. The film is directed by Doug Liman and stars Hayden Christensen, Samuel L. Jackson, Jamie Bell, Rachel Bilson, Max Thieriot, AnnaSophia Robb, and Diane Lane...
the film - 7th Sigma (2011): Set in an American Southwest ravaged by bug-sized, metal-eating, self-replicating robots. Set in the same universe as his short stories, "Bugs In the Arroyo" and "A Story With Beans."
Short fiction
- "The Touch of Their Eyes" (Analog, Sep 1980)
- "Wind Instrument" (Asimov's, Jun 1981)
- "Gift of Fire" (Analog Science Fact & Fiction, Aug 1981)
- "Rory" (Analog, 1984)
- "Mental Blocks" (Amazing Stories, Jul 1985)
- "The No License Needed, Fun to Drive, Built Easily with Ordinary Tools, Revolutionary, Guaranteed, Lawnmower Engine Powered, Low Cost, Compact, and Dependable Mail Order Device" (Analog, Apr 1986)
- "Poppa Was a Catcher" (New Destinies, Volume II ed. Jim Baen, Aug 1987; Cities in Space, ed. Jerry Pournelle, John F. Carr, Sep 1991)
- "Peaches for Mad Molly" (Analog, Feb 1988; The Year's Best Science Fiction: Sixth Annual Collection, ed. Gardner Dozois, May 1989; The 1989 Annual World's Best SF, ed. Donald A. Wollheim, Arthur W. Saha, Jun 1989; New Skies: An Anthology of Today's Science Fiction, ed. Patrick Nielsen Hayden, Sep 2003)
- "Simulation Six" (Asimov's, Mar 1990)
- "The Session" (The Armless Maiden: And Other Tales for Childhood's Survivors, ed. Terri Windling, Tor Apr 1995)
- "Leonardo's Hands", with Rory HarperRory HarperRory Harper is an American science fiction writer and community activist living in College Station, Texas. He was born in Beaumont, Texas, and attended the University of Houston but did not graduate. He was one of the founders of Houston's Inlet Drug Crisis Center, where he worked with harm...
(RevolutionSF, Aug 2005) - "Shade" (Tor.com, 2008)
- "Bugs In the Arroyo" (Tor.com, Apr 2009)
- "A Story With Beans" (Analog, May 2009; The Year's Best Science Fiction: Twenty-Seventh Annual Collection, ed. Gardner Dozois, Jul 2010, The Mammoth Book of Best New Science Fiction: 23rd Annual Collection, 2010)
- "Tameshigiri" (The Living Dead 2, John Joseph Adams. Night Shade Books, 2010)
Essays
- Introduction (A Conflagration Artist, a collection by Bradley Denton) (Wildside Press, 1994)
Awards
Gould's short fiction has been nominated twice for the Hugo AwardHugo Award
The Hugo Awards are given annually for the best science fiction or fantasy works and achievements of the previous year. The award is named after Hugo Gernsback, the founder of the pioneering science fiction magazine Amazing Stories, and was officially named the Science Fiction Achievement Awards...
, for the short story "Rory" in 1985, and the novelette "Peaches for Mad Molly" in 1989. "Peaches for Mad Molly" was also on the shortlist for the Nebula Award
Nebula Award
The Nebula Award is given each year by the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America , for the best science fiction/fantasy fiction published in the United States during the previous year...
that year. His first published short story, "The Touch of Their Eyes", was also nominated for the Analog Award for Best Short Story in 1980.
Gould's first novel, Jumper, was nominated for the Compton Crook Award
Compton Crook Award
The Compton Crook Award is presented to the best first novel of the year in the field of Science Fiction, Fantasy, or Horror by the members of the Baltimore Science Fiction Society, Inc, at their annual Baltimore-area science fiction convention, Balticon, held on Memorial Day weekend in the...
(Balticon - Best 1st Novel) and came in second for the Locus Award
Locus Award
The Locus Award is a literary award established in 1971 and presented to winners of Locus magazine's annual readers' poll. Currently, the Locus Awards are presented at an annual banquet...
for Best First Novel.
Gould's second book, Wildside, was awarded the Hal Clement Award for best young adult science fiction novel in 1997. The National Library Association has also recognized Jumper and Wildside as best books for young adults.
External links
- eatourbrains.com/steve/, Steven Gould's Website
- "7th Sigma & the Gauzy Exterior: A Conversation with Steven Gould", Interview at Clarkesworld MagazineClarkesworld MagazineClarkesworld Magazine is an American online fantasy and science fiction magazine. The first issue was published October 1, 2006 and it has maintained a regular monthly schedule since, publishing fiction by authors such as Sarah Monette, Catherynne Valente, Elizabeth Bear, Caitlin R...
(10/2011)