Paul J. McAuley (born 23 April 1955) is a British botanist and science fiction author. A biologist by training, McAuley writes mostly hard science fiction. His novels deal with themes such as biotechnology, alternative history/reality, and space travel.

McAuley began writing science fiction with the far-future space-opera novel Four Hundred Billion Stars, its sequel Eternal Light, and the planetary-colony adventure Of the Fall. The novel Red Dust, set on a far-future Mars colonized by the Chinese, is a planetary romance featuring many emerging technologies and science fiction motifs: nanotechnology, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, personality downloads, and virtual reality. His Confluence series, set in an even more distant future (about ten million years from now), is one of multiple novels that use Frank J. Tipler's Omega Point Theory as a theme; in this theory, the universe seems to be evolving toward a maximum degree of complexity and consciousness. Around the same time, McAuley published the novel Pasquale's Angel, set in an alternative Italian Renaissance; it features Niccolò Machiavelli and Leonardo da Vinci as major characters.

McAuley has also used biotechnology and nanotechnology themes in near-future settings: the novel Fairyland describes a dystopian, war-torn Europe where genetically engineered "dolls" are used as disposable slaves. Since 2001, he has produced several techno-thriller novels based on science fiction, such as The Secret of Life, Whole Wide World, and White Devils.

Four Hundred Billion Stars, his first novel, won the Philip K. Dick Award in 1988. Fairyland won the 1996 Arthur C. Clarke Award and the 1997 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best SF Novel. The short story "The Temptation of Dr. Stein" won the British Fantasy Award. Pasquale's Angel won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History (Long Form).

Bibliography

Novels Red Dust. London: Gollancz, 1993. Pasquale's Angel. London: Gollancz, 1994. — Clarke and British Fantasy Awards nominee, 1995, Sidewise Award winner Fairyland. London: Gollancz, 1995. — BSFA Award nominee, 1995; Clarke Award winner, 1996; Campbell Award winner, 1997 The Secret of Life. London: Voyager, 2001. — BSFA Award nominee, 2001; Clarke Award nominee, 2002 Whole Wide World. London: Voyager, 2002. White Devils. London: Simon & Schuster, 2004. — Campbell Award nominee, 2005 Mind's Eye. London: Simon & Schuster, 2005. — Campbell Award nominee, 2006 Players. London: Simon & Schuster, 2007. Cowboy Angels. London: Gollancz, 2007. Austral: London: Gollancz, 2017. War of the Maps. London: Gollancz, 2020. Beyond the Burn Line. London: Gollancz, 2022. Loss Protocol. London: Gollancz, 2026.

Four Hundred Billion Stars series [Philip K. Dick Award winner, 1988] Secret Harmonies. London: Gollancz, 1989. . (Published in the United States as Of the Fall) Eternal Light. London: Gollancz, 1991. — BSFA Award nominee, 1991 and Clarke Award nominee, 1992 The Confluence series Child of the River. London: Gollancz, 1997. Ancients of Days. London: Gollancz, 1998. Shrine of Stars. London: Gollancz, 1999. Confluence - The Trilogy. London: Gollancz, 2014.

The Quiet War series The Quiet War. London, Gollancz, 2008. — Clarke Award nominee, 2009 Gardens of the Sun. London: Gollancz, 2009. In the Mouth of the Whale. London: Gollancz, 2012. Evening's Empires: London, Gollancz, 2013. Stories from the Quiet War (2011), a collection of five stories: "Making History", first published in 2000 "Incomers", first published in 2008 "Second Skin", first published in 1997 in Asimov's "Reef", first published in 2000 "Karyl's War", first published in this collection Blade and Bone (2023) (novella)

The Jackaroo series Something Coming Through: London, Gollancz, 2015.

Into Everywhere. London: Gollancz, 2016. Dust (short story) (2006) Winning Peace (short story) (2007) City of the Dead (short story) (2008) Adventure (short story) (2008) Crimes and Glory (short story) (2009) Bruce Springsteen (short story) (2012) The Man (short story) (2012) Something Happened Here, But We're Not Quite Sure What It Was (short story) (2016) Maryon's Gift (short story) (2022)

Short fiction The King of the Hill. London: Gollancz, 1991.

The King of the Hill Karl and the Ogre Transcendence The Temporary King Exiles Little Ilya and Spider and Box The Airs of Earth The Heirs of Earth

The Invisible Country. London: Gollancz, 1996. — Philip K. Dick Award nominee, 1998

Gene Wars (1991) Prison Dreams Recording Angel (1995) Dr. Luther's Assistant The Temptation of Dr Stein (1996)Set in the same timeline than Pasquale's Angel (1994). Children of the Revolution The True History of Doctor Pretorius Slaves

Little Machines. Harrogate: PS Publishing, 2005.

The Two Dicks Residuals 17 All Tomorrow's Parties Interstitial How We Lost the Moon, a True Story by Frank W. Allen Under Mars Danger: Hard Hack Area The Madness of Crowds The Secret of My Success The Proxy I Spy The Rift Alien TV Before the Flood A Very British History Cross Roads Blues

A Very British History. Harrogate: PS Publishing, 2013.

Little Ilya and Spider and Box The Temporary King Cross Roads Blues Gene Wars Prison Dreams Children of the Revolution Recording Angel Second Skin All Tomorrow's Parties 17 Sea Change, With Monsters How We Lost the Moon, A True Story by Frank W. Allen A Very British History The Two Dicks Meat Rocket Boy The Thought War City of the Dead Little Lost Robot Shadow Life The Choice

StoriesShort stories unless otherwise noted. YearTitleFirst publishedReprinted/collectedNotes2000Making HistoryMaking History. Harrogate: PS Publishing, 2000. Novella2003The Eye of the TygerThe Eye of the Tyger. Tolworth, Surrey: Telos Publishing, 2003. (a Doctor Who novella)Novella2011The ChoiceThe Jackaroo series2012Antarctica Starts Here2015Wild Honey2023Gravesend, or, Everyday Life in the AnthropoceneGravesend, or, Everyday Life in the Anthropocene (2023)Novella

"A Brief Guide to Other Histories" "Dead Men Walking". Asimov's Science Fiction. 30 (3): 80–93. March 2006. "Edna Sharrow" "Inheritance" "Planet of Fear" (2015) in Old Venus (anthology) "Rocket Boy" Set in the Jackaroo universe: "Winning Peace" (2016), in the collection Galactic Empires by Neil Clarke. "Something Happened Here, But We're Not Quite Sure What It Was" (2016), published as a freebie on Tor.com.

Non-fiction

——————— Bibliography notes

Critical studies and reviews of McAuley's work Reviews Cowboy Angels. References

External links

Paul J. McAuley's official site

Infinity Plus profile of Paul J. McAuley Profile of Paul McAuley by Michael Swanwick Review, The Secret of Life Review, The Book of Confluence trilogy Review, Whole Wide World Review, Confluence - trilogy omnibus Interview on Actusf Complete list of sci-fi award wins and nominations by novel Story Behind Quiet War (How I wrote the Quiet War novels and stories) - Online Essay at Upcoming4.me Story behind Confluence by Paul McAuley - Collaborating With Myself - Online Essay at Upcoming4.me