Elizabeth Bear (born Sarah Bear Elizabeth Wishnevsky, September 22, 1971) is an American author who works primarily in the speculative and science fiction genres. She is one of a small number of writers who have gone on, after winning Astounding Science Fiction's John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, to win multiple Hugo Awards for their fiction writing. She won the John W. Campbell Award in 2005, going on to receive, for instance, the 2008 Hugo Award for Best Short Story for "Tideline", and the 2009 Hugo Award for Best Novelette for "Shoggoths in Bloom".
Early life and education
Bear was born Sarah Bear Elizabeth Wishnevsky,Explicitly, Locus states, "Sarah Bear Elizabeth Wishnevsky was born...", and the Internet Speculative Fiction Database, cited following, presents this as her legal name. in Hartford, Connecticut on September 22, 1971.
She is regularly referred to as having "attended the University of Connecticut, where she studied English and anthropology, though she did not take a degree."The 2006 version of this same statement in Locus was, "[s]he studied English and Anthropology at the University of Connecticut, but did not graduate", see Kelly, Mark R., ed. (April 2006), op. cit.
Career
As Locus magazine states in an introduction to an interview with her in 2006, Bear "has worked as a technical writer, a stable hand, a reporter, and in various office jobs", going on to say that "she sold a few stories to small-press publications in the 90s" and "only began writing seriously in 2001".
Fiction writing
Bear's first novel, Hammered, was published in January 2005. It was followed by Scardown in July, and Worldwired in November of the same year. The trilogy features Canadian Master Warrant Officer Jenny Casey, who is also the main character in the short story "Gone to Flowers". Hammered won the Locus Award for Best First Novel in 2006.
The Chains That You Refuse, a collection of her short fiction, was published May 2006 by Night Shade Books. Blood and Iron, the first book in the fantasy series entitled The Promethean Age, debuted June 27, 2006.
Teaching, and other media work and activities
As of this date, Bear was an instructor at the Viable Paradise writer's workshop, and has taught at Clarion West Writers Workshop.
As of this date, she was a writer at the ongoing Shadow Unit website/pseudo-TV series, and she has been a regular panelist on the podcast SF Squeecast.
In 2008, she donated her papers to the department of Rare Books and Special Collections at Northern Illinois University.
Reception
Annalee Newitz of io9 wrote that Bear "is famous for combining high-octane military/spy tales with eccentric and subversive subplots".
Awards and recognition
The "Award Bibliography" for Bear at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database lists over a 100 entries for her works that have nominated or received awards in her genre from 2004-2026, awards that include recognition on repeat occasions by Asimov's Reader, Cambell–Astounding Science Fiction, Lambda, Locus, BSFA, Gaylactic Spectrum, Gemmell and Hugo awards.
Bear is one of a small number of writers who have gone on to win multiple Hugo Awards for fiction after winning the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer, the list of others include C. J. Cherryh, Orson Scott Card, Spider Robinson, Ted Chiang, and Mary Robinette Kowal.
Bear and her fellow contributors' work at the podcast SF Squeecast were recognised in 2012 and 2013 by the Hugo Award for Best Fancast. For attribution to von Ruff, see academicians
+ Awards for Elizabeth Bear Work Year & AwardCategory Result Ref.Hammered2005 Astounding Award for Best New WriterTwo Dreams on Trains2005 BSFA AwardShort FictionSounding2006 BSFA AwardShort FictionCarnival2006 Philip K. Dick Award (Special Citation)2007 Locus AwardSF Novel2007 Lambda Literary Award for Speculative FictionLGBT Horror/Science Fiction/Fantasy2007 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelUndertow2007 Philip K. Dick Award2008 Locus AwardSF NovelWax2006 Locus AwardNovelette2007 Interzone Readers PollStoryWane2007 Locus AwardNoveletteCryptic Coloration2008 Locus AwardNoveletteNew Amsterdam2008 Locus AwardCollection2008 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelOrm the Beautiful2008 Locus AwardShort Story2008 WSFA Small Press AwardTideline2008 Locus AwardShort Story2008 Asimov's Readers' PollShort Story2008 Hugo AwardShort Story2008 Theodore Sturgeon AwardShort Science FictionWhiskey and Water2008 Locus AwardFantasy Novel2008 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelA Companion to Wolves (with Sarah Monette)2008 Lambda Literary Award for Speculative FictionLGBT Horror/Science Fiction/FantasyDust2008 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelThe Stratford Man2009 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelAll the Windwracked Stars2009 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelShoggoths in Bloom2009 Hugo AwardNovelette2009 Locus AwardNoveletteShoggoths in Bloom (Collection)2013 Locus AwardCollectionBoojum2009 Locus AwardShort StoryBy the Mountain Bound2010 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelSeven for a Secret2010 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelChill2010 Philip K. Dick Award2011 Locus Award SF NovelCuckoo (with Leah Bobet & Emma Bull)2010 Locus AwardNovellaMongoose2010 Locus AwardNoveletteBone and Jewel Creatures2011 World Fantasy AwardNovella2011 Locus AwardNovellaRange of Ghosts2012 Otherwise Award2013 Locus AwardFantasy NovelMETAtropolis: Cascadia2012 Audie AwardOriginal WorkSF Squeecast2012 Hugo AwardFancast2013 Hugo AwardFancastDolly2012 Locus AwardShort StoryGrail2012 Locus AwardSF Novel2012 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelFaster Gun2013 Locus AwardNoveletteIn the House of Aryaman, a Lonely Signal Burns2013 Locus AwardNovella2013 Asimov's Readers' PollNovellaNo Decent Patrimony2013 Locus AwardNoveletteThe Deeps of the Sky2013 Locus AwardShort StoryThe Wreck of the Charles Dexter Ward2013 Locus AwardNoveletteCovenant2015 Locus AwardShort StorySteles of the Sky2015 Locus AwardFantasy NovelThe Hand is Quicker2015 Locus AwardNoveletteThis Chance Planet2015 Locus AwardShort StoryKaren Memory2016 Locus AwardFantasy Novel2016 Gaylactic Spectrum AwardsNovelThe Heart's Filthy Lesson2016 Locus AwardNoveletteThe Stone in the Skull2018 Locus AwardFantasy NovelOkay, Glory2019 Locus AwardNoveletteThe Red-Stained Wings2020 Locus AwardFantasy NovelA Time to Reap2020 Locus AwardNovellaAncestral Night2020 Locus AwardSF NovelErase, Erase, Erase2020 Locus AwardNoveletteLest We Forget2020 Locus AwardShort StoryMachine2021 Locus AwardSF Novel2021 Dragon AwardsScience Fiction2021 Neffy AwardsNovelThe Best of Elizabeth Bear2021 Locus AwardCollectionA Blessing of Unicorns2022 Asimov's Readers' PollNovella2022 Locus AwardNovellaThe Red Mother2022 Locus AwardNovelette White Space 2026 Hugo Award Series
Personal life As of May 2020, Bear had been married twice; she was married to Christopher Kindred from 2000-2007, and after entering into a relationship with Scott Lynch in 2011—a "fantasy writer and firefighter" whose work includes novels—the two married in October 2016. As of that date, Bear was living with Lynch in Western Massachusetts, although it has also been stated that she keeps a home in Connecticut.
In 2021, Bear announced that she had been diagnosed with early-stage breast cancer.Pixel Scroll 9/3/21 "If It Doesn’t Scroll Naturally, File It", by Mike Glyer, at File 770; published September 3, 2021; retrieved October 6, 2021
Bibliography
Novels Carnival (November 2006, Bantam Spectra) Undertow (August 2007, Bantam Spectra) Bone and Jewel Creatures (novella) (2010, Subterranean Press) The Cobbler's Boy (2018)
The Jenny Casey trilogy Hammered (January 2005, Bantam Spectra) Scardown (July 2005, Bantam Spectra) Worldwired (November 2005, Bantam Spectra)
The Promethean Age Blood and Iron (June 2006, ROC) Whiskey and Water (July 2007, ROC) The Stratford Man: Volume I: Ink and Steel (July 2008, ROC) Volume II: Hell and Earth (August 2008, ROC) One Eyed Jack (November 2013, Prime Books)
Jacob's Ladder trilogy Dust (December 2007, Spectra) Chill (February 2010, Spectra) Grail (February 2011, Spectra)
The Edda of Burdens All the Windwracked Stars (November 2008, Tor Books) By the Mountain Bound (November 2009, Tor Books) The Sea thy Mistress (February 2011, Tor)
The Iskryne series A Companion to Wolves, with Sarah Monette (October 2007, Tor Books) The Tempering of Men, with Sarah Monette (August 2011, Tor Books) An Apprentice to Elves, with Sarah Monette (June 25, 2015, Tor Books)
New Amsterdam series New Amsterdam (May 2007, Subterranean Press) Seven for a Secret (novella; March 2009, Subterranean Press) The White City (novella; 2011, Subterranean Press) Ad Eternum (novella; February 2012, Subterranean Press) Garrett Investigates (November 2012, Subterranean Press)
Eternal Sky Trilogy Range of Ghosts (March 2012, Tor Books) Shattered Pillars (2013, Tor Books) Steles of the Sky (2014, Tor Books)
The Lotus Kingdoms The Stone in the Skull (2017, Tor Books) The Red-Stained Wings (2019, Tor Books) The Origin of Storms (2022, Tor Books)
Karen Memory Karen Memory (2015, Tor-Forge) Stone Mad (2018, Tor-Forge) Angel Maker (2025, Sobbing Squonk Press)
White Space Ancestral Night (2018, Gallery / Saga Press) Machine (2020, Gallery / Saga Press) The Folded Sky (2025, Saga Press)
Short fiction Collections The Chains That You Refuse (May 2006, Night Shade Books) Jewels and Stones (2010) Shoggoths in Bloom (October 2012, Prime Books) The Best of Elizabeth Bear (2020)
Short stories
Love-In-Idleness (1998) (In anthology Midsummer Night's Dreams: One Story, Many Tales edited by M. Christian) The Company of Four (2000) (E.B.'s The Chains that You Refuse; also appeared in Scheherazade issue #20 in 2000.) Speak! (2003) (In On Spec magazine, Winter 2003) Tiger! Tiger! (2003) (In anthology Shadows Over Baker Street (2003), edited by John Pelan & Michael Reaves.) Ice (2003) (Ideomancer, Apr. 2003 & (Lod: Polish-language version) in Nowa Fantastyka #7, Summer 2004.) The Chains That You Refuse (2004) (ChiZine magazine, Apr.-June 2004) This Tragic Glass (2004) (Sci Fiction webzine, Apr. 2004) Old Leatherwings (2004) Seven Dragons Mountains (2004) (Appeared in anthology All-Star Zeppelin Adventure Stories, edited by Jay Lake & David Moles.) Sleeping Dogs Lie (2004) (Flytrap magazine, Nov. 2004) When You Visit the Magoebaskloof Hotel, Be Certain Not to Miss the Samango Monkeys (2004) (Interzone 195, Nov/Dec 2004) Los Empujadores Furiosos (2005) (On Spec magazine, Winter 2006) The House of the Rising Sun (2005) (Anthology By Blood We Live, edited by John Joseph Adams & in The Third Alternative #42, Summer 2005) Wax (2005) (Interzone #201, Nov/Dec 2005 & reprinted in Fantasy: The Best of the Year 2006 edition, June 2006) Two Dreams on Trains (2005) (Strange Horizons webzine, Jan. 2005; reprinted in Year's Best Science Fiction: 23rd Annual Collection (July 2006) & reprinted in Rewired: The Post-Cyberpunk Anthology. Spanish-language version, Dos Sueños con Trenes, appeared in Cuasar #42, Marzo 2006) Follow Me Light (2005) (Sci Fiction webzine, Jan. 2005, reprinted in Best New Paranormal Romance (Nov. 2006) & Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (Sept. 2006) Botticelli (2005) (The Agony Column, Feb. 2005) And the Deep Blue Sea (2005) (Sci Fiction webzine, May 2005 & anthology Wastelands: Stories of the Apocalypse edited by John Joseph Adams) Long Cold Day (2005) (Sci Fiction webzine, Sept. 2005) The Inevitable Heat Death of the Universe (2006) (Subterranean Magazine #4, 2006) One-Eyed Jack and the Suicide King (2005) Gone to Flowers (2006) (Appeared in anthology Eidolon I, edited by Jonathan Strahan & Jeremy G. Byrne) High Iron (2006) Wane (2006) (Interzone #203 Mar/Apr 2006) Love Among the Talus (2006) (Strange Horizons, Dec. 2006) L'Esprit d'Escalier: Not a Play in One Act (2006) Lucifugous (2006) (Subterranean Magazine #5 (2006) Schrödinger's Cat Chases the Super String (2006)