Paul J. McAuley

Paul J. McAuley (born April 23, 1955), a British botanist, award-winning author, and self-described science junkie.

By training a biologist, UK science fiction author McAuley writes mostly hard science fiction, dealing with themes such as biotechnology, alternate history/alternate reality, and space travel.

McAuley started out writing far-future space opera with "Four Hundred Billion Stars", its sequel "Eternal Light", and the planetary-colony adventure "Of the Fall". "Red Dust", set on a far-future Mars colonized by the Chinese, is a planetary romance filled with all the latest SF ideas: nanotechnology, biotechnology, artificial intelligence, personality downloads, virtual reality. The Confluence trilogy, set in an even more distant future (about ten million years ahead), is one of a number of novels to use Frank J. Tipler's Omega Point Theory as part of its machinery. In the middle of this, he published "Pasquale's Angel", set in an alternate Italian Renaissance and featuring Niccolò Machiavegli (Machiavelli) and Leonardo da Vinci in prominent roles.

McAuley has also used biotech and nanotech themes in near-future settings: "Fairyland" describes a dystopian, war-torn Europe where genetically engineered "dolls" are used as disposable slaves. Since 2001 he has produced several SF-based techno-thrillers 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. "Fairyland" won the 1996 Arthur C. Clarke Award and the 1997 John W. Campbell Memorial Award for Best SF Novel. "The Temptation of Dr. Stein," won the British Fantasy Award. "Pasquale's Angel" won the Sidewise Award for Alternate History (Long Form).

Bibliography

Novels

* Four Hundred Billion Stars
**"Four Hundred Billion Stars". London: Gollancz, 1988. ISBN 0-575-04260-5
**"Secret Harmonies" (vt US "Of the Fall"). London: Gollancz, 1989. ISBN 0-575-04580-9
**"Eternal Light". London: Gollancz, 1991. ISBN 0-575-04931-6
*"Red Dust". London: Gollancz, 1993. ISBN 0-575-05488-3
*"Pasquale's Angel". London: Gollancz, 1994. ISBN 0-575-05489-1
*"Fairyland". London: Gollancz, 1995. ISBN 0-575-06070-0
*The Confluence Series:
**"Child of the River". London: Gollancz, 1997. ISBN 0-575-06427-7
**"Ancients of Days". London: Gollancz, 1998. ISBN 0-575-06428-5
**"Shrine of Stars". London: Gollancz, 1999. ISBN 0-575-06429-3
*"The Secret of Life". London: Voyager, 2001. ISBN 0-00-225904-4
*"Whole Wide World". London: Voyager, 2002. ISBN 0-00-225903-6
*"White Devils". London: Simon & Schuster, 2004. ISBN 0-7432-3885-0
*"Mind's Eye". London: Simon & Schuster, 2005. ISBN 0-7432-3887-7
*"Players". London: Simon & Schuster, 2007. ISBN 0-7432-7617-5
*"Cowboy Angels". London: Gollancz, 2007. ISBN 978-0-575-07934-7

Novellas

*"Making History". Harrogate: PS Publishing, 2000. ISBN 1-902880-08-0
*"The Eye of the Tyger". Tolworth, Surrey: Telos Publishing, 2003. ISBN 1-903889-24-3 (a "Doctor Who" novella)

Collections

*"King of the Hill". London: Gollancz, 1988. ISBN 0-575-05001-2
*"The Invisible Country". London: Gollancz, 1988. ISBN 0-575-06072-7
*"Little Machines". Harrogate: PS Publishing, 2005. ISBN 1-902880-94-3

"See also:" "Gene Wars" (1991)

External links

* [http://www.omegacom.demon.co.uk/ Paul J. McAuley's official site]
* "Infinity Plus" [http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/misc/pmca.htm profile of Paul J. McAuley]
* [http://www.michaelswanwick.com/nonfic/mcauley.html Profile of Paul McAuley] by Michael Swanwick
*
* [http://www.infinityplus.co.uk/nonfiction/secretoflife.htm Review, "The Secret of Life"]
* [http://www.scifi.com/sfw/books/column/sfw5171.html Review, "The Book of Confluence" trilogy]
* [http://www.actusf.com/spip/?article4718 Interview on Actusf]