Lucius Shepard

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Lucius Shepard (born August 1947, Lynchburg, Virginia) is an American writer whose work transcends easy categorization. Often classified as a science fiction and fantasy writer, he often leans into other genres, such as magical realism. His work is infused with a strong political and historical sensibility and a sharp awareness of literary antecedents. Shepard's first short stories appeared in 1983, and his first novel, Green Eyes, appeared in 1984. At the time, he was considered part of the cyberpunk movement. Shepard came to writing late, having first enjoyed a varied career, including a stint playing rock and roll in the Midwest.

Lucius Shepard has won several awards for his science fiction: in 1985 he won John W. Campbell Award for best new writer, followed in 1986 with a best novella Nebula Award for his story R&R, which would later become part of his 1987 novel Life During Wartime. His novella Barnacle Bill the Spacer won a Hugo in 1993.

Shepard currently lives in Vancouver, Washington (across the Columbia River from Portland, Oregon).

1 Themes and Evolution
2 Selected bibliography
3 Work available online
4 External links

[edit] Themes and Evolution

Shepard has embraced many different themes throughout his career. In his early days, he was known for writing extensively about Central America. This often took two forms: clearly science-fictional stories about near future high-tech jungle war (such as "R&R" and "Salvador") and stories that seemed more in line with magic realism. Many of these, such as "Black Coral" (which concerns an American living on an island off of Honduras) and "The Jaguar Hunter" (the story of a man whose wife's debt forces him to hunt a mythical black jaguar which his people consider sacred), explore cultural clashes. Shepard has travelled extensively in Central America and lived there for a time; in multiple interviews, he has stated his belief that the Bush Administration will launch an attack against that region.

Shepard stopped writing fiction for much of the nineties. He returned near the end of that decade, producing such works as the novella "Radiant Green Star." (Locus Award 2001). Though he still writes Central American fiction, Shepard's interest seems to be moving north: he has recently published two short novels, "A Handbook of American Prayer" and "Viator," both set in North America. On that same note, he has recently published many works where culture and geography are secondary (his novella "Jailwise" is a prime example), preferring to focus on wider questions such as the role of justice in society.

Much of Shepard's recent work has been non-fiction. He researched the Freight Train Riders of America for some time, writing both fiction and non-fiction based on those experiences. He is also a regular movie reviewer for The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction and electricstory.com [1] His reviews are marked by general contempt for the current state of American film.

Lucius will be one of the two Guests of Honor at Readercon 2007.

[edit] Selected bibliography

[edit] Novels and Novellas

Green Eyes (1984)
Life During Wartime (1987)
"The Scalehunter's Beautiful Daughter" (1988, novella)
"The Father of Stones" (1989, novella)
"Kalimantan" (1990, novella)
The Golden (1993)
The Last Time (1995)
Valentine (2002)
Louisiana Breakdown (2003)
Aztechs (2003)
Colonel Rutherford's Colt (2003)
Floater (2003)
Liar's House (2004)
A Handbook of American Prayer (2004)
Viator (2004)
The Golden (trade paperback reprint, 2006)

[edit] Collections

The Jaguar Hunter (1987)
The Ends of the Earth (1990)
Sports & Music (1994, chapbook)
Barnacle Bill the Spacer and Other Stories (1997), published in the U.S. as *"Beast of the Heartland"
Two Trains Running (2004)
Trujillo and Other Stories (2004)
Eternity and Other Stories'" (2005)