C. J. Cherryh

C. J. Cherryh
Cherryh at NorWesCon in 2006
Cherryh at NorWesCon in 2006
BornCarolyn Janice Cherry
(1942-09-01) September 1, 1942 (age 82)
St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Pen nameC. J. Cherryh
OccupationNovelist, short story author, essayist, high school teacher
EducationUniversity of Oklahoma (BA)
Johns Hopkins University (MA)
Period1976–present
GenreScience fiction, fantasy
Notable worksAlliance–Union universe, Foreigner series
Notable awardsHugo Award, Locus Award, Prometheus Award
Spouse
​
(m. 2014)​
[1][2]
RelativesDavid A. Cherry (brother)
Website
cherryh.com/WaveWithoutAShore/

Carolyn Janice Cherry (born September 1, 1942), better known by the pen name C. J. Cherryh, is an American writer of speculative fiction. She has written more than 80 books since the mid-1970s, including the Hugo Award–winning novels Downbelow Station (1981) and Cyteen (1988), both set in her Alliance–Union universe, and her Foreigner series. She is known for worldbuilding, depicting fictional realms with great realism supported by vast research in history, language, psychology, and archeology.

Cherryh (pronounced "Cherry") appended a silent "h" to her real name because her first editor, Donald A. Wollheim, felt that "Cherry" sounded too much like a romance writer.[3] She used only her initials, C. J., to disguise that she was female at a time when the majority of science fiction authors were male.[4]

The author has an asteroid, 77185 Cherryh, named after her. Referring to this honor, the asteroid's discoverers wrote of Cherryh: "She has challenged us to be worthy of the stars by imagining how mankind might grow to live among them."[5]

  1. ^ Cite error: The named reference Fancher was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  2. ^ Cite error: The named reference Fancher2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  3. ^ rec.arts.sf.written FAQ. Pronunciation of Cherryh.
  4. ^ Gunn, James (2004). "Introduction: What We Do For Love". In Carmien, Edward (ed.). The Cherryh Odyssey. Borgo Press. pp. 19–20. ISBN 978-0809510702.
  5. ^ JPL Small-Body Database Browser Asteroid 77185 Cherryh.