Kevin O'Donnell (writer)

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Kevin O'Donnell 1986

Kevin O'Donnell (born November 29, 1950 in Cleveland , Ohio ; died November 7, 2012 in Campbell , Ohio) was an American science fiction writer.

Life

O'Donnell was the son of Kevin O'Donnell Sr. and Margaret Ann O'Donnell. He grew up as the oldest of eight siblings in Cleveland and Fairview Park . After his mother's death in 1965, the father remarried and in 1966 took over the position of head of the US Peace Corps in Korea , which is why the family moved to Seoul for four years , where O'Donnell attended the Seoul Foreign School . After graduating in 1968, he went to Yale University , where he studied Sinology and obtained his bachelor's degree in 1972 . During his studies he met the Chinese-American student Kim Tchang, whom he married in 1974. He first worked as a teacher of English at Hong Kong Baptist College and from 1973 at the American English Language Institute in Taipei , Taiwan .

In 1973 he published his first science fiction story in the SF magazine Analog . From 1976 he was a professional writer. In 1979 his first SF novel Bander Snatch was published by Bantam Books . From 1979 to 1983 he was the editor or publisher of EMPIRE: For The SF Writer magazine in New Haven , Connecticut . From 1990 he became involved with SFWA , the American association of science fiction and fantasy authors, first as chairman of the jury and committee for the Nebula Awards , then as managing director of the SFWA quarterly Bulletin (1994-1998) and finally as chairman of the Appeals Committee (1998–2005). He received an award in 2005 and posthumously in 2014 for his work for SFWA.

O'Donnell published a total of 10 novels and over 70 short stories and articles. The debut novel Bander Snatch , according to Peter Nicholls, is a peculiar mixture of pulp clichés and originality, in which a ghetto gangster with telepathic skills learns to use them responsibly.

The second novel Mayflies (1979) tells from the perspective of the immortal captain of a generation ship , who over the course of time moves more and more away from his humanity and looks at the short-lived passengers, the eponymous “ephemera”, with a mixture of pity and slight contempt. Mayflies was nominated for the Locus Award .

The best known is probably O'Donnell's tetralogy The Journeys of McGill Feighan . Feighan is a flinger , which means that he is able to teleport objects, people and himself to anywhere he has been before. The books tell in a relatively light tone of how the young protagonist learns to deal with his powers and of his search for a strange, god-like being who shows special attention for him.

In 2012, shortly before his 62nd birthday, O'Donnell died of lung cancer .

Awards

  • 1987: Prix Litteraire Mannesmann Tally for the French translation of the novel ORA: CLE
  • 2005: SFWA Service Award for his work at SFWA
  • 2014: Service to SFWA Award , posthumous award in recognition of his achievements for the SFWA

bibliography

The Journeys of McGill Feighan. Novel series.
  • 1 caverns. 1981.
    • German: Retzglaran. (= Knaur Science Fiction & Fantasy. # 5813). 1985, ISBN 3-426-05813-8 .
  • 2 reefs. 1981.
    • German: The water world. (= Knaur Science Fiction & Fantasy. # 5830). 1985, ISBN 3-426-05830-8 .
  • 3 lava. 1982.
    • German: The plant monk. (= Knaur Science Fiction & Fantasy. # 5831). 1986, ISBN 3-426-05831-6 .
  • 4 cliffs. 1986.
Novels
  • Bander Snatch. 1979.
  • Mayflies. 1979.
  • War of Omission. 1982.
  • ORA: CLE. 1984.
  • with Mary Kittredge: The Shelter. 1987.
  • Fire on the border. 1990.
  • as a co-author under the pseudonym Travis Tea: Atlanta Nights. 2005.
Short stories
  • The hand is quicker. 1973.
  • The gonorrhea. 1975.
  • Shattered Hopes, Broken Dreams. 1976.
  • A Matter of Pride. 1976.
  • Hunger on the homestretch. 1976.
  • Next door neighbor. 1976.
  • In Xanadu. 1976.
  • Low grade ore. 1977.
  • The Night Callers. 1977.
  • A meeting of minds. 1977.
    • German: The Achilles heel. In: Walter Spiegl (Ed.): Science-Fiction-Stories 80. (= Ullstein Science Fiction & Fantasy. # 31010). Ullstein, 1980, ISBN 3-548-31010-9 .
  • Night Shift. 1977.
  • Information Station Sabbath. 1977.
  • with AL Sirois: Listen to the Rain. 1978.
  • The Gift of Prometheus. 1978.
    • German: A gift from Prometheus. In: Werner Fuchs (Ed.): Light of the day, light of death. (= Knaur Science Fiction & Fantasy. # 5749). Droemer Knaur, 1982, ISBN 3-426-05749-2 .
  • The Looking Glass of the Law. 1978.
  • Quinera 3rd 1978.
  • Do Not Go Gentle. 1978.
  • Far from the Madding Crowd. 1978.
  • Stalking the timelines. 1978.
  • Tunnels of the Minds. 1978.
  • The Dead of Winter. 1979.
  • Temple Guardian. 1979.
  • Three aliens. 1979.
  • Old Friends. 1979.
  • The Raindrop's Role. 1979.
  • Judo and the Art of Self-Government. 1980.
  • Marchianna. 1980.
  • with Barry B. Longyear: Bloodsong. 1980.
  • Tears for Emily. 1981.
  • Younggold. 1981.
  • Encroachment. 1982.
  • with AL Sirois: Often in Offwana. 1983.
  • Linehan Alone. 1984.
  • Thy Neighbor's Assets. 1985.
  • Raccoons. 1986.
  • Rock garden. 1986.
  • The Million Dollar Day. 1987.
  • Fradero Goes Home. 1988.
  • Alone and Lame in Diidekland. 1989.
  • Future's Puppet. 1989.
  • Useful life. 1989.
  • A question of balance. 1990.
  • The Important Things in Life. 1990.
  • The Original Magic. 1990.
  • The Pieces of the Puzzle. 1990.
  • Crunch. 1991.
  • Moss Under Bamboo: Twilight. 1992.
  • Little Brother's Turn to Watch. 1992.
  • 'Saur Spot. 1993.
  • An appetite for power. 1997.
  • with Denise Lee: The Boys from Bethlehem. 1998.
Non-fiction
  • The Electronic Money Machine. 1984.

literature

Web links

personal data
SURNAME O'Donnell, Kevin
BRIEF DESCRIPTION American science fiction writer
DATE OF BIRTH November 29, 1950
PLACE OF BIRTH Cleveland , Ohio
DATE OF DEATH November 7, 2012
Place of death Campbell , Ohio