Naomi_Novik

Naomi Novik

Naomi Novik

American author (born 1973)

Naomi Novik (born 1973) is an American author of speculative fiction. She is known for the Temeraire series (2006–2016), an alternate history of the Napoleonic Wars involving dragons, and her Scholomance fantasy series (2020–2022). Her standalone fantasy novels Uprooted (2015) and Spinning Silver (2018) were inspired by Polish folklore and the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale respectively. Novik has won many awards for her work, including the Alex, Audie, British Fantasy, Locus, Mythopoeic and Nebula Awards.

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Early life

Novik grew up in Roslyn Heights on Long Island. She is a second-generation American; her father's family were Lithuanian Jews, and her mother's family were Polish Catholics.[1] Displaying an interest in reading at a young age, she read The Lord of the Rings at age six, and developed a love for Jane Austen soon afterward.[2]

She received a bachelor's degree in English literature at Brown University and holds a master's degree in computer science from Columbia University.[3] She participated in the design and development of the computer game Neverwinter Nights: Shadows of Undrentide, until she discovered that she preferred writing over game design.[2]

Career

Novik's first novel, His Majesty's Dragon (Temeraire in the UK) is the first novel in the Temeraire series, an alternate history of the Napoleonic Wars in a "Flintlock Fantasy" world where dragons are abundant and are used in aerial combat. His Majesty's Dragon won the Compton Crook Award in 2007 and was nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Novel.[4][5] Temeraire: In the Service of the King is omnibus volume collecting the first three books of the series (His Majesty's Dragon, Throne of Jade, and Black Powder War); it won the Locus Award for Best First Novel in 2007.[6]

In September 2006, Peter Jackson optioned the rights to the Temeraire series, intending to produce three or more live-action films, but the rights have since reverted to Novik.[7][8][9] The Temeraire series has also been released in audiobook format. The first five audiobooks were released by Books on Tape, beginning in 2007, and read by Simon Vance.[10] The sixth audiobook was released by Tantor Audio in September 2010, also read by Vance.[11]

In September 2007, Novik was awarded the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer for best new science fiction writer of 2006.[12] In 2011, Novik wrote Will Supervillains Be on the Final?, a graphic novel about the next generation of high-flying costumed crusaders. Yishan Li illustrated the comic with manga-styled art.[13]

In 2015, Novik published Uprooted, a standalone novel "set in a fantasy world inspired by the Kingdom of Poland".[14] It won the Nebula Award for Best Novel, the British Fantasy Award for Best Fantasy Novel, the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, and the Mythopoeic Fantasy Award.[15][16][17][18] Warner Bros. purchased the film rights to Uprooted; Ellen DeGeneres and Jeff Kleeman signed on to produce the film through their production company, A Very Good Production.[19]

In 2016, Novik published "Spinning Silver", a short story retelling the Rumpelstiltskin fairy tale, in the fantasy anthology The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales.[1][20] Two years later, she expanded the story into her second standalone novel, Spinning Silver,[1] which won the 2019 Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel, the 2019 Alex Award, and the 2019 Audie Award for Fantasy.[21][22][23]

In 2020, Novik published A Deadly Education, the first in a trilogy set in the Scholomance, the retelling of folklore about a school of black magic. The main character, Galadriel "El" Higgins, a half-Welsh, half-Indian sorceress, must survive to graduation while controlling her destructive abilities.[24] Universal Pictures purchased the film rights to the Scholomance series in advance, assigning Todd Lieberman and David Hoberman of Mandeville Films to develop and produce the films.[25] Upon its release, A Deadly Education was criticized for a passage where the hairstyle known as dreadlocks is described as susceptible to an infestation of bug-like magical creatures.[26][27] Novik later apologized for "evok[ing] a racist stereotype" about Afro-textured hair. She revised the passage for future reprints, and promised that the sequel novels will not be sent to reviewers and publishers before "revisions are fully complete and a final sensitivity read has happened."[28]

Activism

Novik helped to organize the Organization for Transformative Works (OTW), a non-profit organization dedicated to the advancement of fan-media including fan fiction, fan videos (vids), and real-person fiction.[29][30][31] In 2007 she was one of the three directors of the nonprofit.

Novik was a co-founder of Archive of Our Own (AO3), a project of OTW that began in 2007 to create an online archive of fan fiction.[32][33] At the 2019 Hugo Award ceremony, AO3 won the award for Best Related Work; Novik accepted the prize on behalf of all AO3's creators and readers.[34]

Personal life

Novik is married to entrepreneur and writer Charles Ardai. They live in Manhattan.[2] They have one child, a daughter named Evidence Novik Ardai, who was born in 2010.[35]

Awards and nominations

Novik has won the British Fantasy, Locus, Mythopoeic and Nebula Awards, and received nominations for the Hugo and World Fantasy Awards.[36]

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Publications

Standalone novels

  • Uprooted (Del Rey, 2015) ISBN 978-0804179034
  • Spinning Silver (Del Rey / Macmillian, 2018) ISBN 978-1509899012

Temeraire series

Main article: Temeraire (series)
  1. His Majesty's Dragon (Del Rey, 2006) ISBN 978-0345481283
  2. Throne of Jade (Del Rey, 2006) ISBN 978-0345481290
  3. Black Powder War (Del Rey, 2006) ISBN 978-0345481306
  4. Empire of Ivory (Del Rey, 2007) ISBN 978-0345496874
  5. Victory of Eagles (Del Rey, 2008) ISBN 978-0345496881
  6. Tongues of Serpents (Del Rey, 2010) ISBN 978-0345496898
  7. Crucible of Gold (Del Rey, 2012) ISBN 978-0345522863
  8. Blood of Tyrants (Del Rey, 2013) ISBN 978-0345522894
  9. League of Dragons (Del Rey, 2016) ISBN 978-0345522924

Omnibus editions

  • Temeraire: In the Service of the King (Science Fiction Book Club, 2006) ISBN 978-0739468715
  • In His Majesty's Service: Three Novels of Temeraire (Del Rey, 2009) ISBN 978-0345513540

Scholomance trilogy

Short stories in anthologies

Short stories

  • "Feast or Famine" (Novik's official website)
  • "Apples" (Novik's official website, 2005)
  • Golden Age and Other Stories (Subterranean Press, 2017) ISBN 978-1-59606-829-2
  • Buried Deep and Other Stories (2024)

Notes

  1. The Alex Awards are given to books written for adults that have special appeal to young adults.[37]
  2. An omnibus volume collecting His Majesty's Dragon, Throne of Jade, and Black Powder War.[43]
  3. Published in The Starlit Wood: New Fairy Tales.[45]

References

  1. [1]
    Jackson, Frannie (July 10, 2018). "Naomi Novik Talks Spinning Silver, Her Rumpelstiltskin-Inspired Novel". Paste. Retrieved March 9, 2020.
  2. [2]
    Bosman, Julie (October 11, 2006). "A New Writer Is Soaring on the Wings of a Dragon". The New York Times. Retrieved May 19, 2010.
  3. [3]
    Fox, Rose (August 14, 2006). "Interview: Naomi Novik". Strange Horizons. Retrieved November 11, 2021.
  4. [4]
    "2007 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. August 9, 2007. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  5. [5]
    "Compton Crook Award: Past Award Winners". Baltimore Science Fiction Society. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  6. [6]
    "2007 Locus Awards Winners". Locus Online. June 16, 2007. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  7. [7]
    "r/YAwriters AMA: Naomi Novik, author of Uprooted & the Temeraire series". Reddit. February 23, 2016. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  8. [8]
    Creen, Willow (September 11, 2006). "Peter Jackson Options Temeraire". Empire. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  9. [9]
    "Peter Jackson enters dragons' den". The Guardian. September 12, 2006.
  10. [10]
    "Books by Naomi Novik". Books on Tape. Archived from the original on April 5, 2012. Retrieved December 2, 2011.
  11. [11]
    "Tongues of Serpents: Book 6 in the Temeraire series". Tantor Media. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  12. [12]
    "Campbell Award". The Hugo Awards. August 9, 2007. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  13. [13]
    "Will Supervillains Be on the Final? Liberty Vocational, Vol. 1". Publishers Weekly. March 7, 2011. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  14. [14]
    Speakman, Shawn (August 13, 2013). "New Release Interview: Blood of Tyrants by Naomi Novik". Suvudu. Random House. Archived from the original on December 24, 2013. Retrieved December 23, 2013.
  15. [15]
    "Mythopoeic Awards 2016". Mythopoeic Society. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  16. [16]
    "2015 Nebula Awards Winners". Locus Online. Archived from the original on September 21, 2016. Retrieved May 15, 2016.
  17. [17]
    "Winners of the British Fantasy Awards 2016". The British Fantasy Society. Archived from the original on July 3, 2019. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  18. [18]
    "2016 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. June 25, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  19. [19]
    Kit, Borys (June 8, 2015). "Ellen DeGeneres to Produce Adaptation of Naomi Novik's Fantasy Novel 'Uprooted' (Exclusive)". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  20. [20]
    Speakman, Shawn (October 6, 2016). "Spinning Silver – A New Naomi Novik Short Story". NaomiNovik.com. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  21. [21]
    DJangi, Taraneh (March 5, 2019). "Congratulations to Our 2019 Audie Award Winners". Books on Tape. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  22. [22]
    "2019 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. June 29, 2019. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  23. [23]
    "Spinning Silver | Awards & Grants". American Library Association. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  24. [24]
    Canfield, David (February 7, 2020). "Spinning Silver author Naomi Novik to launch epic new trilogy this fall". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  25. [25]
    D'Alessandro, Anthony (May 26, 2020). "Universal & Mandeville Films Partner On Naomi Novik's 'Scholomance' Series". Deadline. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  26. [26]
    Irankunda, Larissa (October 16, 2020). "Racism vs. Representation: The Missteps of Naomi Novik's A Deadly Education". The Mary Sue. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  27. [27]
    Tanjeem, Namera (December 3, 2020). "A Response to Claims of Racism in Naomi Novik's A Deadly Education". Book Riot. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  28. [28]
    Novik, Naomi (October 10, 2020). "Apology for A Deadly Education". NaomiNovik.com. Retrieved May 23, 2021.
  29. [29]
    "Organization for Transformative Works". Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  30. [30]
    Certificate of Incorporation of Organization for Transformative Works (2007)
  31. [31]
    "Five Things Naomi Novik Said". Archive of Our Own. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  32. [32]
    Fiesler, Casey; Morrison, Shannon; Bruckman, Amy S (2016). "An Archive of Their Own: A Case Study of Feminist HCI and Values in Design". Proceedings of the 2016 CHI Conference on Human Factors in Computing Systems. p. 2574. doi:10.1145/2858036.2858409. ISBN 9781450333627. S2CID 8394004. Retrieved September 6, 2021. We need a central archive of our own. - Naomi [Novik], in a blog post dated May 17, 2007
  33. [33]
    Busch, Caitlin (February 12, 2019). "An Archive of Our Own: How AO3 built a nonprofit fanfiction empire and safe haven". SyFy. Archived from the original on February 19, 2019. Retrieved September 6, 2021. Dismayed by the situation, Coppa and her co-founders, sci-fi and fantasy author Naomi Novik and Rebecca Tushnet, a First Amendment rights professor at Harvard University, decided to do something about it. They worked together with the other members of the founding board, a group of seven passionate, "incredibly collaborative" fans and creators, to make a new kind of archive.
  34. [34]
    Romano, Aja (August 19, 2019). "The Archive of Our Own just won a Hugo. That's huge for fanfiction". Vox. Retrieved September 6, 2021. The [Hugo] awards ceremony took place on August 18, 2019, at Worldcon in Dublin, where AO3 co-founder Naomi Novik, accepted it on behalf of all of the website's creators and readers.
  35. [35]
    Novik, Naomi (April 8, 2011). "Temeraire Fanart Contest Results!". NaomiNovik.com. Retrieved December 14, 2020.
  36. [36]
    "Naomi Novik Awards". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Archived from the original on June 28, 2021. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  37. [37]
    "Alex Awards". American Library Association. February 27, 2012. Retrieved August 2, 2022.
  38. [38]
    "Goodreads Choice Awards 2018: Best Fantasy". Goodreads. Retrieved May 22, 2021.
  39. [39]
    "2016 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. December 29, 2015. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  40. [40]
    Cheryl (April 2, 2019). "2019 Hugo Award & 1944 Retro Hugo Award Finalists". The Hugo Awards. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  41. [41]
    "2017 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. December 31, 2016. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  42. [42]
    "2022 Locus Awards Top Ten Finalists". Locus Magazine. May 10, 2022. Retrieved May 10, 2022.
  43. [43]
    Temeraire: In the Service of the King title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
  44. [44]
    "2017 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. June 24, 2017. Retrieved July 3, 2019.
  45. [45]
    Spinning Silver (novelette) title listing at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
  46. [46]
    "Mythopoeic Awards: 2019 Winners Announced". Mythopoeic Society. August 4, 2019. Retrieved August 10, 2021.
  47. [47]
    "Spinning Silver by Naomi Novik". The Nebula Awards. Retrieved July 3, 2020.
  48. [48]
    "Nominees | World Fantasy Convention". Retrieved July 3, 2019.
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