Phyllis Eisenstein
Phyllis Eisenstein | |
---|---|
Born | Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | February 26, 1946
Died | December 7, 2020 Chicago, Illinois, U.S. | (aged 74)
Occupation | Author |
Nationality | American |
Genre | Fantasy, science fiction |
Phyllis Eisenstein (February 26, 1946 – December 7, 2020) was an American author of science fiction and fantasy short stories as well as novels. Her work was nominated for both the Hugo Award and Nebula Award.
Early life
Eisenstein was born Phyllis Leah Kleinstein
Career
Eisenstein had her first two science fiction stories published in 1971, the first in collaboration with husband Alex (he continued to be her writing partner for certain short stories). After establishing herself as a professional writer, she returned to college to finish her education, studying at the
She wrote eight novels, subsequently publishing six of them and nearly fifty shorter works of varying lengths in the genres of science fiction, fantasy, and
Eisenstein's stories were nominated twice for science fiction's
Her 1978 short story "Lost and Found" was
Eisenstein spent much of her adult life teaching writing; this began by assisting author
Beginning in 2000, Eisenstein began working full-time in Chicago's very competitive advertising business; she went on to become the executive manager of
The completed novel, The City in Stone, the last volume of her "Book of Elementals" fantasy trilogy, was left unreleased when Meisha Merlin Publishing, a well-established fantasy and science fiction publisher, suddenly ceased operations in 2007;[5] the novel remains unpublished, while the first two novels in the series are currently out-of-print.
Eisenstein completed The Walker Between Worlds, the first novel in a new
Death
Eisentein suffered a stroke in January 2020, and entered hospice care shortly thereafter.[1] She died in December of that year in Chicago at age 74 after a protracted neurological illness, complicated by COVID-19 during the COVID-19 pandemic in Illinois. She was survived by her husband, Alex.[7][3]
Published works
Book series
- Tales of Alaric the Minstrel
- Born to Exile (1977)
- In the Red Lord's Reach (1989)
- The Book of Elementals
- Sorcerer's Son (1979)
- The Crystal Palace (1988)
- The Book of Elementals (omnibus) (2002)
- The City in Stone (completed but unpublished)
- The Masks of Power
- The Walker Between Worlds (completed but unpublished)
Stand-alone novels
- Shadow of Earth (1979)
- In the Hands of Glory (1981)
Chapterbooks
- Walker Between the Worlds, novella (2007)
- Conspicuous SF (2009)
Collections
- Night Lives: Nine Stories of the Dark Fantastic (2003), with Alex Eisenstein
Anthologies edited
- Spec-Lit 1: Speculative Fiction (1997)
- Spec-Lit 2: Speculative Fiction (1998)
Edited with Alex Eisenstein
- The Stars My Destination, by Alfred Bester, Special Restored Edition (1996)
Nonfiction
- Overcoming the Pain of Inflammatory Arthritis, with Samuel M. Scheiner, Ph.D. (1997)
Works featuring Eisenstein's stories
- New Dimensions 1 (1971)
- The Best from Fantasy and Science Fiction (1973)
- Long Night of Waiting (1974)
- Best SF Stories of the Year (1976)
- Best Science Fiction Stories of the Year #5 (1977)
- New Dimensions 7 (1977)
- The Year's Best Fantasy Stories 4 (1978)
- Asimov's Choice (1979)
- Best Science Fiction Stories of the Year, 1978 (1979)
- Best Science Fiction Stories of the Year #8 (1980)
- Whispers III (1981)
- Shadows 5 (1982)
- 13 Short Science Fiction Novels (1986)
- What Did Miss Darrington See (1989)
- Microcosmic Tales (1990)
- New Stories from the Twilight Zone (1990)
- New Eves: Science Fiction About the Extraordinary Women of Today and Tomorrow (1994)
- 100 Hair-Raising Little Horror Stories (1994)
- The Oxford Book of Fantasy (1994)
- Sisters In Fantasy (1995)
- Horrors! 365 Scary Stories (1998)
- Songs of the Dying Earth (2009)
- Gateways (2010)
- Old Mars (2013)[8][9]
- Rogues (2014)
Published short stories
- "Born to Exile" (1971)
- "The Trouble with the Past" (1971), with Alex Eisenstein
- "Inn of the Black Swan" (1972)
- "Attachment" (1974), Nebula Award (nominee)
- "Teleprobe" (1974)
- "The Weather on Mars" (1974), with Alex Eisenstein
- "The Witch and the Well" (1974)
- "The Lords of All Power (1975)
- "The Tree of Life" (1975)
- "Sleeping Beauty: The True Story" (1976), with Alex Eisenstein
- "Alter Ego" (1977), with Alex Eisenstein
- "You Are Here" (1977), with Alex Eisenstein
- "The Land of Sorrow" (1977)
- "In Answer To Your Call" (1978)
- "Lost and Found" (1978)
- "The Man With the Eye" (1978)
- "The Mountain Fastness" (1979)
- "The Fireman's Daughter" (1981)
- "In the Western Tradition" (1981), Nebula Award (nominee), Hugo Award (nominee)
- "Point of Departure" (1981)
- "Taboo" (1981)
- "Dark Wings" (1982)
- "Nightlife" (1982), Hugo Award (nominee)
- "Subworld" (1983)
- "The Amethyst Phial" (1984)
- "The Demon Queen" (1984)
- "Fair Exchange" (1985)
- "Sense of Duty" (1985)
- The Snail Out of Space" (1985)
- "Weaseling Out" (1987)
- "No Refunds" (1994)
- "Boxes" (1998)
- "The Cat" (1998)
- "Dust in the Attic" (1998)
- "The Island in the Lake" (1998), Nebula Award (nominee)
- "The Park" (1998)
- "The Robe" (1998)
- "Wild Animals" (1998)
- "Wallpaper World" (2001), with Alex Eisenstein
- "Boltzmann Schiaparelli and the Lizard King" (2009)
- "The Last Golden Thread" (2009)
- "Von Neumann's Bug" (2010), with Alex Eisenstein
- "The Sunstone" (2013)
- "The Caravan to Nowhere" (2014)
- "The Desert of Vanished Dreams" (2016)
- "The City of Lost Desire" (2019)
Awards and nominations
- Nebula: Best Short Story, (nominee, 1976) for "Attachment"
- Balrog Award: Novel, (winner, 1979) for Born To Exile
- Science Fiction Chronicle: Best Novella, (winner, 1981) for "In the Western Tradition"
- Hugo: Best Novella, (nominee, 1982) for "In the Western Tradition"
- Nebula: Best Novella, (nominee, 1982) for "In the Western Tradition"
- Hugo: Best Novelette, (nominee, 1983) for "Nightlife"
- Nebula: Best Novelette, (nominee, 2000) for "The Island in the Lake"
References
- ^ a b Phyllis Eisenstein (1946-2020)
- ^ Pederson 1996, p. 291.
- ^ a b c d Phyllis Eisenstein obituary, Chicago Tribune, Dec. 13, 2020
- ^ a b "George R.R. Martin: The Rolling Stone Interview". Rolling Stone. 23 April 2014.
- ^ Science-Fiction and Fantasy Books by Phyllis Eisenstein, Great Science-Fiction & Fantasy Works
- ^ Truesdale, Dave (2007-06-30). "Walker Between the Worlds by Phyllis Eisenstein". TangentOnline. Tangent. Archived from the original on 2015-10-07. Retrieved 2011-04-04.
- ^ A Farewell to Phyl
- ^ DeNardo, John (February 14, 2013). "TOC: Old Mars Edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois". SF Signal. Archived from the original on 2022-12-04. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
- ^ Bedford, Robert H. (October 8, 2013). "Mars as We Thought it Could Be: Old Mars, edited by George R.R. Martin and Gardner Dozois". Tor.com. Retrieved September 26, 2014.
Bibliography
- Mike Ashley & William G. Contento. The Supernatural Index: A Listing of Fantasy, Supernatural, Occult, Weird and Horror Anthologies. 1995. Greenwood Press, Westport, CT (Hardcover).
- Clute, John and Grant, John. The Encyclopedia of Fantasy. New York, St Martin's Press, 1997. ISBN 0-312-15897-1(Hardcover).
- Clute, John and Grant, John. The Encyclopedia of Fantasy (2nd US edition). New York, St Martin's Griffin, 1999. ISBN 0-312-19869-8(Paperback).
- ISBN 0-312-13486-X.
- ISBN 0-7172-3999-3.
- Pederson, Jay P. (1996). St. James Guide to Science Fiction Writers, Volume 1. ISBN 9781558621794.
External links
- Official website (via archive.org)
- Fansite
- Phyllis Eisenstein at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
- Phyllis Eisensten obituary[permanent dead link] at the Chicago Tribune