Janet Morris

ALT

Janet Morris and UVM Christine

Janet Ellen Morris (born May 25, 1946) is a United States author of fiction and nonfiction, best known for her fantasy and science fiction and her authorship of the nonlethal weapons concept, Nonlethality: A Global Strategy.

Background

Janet Morris began writing in 1976 and has since published more than 20 novels, many co-authored with her husband Chris Morris or others. Her first novel, written as Janet E. Morris, was High Couch of Silistra, the first in a quartet of novels with a very strong female protagonist. She has contributed short fiction to the shared universe fantasy series Thieves World, in which she created the Sacred Band of Stepsons, a mythical unit of ancient fighters modeled on the Sacred Band of Thebes. She created, orchestrated, and edited the Bangsian fantasy series Heroes in Hell, writing stories for the series as well as co-writing the related novel, The Little Helliad, with Chris Morris. Most of her fiction work has been in the fantasy and science fiction genres, although she has also written historical and other novels. Morris has written, contributed to, or edited several book-length works of non-fiction, as well as papers and articles on nonlethal weapons, developmental military technology and other defense and national security topics.

Morris was elected to the New York Academy of Sciences in 1980. Morris served as Research Director and Senior Fellow (1989–1994) at the United States Global Strategy Council, as well as Adjunct Fellow at the Center for Strategic and International Studies (1993–1995). In 2003-4 she served on the Council on Foreign Relations Independent Task Force on Nonlethal Weapons and Capabilities and contributed to the Task Force report, Nonlethal Weapons and Capabilities (2004).

In 1995, Morris and her husband and frequent co-writer Christopher Morris founded M2 Technologies. Since that time, their writing output has decreased in proportion to the increasing success of the company, which works with U.S. federal and military agencies on nonlethal weapon systems, novel technology applications, and software.

A lifelong horsewoman, Morris and her husband breed Thoroughbreds and also maintains a World-Champion producing Morgan Horse breeding program. Her foundation mare, UVM Christine (pictured above) won Morgan Grand National Champion Four-Year-Old Mare, World Champion Senior Mare, and Reserve World Champion Mare in 1998. Other Grand National and Reserve Grand National and World Champions followed, including Reserve World Champion and Reserve Grand National Champion Park Horse, Pastorale in 2001 and 2002; Grand National Champion Morgan Snaffle-bit Reining Horse, Spring Diva, in 2003; and Grand National Champion Pleasure Driving Horse Burkland Rafinesque in 2008. The Morrises' Morgan breeding program was featured on the cover and in a profile article in Equine International in 2009.

Select Fiction Bibliography

Silistra

• High Couch of Silistra (1977) aka Returning Creation
• The Golden Sword (1977)
• Wind from the Abyss (1978)
• The Carnelian Throne (1979)

Kerrion Empire

• Dream Dancer (1980)
• Cruiser Dreams (1981)
• Earth Dreams (1982)

Threshold (with Chris Morris)

• Threshold (1990)
• Trust Territory (1992)
• The Stalk (1993)

ARC Riders (with David Drake)

• ARC Riders (1995)
• The Fourth Rome (1996)

Novels

• I, the Sun (1983)
• The 40-Minute War (1984) (with Chris Morris)
• Active Measures (1985) (with David Drake)
• Afterwar (1985)
• Medusa (1986) (with Chris Morris)
• Warlord! (1987)
• Kill Ratio (1987) (with David Drake)
• The Little Helliad (1988) (with Chris Morris)
• Outpassage (1988) (with Chris Morris)
• Target (1989) (with David Drake)

Series contributed to

• Merovingen Nights
• The Fleet
• War World
• Thieves' World

The Sacred Band of Stepsons saga

• Beyond Sanctuary (1985)
• Beyond the Veil (1985)
• Beyond Wizardwall (1986)
• Tempus (1987)
• City at the Edge of Time (1988) (with Chris Morris)
• Tempus Unbound (1989) (with Chris Morris)
• Storm Seed (1990) (with Chris Morris)
• The Sacred Band (2010) (with Chris Morris)

Heroes in Hell

• The Gates of Hell (1986) (with C J Cherryh)
• Heroes in Hell (1986)
• Rebels in Hell (1986) (with C J Cherryh)
• Crusaders in Hell (1987)
• Angels in Hell (1987)
• Masters in Hell (1987)
• The Little Helliad (1988) (with Chris Morris)
• War in Hell (1988)
• Prophet's in Hell (1989)
• Kings in Hell (1987) (with C J Cherryh)
• Explorers in Hell (1989) (with David Drake)

Select Short Story Bibliography

• "Raising the Green Lion" (1980)
• "Vashanka's Minion" (1980)
• "A Man and His God" (1981)
• "An End to Dreaming" (1982)
• "Wizard Weather" (1982)
• "High Moon" (1983)
• "Basileus" (1984)
• "Hero's Welcome" (1985)
• "Graveyard Shift" (1986)
• "To Reign in Hell" (1986)
• "Power Play" (1984)
• "Pillar of Fire" (1984)
• "Gilgamesh Redux" (1987)
• "Sea of Stiffs" (1987)
• "The Nature of Hell" (1987)
• "The Best of the Achaeans" (1988)
• "The Collaborator" (1988)
• "[...] Is Hell" (1988)
• "Moving Day" (1989)
• "Sea Change" (1989)

Select Non-Fiction Bibliography

• "Nonlethality: A Global Strategy" (1990, 2010) (with Chris Morris)
• "Weapons of Mass Protection" (1995) (with Morris and Baines)
• The American Warrior (1992) (Morris and Morris, ed.)

External links

• http://authors.wizards.pro/authors/writers/janet-morris, Janet Morris fiction bibliography
• Janet Morris at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• M2 Technologies information on Janet Morris.
• [1] Council on Foreign Relations Independent Task Force Report on Nonlethal Weapons and Capabilities
• [2] Nonlethality: A Global Strategy
• [3] Weapons of Mass Protection