Ellen Klages

Ellen Klages at the 2007 World Fantasy Convention

Ellen Klages (born 1954) is a science, science fiction and historical fiction writer who lives in San Francisco. Her novelette "Basement Magic" won the 2005 Nebula Award for Best Novelette. She had previously been nominated for Hugo, Nebula, and Campbell awards. Her first (non-genre) novel, The Green Glass Sea, was published by Viking Children's Books in 2006. It won the 2007 Scott O'Dell Award for Historical Fiction. Portable Childhoods, a collection of her short fiction published by Tachyon Publications, was named a 2008 World Fantasy Award Finalist. White Sands, Red Menace, the sequel to The Green Glass Sea, was published in Fall 2008. In 2010 her short story "Singing on a Star" was nominated for a World Fantasy Award.

Klages is also known for doing stand-up comedy and other performances as an auctioneer annually at WisCon. The WisCon Tiptree Auction is a fundraiser for the James Tiptree, Jr. Award; Klages also serves on the Board for the award. "At past Tiptree auctions, auctioneer/comedian Ellen Klages has auctioned off her own hair, Mary Doria Russell's brassiere, a hand-knitted uterus, a kangaroo-scrotum purse, a cherry pie, and a Xena lawn butt." Klages was a Guest of Honor at Wiscon 33.

Biography

Klages was born in Columbus, Ohio. She holds a degree in Philosophy from the University of Michigan. She got involved in writing fiction while working at the Exploratorium, in San Francisco, when she was selected to co-author a children’s science activity book with science fiction author Pat Murphy. Murphy encouraged Klages to write her own stories as well.

Bibliography

Science fiction and fantasy

Collections

• Portable Childhoods, a short fiction collection (Tachyon Publications, 2007)
  • "Basement Magic" (2003 novelette)
  • "Intelligent Design" (2005 short story)
  • "The Green Glass Sea" (2004 short story)
  • "Clip Art" (2007 short story)
  • "Triangle" (2001 short story)
  • "The Feed Bag" (2003 poem)
  • "Flying Over Water" (2000 short story)
  • "Möbius, Stripped of a Muse" (2007 short story)
  • "Time Gypsy" (1998 novelette)
  • "Be Prepared" (2002 short fiction)
  • "Travel Agency" (2002 short story)
  • "A Taste of Summer" (2002 short story)
  • "Ringing Up Baby" (2006 short story)
  • "Guys Day Out" (2005 short story)
  • "Portable Childhoods" (2007 novelette)
  • "In the House of the Seven Librarians" (2006 novelette)

Novelettes

• "Time Gypsy," Bending the Landscape: Science Fiction, edited by Nicola Griffith and Stephen Pagel (Overlook Press, 1999) (Nebula Award Finalist; Hugo Award Finalist)
• "Basement Magic", The Magazine of Fantasy & Science Fiction, May 2003 (2005 Nebula Award winner)
• "In the House of the Seven Librarians," Firebirds Rising, edited by Sharyn November (Viking, April, 2006)

Short stories

• "Flying Over Water," Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet #7 (October, 2000) (Nebula Award Finalist)
• "Triangle," Bending the Landscape: Horror, edited by Nicola Griffith and Stephen Pagel (Overlook Press, 2001) (Spectrum Award Finalist)
• "Travel Agency," Strange Horizons (February 2002)
• "A Taste of Summer," Black Gate #3 (Winter, 2002)
• "Be Prepared," The Infinite Matrix (Sept, 2002; web)
• "Green Glass Sea," Strange Horizons (September, 2004)
• "Intelligent Design," Strange Horizons (December 2005)
• "Guys Day Out," Sci Fiction (April 2005)
• "Ringing Up Baby," Nature (April, 2006)(PDF)
• "Friday Night at St. Cecilia's," The Coyote Road, edited by Ellen Datlow and Terri Windling (Viking Juvenile, 2007)
• "Mrs. Zeno's Paradox," Eclipse One, edited by Jonathan Strahan (Night Shade Books, Oct 2007)
• "Echoes of Aurora," What Remains, with Geoff Ryman (Aqueduct Press, 2009), The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year Volume Four, edited by Jonathan Strahan (Night Shade Books, Mar 2010)
• "Singing on a Star," Firebirds Soaring, edited by Sharyn November (Viking, 2009). (World Fantasy Award Nominee for Best Short Story 2010)
• "A Practical Girl," Eclipse Three: New Science Fiction and Fantasy, edited by Jonathan Strahan (Night Shade Books, Oct 2009)
• "Goodnight Moons," Life on Mars: Tales from the New Frontier, ed. Jonathan Strahan (Viking, April 2011); The Best Science Fiction and Fantasy of the Year Volume Six, ed. Jonathan Strahan (Night Shade Books, Mar 2012)
• "The Education of a Witch", Under My Hat: Tales from the Cauldron, ed. Jonathan Strahan (Random House, Aug 2012)
• "Amicae Aeternum", Reach for Infinity, ed. Jonathan Strahan (2014)

Historical fiction

• The Green Glass Sea (Viking Children's Books, 2006)
• White Sands, Red Menace (Viking Children's Books, 2008)

Non-fiction

• Harbin Hot Springs: Healing Waters, Sacred Land (HS Publishing, Inc., 1991)
• The Science Explorer: The Best Family Activities and Experiments from the World's Favorite Hands-On Science Museum, with Pat Murphy, Linda Shore (Henry Holt & Co., 1996)
• The Science Explorer Out and About: Fantastic Science Experiments Your Family Can Do Anywhere, with Pat Murphy, Linda Shore (Henry Holt & Co., 1997)
• Exploratorium: A Year of Discoveries (Chronicle Books, 1997)
• The Brain Explorer: Puzzles, Riddles, Illusions, and other Mental Adventures, with Pat Murphy, Linda Shore and Pearl Tesler (Henry Holt & Co., 1999)

External links

• Official website
• Ellen Klages at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database
• Ellen Klages at Library of Congress, with 54 library catalog records