PJ Haarsma
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| PJ Haarsma | |
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 PJ Haarsma |
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| Born | Canada |
| Notable work(s) | The Softwire Series: Virus on Orbis 1 Betrayal on Orbis 2 |
PJ Haarsma is a Canadian born science-fiction author best known for his creation of the Rings of Orbis universe. The first novel set in the Rings of Orbis universe is titled The Softwire: Virus on Orbis 1, first published in 2006 and released in paperback in 2008. The second book in the series is The Softwire: Betrayal on Orbis 2, first published in March 2008.
Haarsma holds a Bachelor of Science degree from McMaster University in Hamilton, Ontario. PJ Haarsma is married to sci-fi fantasy artist Marisa Grieco and has a daughter named Skylar.
Before embarking on his writing career, Haarsma was the owner of a small production company which produced one movie and corporate spots for clients such as Hewlett Packard and Nokia. For 15 years the company worked in the field of advertising.
Haarsma's novels are accompanied by an online Role Playing Game called Rings of Orbis which acts as a visual companion to the books and are set in the same universe. Haarsma and a team of artists created many different alien races specifically for the game.
With friend, actor Nathan Fillion, he launched the Kids Need To Read foundation. The charitable organization raises funds to buy books for under-funded schools and libraries, as well as disadvantaged children.
[edit] The Softwire: Virus on Orbis 1
The Softwire: Virus on Orbis 1 is a story about a group of children orphaned in outer space and sold as slaves on the Rings of Orbis. When the children arrive they discover that one of them, JT is the first human softwire. This unusual ability allows him to enter any computer with just his mind. The Rings of Orbis, four planet like rings around a wormhole, are controlled by one massive computer. The fact that this slave can enter their precious computer at will makes JT very valuable and drives the rings to the brink of war. As the central computer begins to malfunction the Citizens connive, conspire and even kill to own JT and his sister.
There are four books in The Softwire series scheduled for publication by Candlewick Press. The New York Public Library selected the first book in the series (Virus on Orbis 1) as one of its "Books for the Teen Age" in 2007). The book also received a 2006 Cybils nomination. In 2008, Virus on Orbis 1 was awarded a Flamingnet Top Choice Award and a SCASL (South Carolina Association of School Librarians) Junior Book Award nomination.
[edit] The Softwire: Betrayal on Orbis 2
Betrayal on Orbis 2 is the second book in The Softwire series. It was released on March 25, 2008.
On Orbis 2, Johnny Turnbull has a new home and a new job, one that pushes his softwire abilities to painful limits. JT is the only one who can communicate with the Samirans, large aquatic aliens who have cooled the crystals on Orbis for nearly two thousand rotations. But as the Samirans' work rule ostensibly comes to a close, they have grown dangerously agitated, and JT must find out why. What he learns is that the prosperity of Orbis is built on a brutal system of enforced labor --- and that everyone seems to have something to hide. Can JT appease the Samirans before their threat is realized? And if he doesn't, will his friends survive? (Candlewick Press 2008)
