Jacqueline Lichtenberg

Jacqueline Lichtenberg (born 25 March 1942[1] in Flushing, New York) is an American science fiction author.[2]

Many of her early novels are set in the Sime - Gen Universe, which she first described in a short story in 1969.[3] Writing the series satisfied her preference for "'Intimacy' – the kind of relationship between the character and other characters, between the character and the universe, or between the character and him/herself, that brings trust into life" over "Action," a genre she "seriously dislike[s]."[4] Her other writings have dealt with fantasy and occult subjects, including articles on Buffy the Vampire Slayer. She has written a monthly review column on science fiction, under the title Science Fiction, for The Monthly Aspectarian. Under the pen name 'Daniel R. Kerns', she has published two novels, Hero and Border Dispute.[5]

Many of her works have been written in collaboration with Jean Lorrah, with whom Lichtenberg has a business partnership. A Star Trek fan, she has been actively involved in the Trekkie fan movement. In particular, she wrote the first Kraith Star Trek fan fiction. She is one of the Friends of Darkover and her early writing has been mentored by Marion Zimmer Bradley.

Lichtenberg has a chemistry degree from the University of California, Berkeley.

Sime-Gen Universe

Lichtenberg's Sime-Gen series involves a distant future where human beings have evolved into two races, with a predator-prey relationship. New York Times critic Gerald Jonas described Sime-Gen collection as combining "qualities of both porn and the soaps ... because they deal obsessively with the physical union between the two races". The physical union between Sime and Gen, which is not actually sexual, provides the Sime with a life-giving substance known as selyn, produced only within a Gen's body.[6]

The Sime-Gen series began with Lichtenberg's Operation High Time, a short story published in 1969. It followed with her first novel in 1974, House of Zeor. As Lichtenberg continued work on the Sime-Gen series in the 1970s, science fiction writers Marion Zimmer Bradley and Hal Clement provided encouragement and mentoring, teaching her more of the "craft and trade of writing". She also became involved with writing partner Jean Lorrah, who co-authored First Channel (1980) with Lichtenberg.[7]

In the early 1970s, dedicated fans of this series created the fanzine, A Companion in Zeor,[8][9] first published in 1978 by Karen MacLeod.[10]

Bibliography

Novels

Sime~Gen Universe series

Lifewave series

Dushau trilogy

Dreamers series

By Jacqueline Lichtenberg writing as Daniel R. Kerns

Short stories

Non Fiction

Non Fiction Articles

References

  1. "Jacqueline Lichtenberg". Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
  2. Jonas, Gerald (24 July 1977). "SCIENCE FICTION; HOUSE OF ZEOR By Jacqueline Lichtenberg.... (Review)". New York Times. Retrieved 15 March 2011.
  3. "Operation High Time".
  4. Lichtenberg, Jacqueline (2011). Science Is Magic Spelled Backwards and Other Stories. Wildside Press. pp. 19–20. ISBN 978-1-4344-1232-4.
  5. "Daniel R. Kerns". Goodreads. Retrieved February 27, 2015.
  6. Gerald Jonas (January 23, 1983). "Science Fiction". New York Times.
  7. Jacqueline Lichtenberg (1974). House of Zeor. Wildside Press, LLC (reprint 2011). p. 270.
  8. Klein, Laura. "Dr.". http://sf.lmc.gatech.edu/''. Georgia Institute of Technology. Retrieved 22 November 2012.
  9. "A Companion in Zeor" 2. Georgia Institute of Technology. 1978.
  10. "A Companion in Zeor". www.simegen.com.

External links