Misplaced Pages

Anne McCaffrey: Difference between revisions

Article snapshot taken from Wikipedia with creative commons attribution-sharealike license. Give it a read and then ask your questions in the chat. We can research this topic together.
Browse history interactively← Previous editContent deleted Content addedVisualWikitext
Revision as of 18:44, 4 July 2013 editMirokado (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users, Pending changes reviewers, Rollbackers, Template editors21,588 editsm no blank lines in bullet etc lists: ; formatting: heading-style, whitespace (using Advisor.js)← Previous edit Latest revision as of 12:01, 28 December 2024 edit undoMagicatthemovieS (talk | contribs)Extended confirmed users98,116 edits External links 
(217 intermediate revisions by more than 100 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Short description|Irish science fiction writer (1926–2011)}}
{{Use Irish English|date=February 2013}}
{{For|the Canadian swimmer|Anne Marie McCaffrey}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2011}}
{{Use Hiberno-English|date=February 2013}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=October 2020}}<!--YMD Archived and Retrieved dates-->
{{Infobox writer {{Infobox writer
| name = Anne McCaffrey | name = Anne McCaffrey
| image = Anne McCaffrey 1.jpg | image = Anne_Inez_McCaffrey_Author_Photo.jpg
| caption = Anne McCaffrey in 2005 | caption = Anne McCaffrey Author Photo
| pseudonym = | pseudonym =
| birth_name = Anne Inez McCaffrey | birth_name = Anne Inez McCaffrey
| birth_date = {{birth date|1926|4|1|df=y}} | birth_date = {{birth date|1926|4|1|df=y}}
| birth_place = ], USA | birth_place = ], U.S.
| death_date = {{death date and age|2011|11|21|1926|4|1|df=y}} | death_date = {{death date and age|2011|11|21|1926|4|1|df=y}}
| death_place = Dragonhold-Underhill, ], ] | death_place = Dragonhold-Underhill, ], Ireland<ref name="Murphy-2013"/>
| occupation = Writer | occupation = Writer
| spouse = Horace Wright Johnson (divorced) | spouse = Horace Wright Johnson (divorced)
| children = 3, including ]
| nationality = Irish (naturalized citizen)
| nationality = American & Irish (naturalised citizen)
| period = 1965–2011 <!--her timespan as a full-time writer -->
| period = 1965–2011 <!--her timespan as a full-time writer -->
| genre = ], romance
| notableworks = '']'', ], '']'' | genre = Science fiction, romance
| notableworks = '']'', '']'', '']''
| website = {{URL|pernhome.com/aim}}
| influences =
| influenced = ] <!--citation to come-->
| website = http://pernhome.com/aim
}} }}


'''Anne Inez McCaffrey''' (1 April 1926&nbsp;– 21 November 2011)<ref>{{cite web|url=http://sf-fantasy.suvudu.com/2011/11/anne-mccaffrey-april-1-1926-november-21-2011.html |title=Anne McCaffrey: April 1, 1926&nbsp;– November 21, 2011 |publisher=suvudu.com | author =Pomerico, D |date=22 November 2011 |accessdate=2011-11-23 }}</ref><ref name="nytimes2011a">{{cite news | last = Fox | first = Margalit | author-link = Margalit Fox '''Anne Inez McCaffrey''' (1 April 1926&nbsp;– 21 November 2011)<ref>{{cite web |url=http://sf-fantasy.suvudu.com/2011/11/anne-mccaffrey-april-1-1926-november-21-2011.html |title=Anne McCaffrey: April 1, 1926&nbsp;– November 21, 2011 |publisher=suvudu.com |author=Pomerico, D |date=22 November 2011 |access-date=2011-11-23 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120217214121/http://sf-fantasy.suvudu.com/2011/11/anne-mccaffrey-april-1-1926-november-21-2011.html |archive-date=17 February 2012 |url-status=dead }}</ref><ref name="nytimes2011a">{{cite news | last = Fox | first = Margalit | author-link = Margalit Fox
| title = Anne McCaffrey, Author of 'Dragonriders' Fantasies, Dies at 85 | title = Anne McCaffrey, Author of 'Dragonriders' Fantasies, Dies at 85
| newspaper = ] | location = New York, New York | newspaper = ] | location = New York City
| date = 24 November 2011 | date = 24 November 2011
| url = http://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/24/arts/anne-mccaffrey-dragonriders-author-dies-at-85.html | accessdate = 2011-11-24 }}</ref> was an ]-born ] writer, best known for the '']'' science fiction series. Early in McCaffrey's 46-year career as a writer, she became the first woman to win a ] for fiction and the first to win a ]. Her 1978 novel '']'' became one of the first science-fiction books to appear on the ]. | url = https://www.nytimes.com/2011/11/24/arts/anne-mccaffrey-dragonriders-author-dies-at-85.html | access-date = 2011-11-24 }}</ref> was an American writer known for the '']'' science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a ] for fiction (Best Novella, ''Weyr Search'', 1968) and the first to win a ] (Best Novella, ''Dragonrider'', 1969). Her 1978 novel '']'' became one of the first science-fiction books to appear on the ].


In 2005 the ] named McCaffrey its 22nd ], an annual award to living writers of fantasy and science fiction.<ref name=SFAwards/><ref name=SFWA/> She was inducted by the ] on 17 June 2006.<ref name=sfhof2006/><ref name=sfhof2006-b/><ref name=sfhof/> In 2005 the ] named McCaffrey its 22nd ], an annual award to living writers of fantasy and science fiction.<ref name=SFAwards/><ref name=SFWA/> She was inducted by the ] on 17 June 2006.<ref name=sfhof2006/><ref name=sfhof2006-b/><ref name=sfhof/> She also received the ] for her work in 2007.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Heinlein2007.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080706084447/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/Heinlein2007.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=2008-07-06|title=The Locus Index to SF Awards: 2007 Robert A. Heinlein Award|date=2007|publisher=Locus Publications|access-date=2016-11-21}}</ref>


== Life and career == == Life and career ==
Anne McCaffrey was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the second of three children of Anne Dorothy (née McElroy) and Col. George Herbert McCaffrey. She had two brothers: Hugh ("Mac", died 1988) and Kevin Richard McCaffrey ("Kevie").<ref name="biog">{{cite web |url=http://www.pernhome.com/aim/index.php?page_id=17 |title=Anne's Biography |work=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey |publisher=Pern Home |access-date=2011-07-07}}</ref>{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=15–18}} Her father had Irish and English ancestry, and her mother was of Irish descent.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/celeb/mccaffr.htm |title=(Anne Inez McCaffrey) |work=RootsWeb |publisher=Ancestry.com |access-date=2012-06-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160618200521/http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/celeb/mccaffr.htm |archive-date=18 June 2016 |url-status=dead }}</ref> She attended ] (a girls' ] in ]),{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=24, 31}} and graduated from ] in ].<ref>Sherman, Ted. , '']'', 23 November 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2012. "Born in Cambridge, Mass., McCaffrey was raised in New Jersey, where she graduated from Montclair High School."</ref> In 1947 she graduated ] from ] with a degree in ] and Literature.<ref name="biog" />


In 1950 she married Horace Wright Johnson (died 2009),<ref name="letter">{{cite web |last=McCaffrey |first=Anne |date=17 December 2009 |url=http://pernhome.com/aim/index.php?p=80 |title=A Letter From Anne |work=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey |publisher=Pern Home |access-date=2011-07-12}}</ref> who shared her interests in music, opera and ballet.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=36}} They had three children: Alec Anthony, born 1952; Todd, born 1956; and Georgeanne ("Gigi", Georgeanne Kennedy), born 1959.<ref name="biog" />
Anne Inez McCaffrey was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the second of three children of Anne Dorothy (née McElroy) and Col. George Herbert McCaffrey. She had two brothers: Hugh ("Mac", died 1988) and Kevin Richard McCaffrey ("Kevie").<ref name="biog">{{cite web |url=http://www.pernhome.com/aim/index.php?page_id=17 |title=Anne's Biography |work=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey |publisher=Pern Home |accessdate=2011-07-07}}</ref>{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=15–18}} Her father had Irish and English ancestry, and her mother was of Irish descent.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://freepages.genealogy.rootsweb.ancestry.com/~battle/celeb/mccaffr.htm |title=(Anne Inez McCaffrey) |work=RootsWeb |publisher=''Ancestry.com'' |date= | accessdate = 2012-06-16 }}</ref> She attended ] (a girls' ] in ]),{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=24, 31}} and graduated from ] in New Jersey.<ref>Sherman, Ted. , '']'', 23 November 2011. Accessed 6 February 2012. "Born in Cambridge, Mass., McCaffrey was raised in New Jersey, where she graduated from Montclair High School."</ref> In 1947 she graduated ] from ] with a degree in ] and Literature.<ref name="biog" />


Except for a short time in ], the family lived for most of a decade in ]. They moved to ] in 1965, and McCaffrey became a full-time writer.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=10–11, 14, 36–37, 45–46}}
In 1950 she married Horace Wright Johnson (died 2009),<ref name="letter">{{cite web |last=McCaffrey |first=Anne |date=17 December 2009 |url=http://pernhome.com/aim/index.php?p=80 |title=A Letter From Anne |work=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey |publisher=Pern Home |accessdate=2011-07-12}}</ref> who shared her interests in music, opera and ballet.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=36}} They had three children: Alec Anthony, born 1952; Todd, born 1956 and Georgeanne ("Gigi", Georgeanne Kennedy), born 1959.<ref name="biog" />


Except for a short time in Düsseldorf, the family lived for most of a decade in ]. They moved to ] in 1965, and McCaffrey became a full-time writer.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=10–11, 14, 36–37, 45–46}} McCaffrey served a term as secretary-treasurer of the ] from 1968 to 1970. In addition to handcrafting the Nebula Award trophies, her responsibilities included production of two monthly newsletters and their distribution by mail to the membership.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=57–58, 63}}


McCaffrey emigrated to Ireland with her two younger children in 1970, weeks after filing for divorce. Ireland had recently exempted resident artists from income taxes, an opportunity that fellow science-fiction author ] had promptly taken and helped to promote. McCaffrey's mother soon joined the family in ].{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=5, 68–69, 73}} The following spring, McCaffrey was guest of honour at her first British science-fiction convention (] 22, 1971). There she met British reproductive biologist ],{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=78}} who would be a consultant on the science of Pern.<ref>See forewords or acknowledgments in some Pern books.{{example needed|date=October 2011}}</ref>
McCaffrey served a term as secretary-treasurer of the Science Fiction Writers of America from 1968 to 1970. In addition to handcrafting the Nebula Award trophies, her responsibilities included production of two monthly newsletters and their distribution by mail to the membership.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=57–58, 63}}

McCaffrey emigrated to ] with her two younger children in 1970, weeks after filing for divorce. Ireland had recently exempted resident artists from income taxes, an opportunity that fellow science-fiction author ] had promptly taken and helped to promote. McCaffrey's mother soon joined the family in Dublin.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=5, 68–69, 73}} The following spring, McCaffrey was guest of honor at her first British science-fiction convention (] 22, 1971). There she met British reproductive biologist ],{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=78}} who would be a consultant on the science of Pern.<ref>See forewords or acknowledgments in some Pern books.{{example needed|date=October 2011}}</ref>


=== Writer === === Writer ===
McCaffrey had had two short stories published during the 1950s. The first ("Freedom of the Race", about women impregnated by aliens) was written in 1952 when she was pregnant with her son Alec. It earned a $100 prize in '']''.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=9, 13, 38}} Her second story, "The Lady in the Tower", was published in ''The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction'' by editor ] and published again by editor ] for ''The Year's Greatest Science Fiction''.{{efn|name=evidently}} McCaffrey said "she thought of the story when wishing herself alone, like a lady in an ivory tower".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=13}} McCaffrey had had two short stories published during the 1950s. The first ("Freedom of the Race", about women impregnated by aliens) was written in 1952 when she was pregnant with her son Alec. It earned a $100 prize in '']''.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=9, 13, 38}} Her second story, "The Lady in the Tower", was published in ''The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction'' by editor ] and published again by editor ] for ''The Year's Greatest Science Fiction''.{{efn|name=evidently}} McCaffrey said "she thought of the story when wishing herself alone, like a lady in an ivory tower".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=13}}


Judith Merril matched McCaffrey with her long-time literary agent ] (died 2003) and invited her to the ] (to which she returned many times), where participants each brought a story to be critiqued.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=8–10}} After her first Milford workshop in 1959 she worked on "The Ship Who Sang", the story which began the Brain & Brawn Ship series. At the story's end, the spaceship Helva sings "]" for her human partner. Decades later, McCaffrey's son Todd called it "almost an elegy to her father".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=13–14}} In interviews between 1994 and 2004, she considered it her best story and her favorite.{{sfn|Jamneck|2004}}{{sfn|SFFWorld|2000}}{{sfn|Karsmakers|1994}}{{sfn|Locus|2004}} "I put much of myself into it: myself and the troubles I had in accepting my father's death and a troubled marriage."{{sfn|SFFWorld|2000}} Judith Merril matched McCaffrey with her long-time literary agent ] and invited her to the ] (to which she returned many times), where participants each brought a story to be critiqued.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=8–10}} After her first Milford workshop in 1959 she worked on "The Ship Who Sang", the story which began the Brain & Brawn Ship series. At the story's end, the spaceship Helva sings "]" for her human partner. Decades later, McCaffrey's son Todd called it "almost an elegy to her father".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=13–14}} In interviews between 1994 and 2004, she considered it her best story and her favourite.{{sfn|Jamneck|2004}}{{sfn|''SFFWorld''|2000}}{{sfn|Karsmakers|1994}}{{sfn|''Locus''|2004}} "I put much of myself into it: myself and the troubles I had in accepting my father's death and a troubled marriage."{{sfn|''SFFWorld''|2000}}


McCaffrey then wrote two more "Ship" stories and began her first novel. Regarding her motivation for ''Restoree'' (1967), her son recalled her saying, "I was so ''tired'' of all the weak women screaming in the corner while their boyfriends were beating off the aliens. I wouldn't have been—I'd've been in there swinging with something or kicking them as hard as I could".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=45–46}} McCaffrey explained that it did not require a sequel; it "served its purpose of an intelligent, survivor-type woman as the protagonist of an S-F story".<ref name="FAQ">{{cite web |last=McCaffrey |first=Anne |url=http://pernhome.com/aim/?page_id=40 |title=Frequently Asked Questions |work=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey |publisher=Pern Home |accessdate=2011-07-16 |postscript=. See questions 2, 10, 17, 19, 22.| archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20110715064515/http://pernhome.com/aim/?page_id=40| archivedate= 15 July 2011 <!--DASHBot-->| deadurl= no}}</ref> McCaffrey then wrote two more "Ship" stories and began her first novel. Regarding her motivation for ''Restoree'' (1967), her son recalled her saying, "I was so ''tired'' of all the weak women screaming in the corner while their boyfriends were beating off the aliens. I wouldn't have been—I'd've been in there swinging with something or kicking them as hard as I could".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=45–46}} McCaffrey explained that it did not require a sequel; it "served its purpose of an intelligent, survivor-type woman as the protagonist of an s-f story".<ref name="FAQ">{{cite web |last=McCaffrey |first=Anne |title=Frequently Asked Questions |work=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey |publisher=Pern Home |url=http://pernhome.com/aim/?page_id=40 |access-date=2011-07-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110715064515/http://pernhome.com/aim/?page_id=40 |archive-date=2011-07-15 |url-status=live}}. See questions 2, 10, 17, 19, 22.</ref>


Regarding her 1969 ''Decision at Doona'' (which she dedicated "To ]—of course!"), her son recalled that he was directed to lower his voice in his ] school play when his mother was in the auditorium. That inspired the Doona story, which opens on "an overcrowded planet where just talking too loud made you a social outcast".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=2, 50}} As a settler on Doona, the boy talker has a priceless talent. Regarding her 1969 ''Decision at Doona'' (which she dedicated "To ]—of course!"), her son recalled that he was directed to lower his voice in his ] school play when his mother was in the auditorium. That inspired the Doona story, which opens on "an overcrowded planet where just talking too loud made you a social outcast".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=2, 50}} As a settler on Doona, the boy talker has a priceless talent.


McCaffrey made a fast start in Ireland, completing for 1971 publication ''Dragonquest'' and two Gothic novels for ], ''The Mark of Merlin'' and ''The Ring of Fear''.<ref name="isfdb">{{cite web |url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Anne_McCaffrey |title=Anne McCaffrey&nbsp;– Summary Bibliography |work=Internet Speculative Fiction Database |accessdate=2011-11-17}}</ref>{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=74}} With a contract for ''The White Dragon'' (which would complete the "original trilogy" with Ballantine), her writing stalled. During the next few years the family moved several times in the Dublin area and struggled to make ends meet, supported largely by child-care payments and meager royalties.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=71–101}} McCaffrey made a fast start in ], completing for 1971 publication ''Dragonquest'' and two Gothic novels for ], ''The Mark of Merlin'' and ''The Ring of Fear''.<ref name="isfdb">{{cite web |url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Anne_McCaffrey |title=Anne McCaffrey&nbsp;– Summary Bibliography |work=Internet Speculative Fiction Database |access-date=2011-11-17}}</ref>{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=74}} With a contract for ''The White Dragon'' (which would complete the "original trilogy" with Ballantine), her writing stalled. During the next few years the family moved several times in the Dublin area and struggled to make ends meet, supported largely by child-care payments and meager royalties.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=71–101}}


The young-adult book market provided a crucial opportunity. Editor ] sought short contributions for anthologies, and McCaffrey started the Pern story of Menolly. She delivered "The Smallest Dragonboy" for $154, and four stories which later became ''The Crystal Singer''.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=82–83, 95}} Futura Publications in London signed her to write books about dinosaurs for children.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=101}} Editor ] at ] sought to attract more female readers to science fiction and solicited "a story for young women in a different part of Pern". McCaffrey completed Menolly's story as '']'' and contracted for a sequel before its publication in 1976. The young-adult book market provided a crucial opportunity. Editor ] sought short contributions for anthologies, and McCaffrey started the Pern story of Menolly. She delivered "The Smallest Dragonboy" for $154, and four stories which later became ''The Crystal Singer''.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=82–83, 95}} Futura Publications in London signed her to write books about ]s for children.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=101}} Editor ] at ] sought to attract more female readers to science fiction and solicited "a story for young women in a different part of Pern". McCaffrey completed Menolly's story as '']'' and contracted for a sequel before its publication in 1976.
The tales of Menolly are continued in '']: Harper of Pern'', and '']'' as the "Harper Hall Trilogy". {{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=103–104}} With a contract with Atheneum she was able to buy a home (named "Dragonhold" for the dragons who bought it).{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=104–105}} Her son wrote, 20 years later, that she "first set dragons free on Pern and then was herself freed by her dragons."{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=113 (conclusion)}} The tales of Menolly are continued in '']: Harper of Pern'', and '']'' as the "Harper Hall Trilogy".{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=103–04}} With a contract with Atheneum she was able to buy a home (named "Dragonhold" for the dragons who bought it).{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=104–05}} Her son wrote, 20 years later, that she "first set dragons free on Pern and then was herself freed by her dragons."{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=113 (conclusion)}}


=== Dragons === === Dragons ===
The first Pern story, "Weyr Search", was published in 1967 by ] in '']''. It won the 1968 ] for best novella, voted by participants in the annual ].<ref name=SFAwards/> The second Pern story, "Dragonrider", won the 1969 ] for best novella, voted annually by the ].<ref name=SFAwards/> Thus she was the first woman to win a Hugo for fiction<ref name=sfhof/> and the first to win a Nebula.<ref>{{cite web | title=Anne McCaffrey Named a Grand Master in 2004 | publisher=] | url=http://nebulas.sfwa.org/grand-masters/anne-mccaffrey/ | access-date=22 August 2017}}</ref>
Some time after their move to Long Island, Todd McCaffrey recalls, his mother asked him what he thought of dragons. She was brainstorming about their "bad press all these years". The result was a "technologically regressed survival planet" whose people were united against a threat from space (in contrast to an ]). "The dragons became the biologically renewable air force, and their riders 'the few' who, like the ] pilots in World War Two, fought against incredible odds day in, day out—and won."{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=3, 6}}


"Weyr Search" covers the recruitment of a young woman, Lessa, to establish a telepathic bond with a queen dragon at its hatching, thus becoming a dragonrider and the leader of a Weyr community. "Dragonrider" explores the growth of the queen dragon Ramoth, and the training of Lessa and Ramoth. Editor Campbell requested "to see dragons fighting thread ", and also suggested ]; McCaffrey incorporated both suggestions. The third story, "Crack Dust, Black Dust", was not separately published, but the first Pern novel (''Dragonflight'', published by ] in 1968) was a ] of all three.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=49}}
The first Pern story, "Weyr Search", was published in 1967 by ] in '']''. It won the 1968 ] for best ], voted by participants in the annual ].<ref name=SFAwards/> The second Pern story, "Dragonrider", won the 1969 ] for best novella, voted annually by the ].<ref name=SFAwards/> Thus she was the first woman to win a Hugo for fiction<ref name=sfhof/> and the first to win a Nebula.{{citation needed|date=March 2013}}<!-- now need ONLY first female Nebula -->
<!--Todd McCaffrey's account is confusing about the published stories and unpublished trials possibly including "Dragonflight" (four-story titles, one becoming the overall title) -->


Agent Virginia Kidd and editor ] provided advice and assistance for its sequel ''Dragonquest''. It was almost complete (and the contract for another sequel signed) before the 1970 move to Ireland. Both Ballantine and fellow writer ] made suggestions for the mutant white dragon.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=51–52, 54–55}}
"Weyr Search" covers the recruitment of a young woman, Lessa, to establish a telepathic bond with a queen dragon at its hatching, thus becoming a dragonrider and the leader of a Weyr community. "Dragonrider" explores the growth of the queen dragon Ramoth, and the training of Lessa and Ramoth. Editor Campbell requested "to see dragons fighting thread ", and also suggested time travel; McCaffrey incorporated both suggestions. The third story, "Crack Dust, Black Dust", was not separately published, but the first Pern novel (''Dragonflight'', published by ] in 1968) was a ] of all three.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|p=49}}
<!--Todd McCaffrey's account is confusing about the published stories and unpublished trials possibly including "Dragonflight" (four story titles, one becoming the overall title) -->


Readers waited a long time for the completion of the original trilogy. Progress was not made until 1974–1975, when the ] invited McCaffrey to its annual convention (]) as guest of honour (which included publication of a novella for sale on-site). She wrote ''A Time When'', which would become the first part of ''The White Dragon''.{{efn|name=A-Time-When}}
If John Campbell was midwife to ''Dragonflight'' (with its major components published as award-winning novellas), agent Virginia Kidd and editor ] provided advice and assistance for its sequel ''Dragonquest''. It was almost complete (and the contract for another sequel signed) before the 1970 move to Ireland. Both Ballantine and fellow writer ] made suggestions for the mutant white dragon.{{sfn|''Dragonholder''|pp=51–52, 54–55}}


''The White Dragon'' was released with new editions of the first two Pern books, with cover art illustrated by ]. It was the first science-fiction book by a woman on the ''New York Times'' best-seller list, and the cover painting is still in print from Whelan. The artists share credit for their career breakthroughs.{{efn|name=Todd-explains}}{{efn|name=Whelan-identifies}}
Readers waited a long time for the completion of the original trilogy. Progress was not made until 1974–1975, when the ] invited McCaffrey to its annual convention (]) as guest of honor (which included publication of a novella for sale on-site). She wrote ''A Time When'', which would become the first part of ''The White Dragon''.{{efn|name=A-Time-When}}

''The White Dragon'' was released with new editions of the first two Pern books, with cover art illustrated by ]. It was the first science-fiction book by a woman on the ''New York Times'' bestseller list, and the cover painting is still in print from Whelan. The artists share credit for their career breakthroughs.{{efn|name=Todd-explains}}{{efn|name=Whelan-identifies}}


=== {{anchor|Pern forever}}Collaborations === === {{anchor|Pern forever}}Collaborations ===
McCaffrey said of her collaborations with Todd and ], "While I would dearly love to have the energy to tell a tale all on my own, I really cannot say that I am not ably represented with my collaborations". In the Pern collaboration with Todd, she was mainly "making suggestions or being a sounding board".<ref name="letter" /> According to Todd, McCaffrey also gave Todd and his sister Gigi permission to write their own stories set in the Pern universe.{{citation needed|date=October 2011}} McCaffrey said of her collaborations with son ] and ], "While I would dearly love to have the energy to tell a tale all on my own, I really cannot say that I am not ably represented with my collaborations". In the Pern collaboration with Todd, she was mainly "making suggestions or being a sounding board".<ref name="letter" /> McCaffrey also gave Todd and his sister Gigi permission to write their own stories set in the Pern universe.{{sfn|''Locus''|2004}}

McCaffrey collaborated with author ] to write ''The Ship Who Searched'', the third of seven books in the Brain & Brawn Ship series by McCaffrey and four other authors. She wrote two books in the '']'' trilogy with ]


=== Death === === Death ===
McCaffrey died at age 85 on 21 November 2011 at her home in Ireland, following a stroke.<ref>{{cite web |date=22 November 2011 |title=Anne McCaffrey (1926–2011) |url=http://www.locusmag.com/News/2011/11/anne-mccaffrey-1926-2011/ |work=Locus online |accessdate=2011-11-23}}</ref> McCaffrey died at age 85 on 21 November 2011 at her home in Ireland, following a stroke.<ref>{{cite web |date=22 November 2011 |title=Anne McCaffrey (1926–2011) |url=http://www.locusmag.com/News/2011/11/anne-mccaffrey-1926-2011/ |work=Locus online |access-date=2011-11-23}}</ref>


== Books == == Books ==
{{main|Anne McCaffrey bibliography}}


=== Classification === === Classification ===
In August 1987, '']'' ranked two of the eight extant Pern novels among the 33 "All-Time Best Fantasy Novels", based on a poll of subscribers; ''Dragonflight'' was #9 and ''The White Dragon'' #23.<ref>{{Cite journal|url=http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/LocusAT1987.html |title=The Locus Index to SF Awards: 1987 Locus All-time Poll |work=Locus |accessdate=2011-10-12 |postscript=. Originally published in the monthly '']'', August 1987.}}</ref> Commenting on the ''Locus'' list, ] called them "arguably science fiction rather than fantasy proper"{{sfn|Pringle|1988|p=21}} and named McCaffrey a "leading practitioner" of the ] subgenre of science fiction.{{sfn|Pringle|1985|p=17}}{{efn|name=about-Pringle}} In August 1987, '']'' ranked two of the eight extant Pern novels among the "All-Time Best Fantasy Novels", based on a poll of subscribers; ''Dragonflight'' was 9th and ''The White Dragon'' 23rd.<ref>{{cite journal |title=The Locus Index to SF Awards: 1987 Locus All-time Poll |journal=Locus |url=http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/LocusAT1987.html |access-date=2011-10-12 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20040113221818/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/LocusAT1987.html |archive-date=2004-01-13}} Originally published in the monthly '']'', August 1987.</ref> Commenting on the ''Locus'' list, ] called them "arguably science fiction rather than fantasy proper"{{sfn|Pringle|1988|p=21}} and named McCaffrey a "leading practitioner" of the ] subgenre of science fiction.{{sfn|Pringle|1985|p=17}}{{efn|name=about-Pringle}}


McCaffrey considered most of her work science fiction and enjoyed "cutting them short when they call me a 'fantasy' writer". All the Pern books may be considered science fiction, since the dragons were genetically engineered by the Pern colonists. Regarding science, she said "I don't keep up with developments, but I do find an expert in any field in which I must explain myself and the science involved".{{sfn|Jamneck|2004}} Astronomer Steven Beard often helped with science questions,{{sfn|Roberts|2007|p=5}} and McCaffrey acknowledged reproductive biologist Jack Cohen several times.{{example needed|date=October 2011}} McCaffrey considered most of her work science fiction and enjoyed "cutting them short when they call me a 'fantasy' writer". All the Pern books may be considered science fiction, since the dragons were genetically engineered by the Pern colonists. Regarding science, she said "I don't keep up with developments, but I do find an expert in any field in which I must explain myself and the science involved".{{sfn|Jamneck|2004}} Astronomer Steven Beard often helped with science questions,{{sfn|Roberts|2007|p=5}} and McCaffrey acknowledged reproductive biologist Jack Cohen several times.{{example needed|date=October 2011}}


The ] citation of Anne McCaffrey summarizes her genre as "science fiction, though tinged with the tone and instruments of fantasy", and her reputation as "a writer of romantic, heightened tales of adventure explicitly designed to appeal—and to make good sense to—a predominantly female adolescent audience."<ref name="sfhof">{{cite web |url=http://empmuseum.org/exhibitions/index.asp?articleID=944 |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20120722084039/http://www.empmuseum.org/exhibitions/index.asp?articleID=944 |archivedate=2012-07-22 |title=Anne McCaffrey 1926– |work=Science Fiction Hall of Fame (Members) |publisher=EMP Science Fiction Museum |accessdate=2011-07-16. |postscript=. Acknowledges content from '']'' 1993, 1999; see also its ].}}</ref> The ] citation of Anne McCaffrey summarises her genre as "science fiction, though tinged with the tone and instruments of fantasy", and her reputation as "a writer of romantic, heightened tales of adventure explicitly designed to appeal—and to make good sense to—a predominantly female adolescent audience."<ref name="sfhof">{{cite web|url=http://empmuseum.org/exhibitions/index.asp?articleID=944|title=Anne McCaffrey 1926–|work=Science Fiction Hall of Fame (Members)|publisher=EMP Science Fiction Museum|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120722084039/http://www.empmuseum.org/exhibitions/index.asp?articleID=944|archive-date=2012-07-22|access-date=2011-07-16}} Acknowledges content from '']'' 1993, 1999; see also its ].</ref>


McCaffrey said in 2000, "There are no demographics on my books which indicate the readers are predominately of an age or sex group. Dragons have a universal appeal"!{{sfn|SFFWorld|2000}} Formerly, it was another matter:<blockquote>I started writing s-f in the late 50's/early 60's, when readership was predominantly male. And their attitudes unreconstructed. began reading s-f and fantasy—and, by preference, women writers. My stories had themes and heroines they could, and did, relate to. I never had any trouble with editors and publishers. I had trouble getting male readers to believe I was serious, and a good enough writer to interest them.</blockquote> McCaffrey said in 2000, "There are no demographics on my books which indicate the readers are predominantly of an age or sex group. Dragons have a universal appeal!" {{sfn|''SFFWorld''|2000}} Formerly, it was another matter:


<blockquote>I started writing s-f in the late 50s/early 60s, when readership was predominantly male. And their attitudes unreconstructed. began reading s-f and fantasy—and, by preference, women writers. My stories had themes and heroines they could, and did, relate to. I never had any trouble with editors and publishers. I had trouble getting male readers to believe I was serious, and a good enough writer to interest them.</blockquote>
In 1999, the ] gave McCaffrey the 11th ] for lifetime achievement in writing for young adults, citing ''The Ship Who Sang'' (1969) and the first six Pern books<ref>. Young Adult Library Services Association. ALA. Retrieved 2011-07-16.</ref> (those sometimes called the "original trilogy" and the "Harper Hall trilogy").

In 1999, the ] gave McCaffrey the 11th ] for lifetime achievement in writing for teens. The librarians credited her with "over 50 novels for young adults and adults" and cited seven published from 1968 to 1979 for the "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature" that the award features: ''The Ship Who Sang'' (1969) and the first six Pern books (those sometimes called the "original trilogy" and the "Harper Hall trilogy"). The panel chair observed that "McCaffrey's focus on the personal and emotional need of human beings mirrors the quest of today's teens to find their own place in society."<ref name=edwards/>


=== {{anchor|Restoree}}''Restoree'' === === {{anchor|Restoree}}''Restoree'' ===
McCaffrey's first novel was '']'', published by ] in 1967. Unlike most science-fiction books of the era, ''Restoree'''s heroine is a strong-willed, intelligent woman who is willing and able to think for herself and act on her own initiative. McCaffrey was widely quoted as saying that ''Restoree'' was intended as a "jab" at how women were usually portrayed in science fiction.<ref> (2007). The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. Pernhome.com (c) 2010 Todd McCaffrey. Question 21. Retrieved 2011-11-23.</ref> McCaffrey's first novel was '']'', published by ] in 1967. Unlike most science fiction books of the era, ''Restoree'''s heroine is a strong-willed, intelligent woman who is willing and able to think for herself and act on her own initiative. McCaffrey was widely quoted as saying that ''Restoree'' was intended as a "jab" at how women were usually portrayed in science fiction.<ref> (2007). The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. Pernhome.com (c) 2010 Todd McCaffrey. Question 21. Retrieved 2011-11-23.</ref>


=== Federated Sentient Planets universe === === Federated Sentient Planets universe ===
Line 97: Line 100:
==== Dragonriders of Pern series ==== ==== Dragonriders of Pern series ====
{{main|Dragonriders of Pern}} {{main|Dragonriders of Pern}}
{{hatnote|See lists in ] and ]}} {{Hatnote|See lists in ] and ]}}
McCaffrey's best-known works are the '']'' series. These are set on a planet known as ], settled by colonists from Earth. The advanced technology of their ancestors has been lost, so the inhabitants of Pern have reverted to a society similar to western medieval Earth. However, before the loss of this advanced technology the original colonists produced genetically engineered dragons. These dragons are now flown by elite "dragonriders", who communicate telepathically with them. Together, they defend Pern against pernicious "thread" which cross space periodically from a nearby planet (the "red star") and threaten to destroy all life on Pern. McCaffrey's best-known works are the '']'' series. When colonists from Earth and other planets make a decades-long space journey to Pern (an acronym designating "Parallels Earth, Resources Negligible" stamped on the original exploration team report) to escape interstellar wars, their fledgling society is threatened by ''Thread'', a mindless organism that falls like a "hungry rain" to consume all organic material. The survivors of the original expedition create genetically engineered "dragons" from a native species of small fire-breathing, winged reptiles as self-propagating weapons to destroy the encroaching organism in the sky. The majority of the ] books take place approximately 2500 years after the planet's colonization, when new challenges face the now low-tech, agrarian society that depends on the telepathically linked dragons and riders for protection from their ancient menace, and their long-forgotten origins are ultimately rediscovered.


==== The Brain & Brawn Ship series ==== ==== The Brain & Brawn Ship series ====
{{main|The Ship Who Sang}} {{main|The Ship Who Sang}}
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}
The Brain & Brawn Ship series comprises seven novels, only the first of which (a ] of five previously published stories) was written by McCaffrey alone.<ref name="series">. The Internet Speculative Fiction Database.</ref> The stories in this series deal with the adventures of "shell-people" or "Brains", who as infants (due to illness or birth defects) have had to be hard-wired into a life-support system. With sensory input and motor nerves tied into a computer they serve as ] (or colony administrators), seeing and feeling the colony or ship as an extension of their own body. They perform this job to pay off their debt for education and hardware, and continue as free agents once the debt is paid. To compensate for the Brains' inability to move within human habitats they are paired with partners known as "Brawns", who are trained in a wide array of skills (including the protection of their Brain counterparts). It was considered impossible for a person to adjust to being a shell after the age of two or three. An exception, in '']'', was a shell-person who was seven when she became quadriplegic. The Brain & Brawn Ship series comprises seven novels, only the first of which (a ] of five previously published stories) was written by McCaffrey alone.<ref name="series">. The Internet Speculative Fiction Database.</ref> The stories in this series deal with the adventures of "shell-people" or "Brains", who as infants (due to illness or birth defects) have had to be hard-wired into a life-support system. With sensory input and motor nerves tied into a computer they serve as ] (or colony administrators), seeing and feeling the colony or ship as an extension of their own body. They perform this job to pay off their debt for education and hardware, and continue as free agents once the debt is paid. To compensate for the Brains' inability to move within human habitats they are paired with partners known as "Brawns", who are trained in a wide array of skills (including the protection of their Brain counterparts). It was considered impossible for a person to adjust to being a shell after the age of two or three. An exception, in '']'', was a shell-person who was seven when she became quadriplegic.


The Ship books are set in the same universe as the Crystal Singer books; Brainship-Brawn pairings were also characters in the second and third volumes of that series. The Ship books are set in the same universe as the Crystal Singer books; Brainship-Brawn pairings were also characters in the second and third volumes of that series.


==== The Crystal universe ==== ==== The Crystal series ====
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}
The Crystal universe is the setting for five books, including the Crystal Singer trilogy. The first book (and first of the trilogy), ''The Crystal Singer'' (1982) is a fix-up of four stories published in 1974–1975.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref><!--Roger Elwood had solicited stories for children or young adults and McCaffrey's Dragon writing had stalled.--> The first book (and first of the trilogy), ''The Crystal Singer'' (1982) is a fix-up of four stories published in 1974–1975.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref><!--Roger Elwood had solicited stories for children or young adults and McCaffrey's Dragon writing had stalled.-->


The Crystal Singer series revolves around the planet ]. Under a permanent biohazard travel restriction, ] is home to one of the FSP's wealthiest (and most reclusive) organizations: the Heptite Guild. Source of crystals vital to a number of industries, the Heptite Guild is known to require absolute, perfect pitch in hearing and voice for all applicants (especially those seeking to mine crystal by song). The second and third books feature ]s which were not main characters in the Brain & Brawn Ship series. The Crystal Singer series revolves around the planet Ballybran. Under a permanent biohazard travel restriction due to a potentially-fatal symbiotic organism on the planet's surface, Ballybran is the source of valuable crystals that are vital to a number of industries, and home to one of the FSP's wealthiest (and most reclusive) organisations: the Heptite Guild. The Heptite Guild is known to require absolute, perfect pitch in hearing and voice for all applicants (especially those seeking to mine crystal by song). Because Ballybran's weather is unpredictable and dangerous (Ballybran's windstorms will cause exposed crystal to 'scream' in a discordant, deafening cacophony), the Heptite Guild is prohibited from actively recruiting members.

==== The Coelura series====

'The Coelura' explores the theme of environmental abuse, as a precious animal is hunted to near extinction for the thread it spins for its net. The Lady Caissa must choose between protecting the Coelura or meeting her obligations to her father and mother.

'Nimisha's Ship' takes place in the same universe, as a woman in the First Families becomes a ship designer and on a test run her ship is captured by a wormhole. On exploring a nearby planet, she finds and befriends the remaining crew of a stranded ship who suffered the same fate years before, plus a new sapient species.


==== Ireta ==== ==== Ireta ====
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}
The Ireta series (as catalogued by the ]) comprises five novels: two "Dinosaur Planets" by McCaffrey in 1978 and 1984 and three "Planet Pirates" co-written during the 1990s.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref> The Ireta series (as catalogued by the ]) comprises five novels published 1978 to 1991, the first two by McCaffrey as subseries "Dinosaur Planet" and three as "Planet Pirates" by McCaffrey and co-writers.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref>


They share a fictional premise, and some characters and events overlap. "Dinosaur Planets" follow the Exploration and Evaluation Corps team on the planet Ireta, which did not expect to find dinosaurs. In "Planet Pirates", all is not well in the FSP: pirates attack the spacelanes. Survivors on Ireta and the survivors of space pirate attacks join forces. They share a fictional premise, and some characters and events overlap. '']'' and its sequel follow the Exploration and Evaluation Corps team on the planet Ireta, which did not expect to find dinosaurs. In "Planet Pirates", all is not well in the FSP: pirates attack the spacelanes. Survivors on Ireta join forces with the survivors of space pirate attacks.


=== The Talents universe === === The Talents universe ===
{{main|To Ride Pegasus}} {{main|To Ride Pegasus}}
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}
"The Talents Universe" (as catalogued by the ]) comprises two series: "Talent" and "The Tower and Hive" and share a fictional premise. Eight books (all by McCaffrey alone) are rooted in her second story (1959) and three stories published in 1969.<ref name="talents">. ISFDB. Subpages for all constituent stories and books. Retrieved 2011-08-01.</ref> "The Talents Universe" (as catalogued by the ]) comprises two series: "Talent" and "The Tower and Hive" and share a fictional premise. Eight books (all by McCaffrey alone) tell the story of telepathic, telekinetic individuals that become increasingly important to the proper function of interstellar society.<ref name="talents">. ISFDB. Subpages for all constituent stories and books. Retrieved 2011-08-01.</ref>

The Talents universe involves a society built around the Talents of telepathic, telekinetic individuals who become integral to the connectivity of interstellar society.

==== The Barque Cat series ====
{{hatnote|See ]}}
This series covers the origin of the barque cats in the Tower and Hive series.


=== Doona === === Doona ===
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}
Two civilizations in near-identical circumstances&nbsp;– an overlarge, lethargic population and a tragic history with sentient aliens&nbsp;– end up attempting to colonize the same planet by accident. What the humans do not know is that the people they have misidentified as nomadic natives are more technically advanced than themselves (and under no such illusions regarding the humans). The books are set in the time of "Amalgamated Worlds", but a sentence in chapter ten of ''Crisis at Doona'' hints that there is "a desire to form a Federation of Sentient Planets". This sets the books just prior to the FSP universe (which comprises much of McCaffrey's work). Two civilisations in near-identical circumstances&nbsp;– an overlarge, lethargic population and a tragic history with sentient aliens&nbsp;– end up attempting to colonise the same planet by accident. What the humans do not know is that the people they have misidentified as nomadic natives are more technically advanced than themselves (and under no such illusions regarding the humans). The books are set prior to the formation of the Federation of Sentient Planets; in this series, the ruling body is the 'Amalgamated Planets'.


=== Petaybee universe === === Petaybee universe ===
{{Hatnote|See ]}}
{{main|Petaybee Series}}
{{hatnote|See ]}}
The Petaybee universe comprises two trilogies (''Powers'' and ''The Twins of Petaybee'') by McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref> The Petaybee universe comprises two trilogies (''Powers'' and ''The Twins of Petaybee'') by McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref>

=== The Barque Cat series ===
{{Hatnote|See ]}}
This series introduces a new universe with space faring Barque Cats and their special telepathically linked humans.


=== The Freedom series === === The Freedom series ===
{{main|Catteni Series}} {{main|Catteni Series}}
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}
The Freedom series (or the "Catteni Sequence") comprises one 1970 short story and four ''Freedom'' novels written between 1995 and 2002.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref> The Freedom series (or the "Catteni Sequence") comprises one 1970 short story and four ''Freedom'' novels written between 1995 and 2002.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref>


=== Acorna universe === === Acorna universe ===
{{main|Acorna}} {{main|Acorna}}
{{hatnote|See ]}} {{Hatnote|See ]}}

The "Acorna Universe series" comprises ten novels published between 1997 and 2007: seven sometimes known as ''Acorna'' and three sometimes known as ''Acorna's Children''. The first two were written by McCaffrey and Margaret Ball, and the rest by McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.<ref>. ISFDB.</ref>
The "Acorna Universe series" comprises ten novels published between 1997 and 2007: seven sometimes known as ''Acorna'' and three sometimes known as ''Acorna's Children''. The series involve a group of intergalactic miners who adopt a mysterious alien foundling with ]-like ] and apparent magical abilities. The first two were written by McCaffrey and ], and the rest by McCaffrey and ].<ref>. ISFDB.</ref>


=== Other works === === Other works ===
McCaffrey also published two ], several ], and ].
{{expand section|date=November 2011}}

McCaffrey also published two ], several ] and ].
Her ] work includes two cookbooks and a book about dragons. Her nonfiction work includes ] and ].
McCaffrey collaborated closely with musicians Tania Opland and Mike Freeman on two CDs ("The Masterharper of Pern" and "Sunset's Gold"), based on her lyrics and the music described in her ''Pern'' novels.


== See also == == See also ==
{{Portal bar |Speculative fiction }} <!-- delete "bar" if/when there are enough ordinary See also --> * {{Portal inline|Speculative fiction}}


== Notes == == Notes ==
{{notes |25em |notes= {{notelist |25em |notes=
{{efn |name=evidently |1= {{efn |name=evidently |1=
{{harvnb|''Dragonholder''|pp=8–9}}. Evidently Merril did not include the story. {{isfdb name|id=Judith_Merril|name=Judith Merril}}. {{isfdb name|id=Anne_McCaffrey|name=Anne McCaffrey}}.}} {{harvnb|''Dragonholder''|pp=8–9}}. Evidently Merril did not include the story. <br/>&nbsp;{{ISFDB name|id=Judith_Merril|name=Judith Merril}}. <br/>&nbsp;{{ISFDB name|id=Anne_McCaffrey|name=Anne McCaffrey}}.}}


{{efn |name=A-Time-When |1= {{efn |name=A-Time-When |1=
{{harvnb|''Dragonholder''|p=98}}. {{cite web |url=http://www.nesfa.org/press/Books/McCaffrey.html |title=A Time When by Anne McCaffrey |publisher=NESFA Press |accessdate=2007-02-08}} }} {{harvnb|''Dragonholder''|p=98}}. {{cite web |url=http://www.nesfa.org/press/Books/McCaffrey.html |title=A Time When by Anne McCaffrey |publisher=NESFA Press |access-date=2007-02-08}} }}


{{efn |name=Todd-explains |1= {{efn |name=Todd-explains |1=
{{harvnb|''Dragonholder''|pp=107–08, 113}}. Todd McCaffrey explains the reissue as a trilogy and says that the success gave his mother "a secure perch on the ground". With Menolly's story and the white dragon's she was "freed by her dragons". <br /> Hans van der Boom calls the painting, "The cover art that, according to Anne and many of her fans, lured many to the shelves of the bookshop to buy ...". . Official Pern Art. Art Gallery. The Pern Museum & Archives. Hans van der Boom (2008). Retrieved 2011-07-20. <br /> According to a fan report of McCaffrey's address at her SF Hall of Fame induction (2006), "She first thanked Michael Whelan for the cover of White Dragon. ... that's exactly how I came to read Anne ...". . Becky Coelura MoM Staff. A Meeting of Minds: An Anne McCaffrey discussion forum. Retrieved 2011-07-25.}} {{harvnb|''Dragonholder''|pp=107–08, 113}}. Todd McCaffrey explains the reissue as a trilogy and says that the success gave his mother "a secure perch on the ground". With Menolly's story and the white dragon's she was "freed by her dragons". <br /> Hans van der Boom calls the painting, "The cover art that, according to Anne and many of her fans, lured many to the shelves of the bookshop to buy&nbsp;...". . Official Pern Art. Art Gallery. The Pern Museum & Archives. Hans van der Boom (2008). Retrieved 2011-07-20. <br /> According to a fan report of McCaffrey's address at her SF Hall of Fame induction (2006), "She first thanked Michael Whelan for the cover of White Dragon. ...&nbsp;that's exactly how I came to read Anne&nbsp;...". . Becky Coelura MoM Staff. A Meeting of Minds: An Anne McCaffrey discussion forum. Retrieved 2011-07-25.}}


{{efn |name=Whelan-identifies |1= {{efn |name=Whelan-identifies |1=
Whelan identifies his career turning point: "it was when I did the cover for ''The White Dragon'' by Anne McCaffrey. It was the first book with one of my covers to make the bestseller lists and "everyone" noticed. . Michael Whelan. Retrieved 2011-07-25.}} Whelan identifies his career turning point: "it was when I did the cover for ''The White Dragon'' by Anne McCaffrey. It was the first book with one of my covers to make the bestseller lists and 'everyone' noticed." . Michael Whelan. Retrieved 2014-02-05.}}


{{efn |name=about-Pringle |1= {{efn |name=about-Pringle |1=
Line 177: Line 183:


== References == == References ==
{{reflist |colwidth=25em |refs= {{Reflist |colwidth=25em |refs=
<ref name="Murphy-2013">{{cite web |last=Murphy |first=Caitriona |date=22 February 2013 |title=The luxury house 'that dragons built' |work=Independent.ie |url=http://www.independent.ie/life/home-garden/homes/the-luxury-house-that-dragons-built-29087146.html |access-date=2016-02-03}}</ref>
<ref name=SFAwards>
. ''The Locus Index to SF Awards: Index to Literary Nominees''. ]. Retrieved 2013-03-21.</ref>
<ref name=SFWA>
. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). Retrieved 2013-04-06.</ref>
<ref name=sfhof2006>
. Press release 15 March 2006. Science Fiction Museum (''sfhomeworld.org''). Archived 2006-04-26. Retrieved 2013-04-06.</ref>
<ref name=sfhof2006-b>
. The Cohenside. 15 May 2006. Retrieved 2013-03-21.</ref>


<ref name=SFAwards>{{cite web|title=McCaffrey, Anne |work=The Locus Index to SF Awards: Index to Literary Nominees |publisher=Locus Publications |url=http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/NomLit88.html#3446 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111015153146/http://www.locusmag.com/SFAwards/Db/NomLit88.html |archive-date=15 October 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name=SFWA>{{cite web|title=Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master |publisher=Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA) |url=http://www.sfwa.org/nebula-awards/nebula-weekend/events-program/grandmaster/ |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110701114233/http://www.sfwa.org/nebula-awards/nebula-weekend/events-program/grandmaster/ |archive-date= 1 July 2011 |url-status=dead }}</ref>

<ref name=sfhof2006>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfhomeworld.org/make_contact/article.asp?articleID=239 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20060426115756/http://www.sfhomeworld.org/make_contact/article.asp?articleID=239 |archive-date=2006-04-26 |title=Presenting |url-status=dead |access-date=2016-08-28}}. Press release 15 March 2006. Science Fiction Museum (''sfhomeworld.org''). Archived 2006-04-26. Retrieved 2013-04-06.</ref>

<ref name=sfhof2006-b>{{cite web |title=Science Fiction Hall of Fame |date=15 May 2006 |work=The Cohenside |url=http://cohenside.blogspot.com/2006/05/science-fiction-hall-of-fame.html |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161014221506/http://cohenside.blogspot.de/2006/05/science-fiction-hall-of-fame.html |archive-date=2016-10-14 |url-status=live}}</ref>

<ref name=edwards>{{cite web |title=1999 Margaret A. Edwards Award Winner |publisher=] (YALSA) |url=http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/bookawards/margaretaedwards/maeprevious/1999awardwinner |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120122153305/http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/bookawards/margaretaedwards/maeprevious/1999awardwinner |archive-date=2012-01-22 |url-status=live}}<br />
• {{cite web |title=Edwards Award |date=27 February 2012 |publisher=YALSA |url=http://www.ala.org/yalsa/edwards-award |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405055545/http://www.ala.org/yalsa/edwards-award |archive-date=2012-04-05 |url-status=live}}<br />
• McCaffrey also contributed to the reflections by previous winners that were solicited for the 20th anniversary award, {{cite web |title=Looking Back |year=2008 |publisher=YALSA |url=http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/bookawards/margaretaedwards/maeprevious/anniversary |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120130191039/http://www.ala.org/yalsa/booklistsawards/bookawards/margaretaedwards/maeprevious/anniversary |archive-date=2012-01-30 |url-status=live}}</ref>
}} }}

'''Citations&nbsp;– books''' '''Citations&nbsp;– books'''
{{refbegin}} {{Refbegin}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=Clute |first=John |date=10 October 2011 |authorlink=John Clute |url=http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/Entry/mccaffrey_anne |title=McCaffrey, Anne |editor1-last=Clute |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Langford |editor2-first=David |encyclopedia=] |edition=3rd |publisher=Gollancz |ref=harv * {{cite encyclopedia |title=McCaffrey, Anne |encyclopedia=] |publisher=Gollancz |url=http://www.sf-encyclopedia.com/Entry/mccaffrey_anne |last=Clute |first=John |date=10 October 2011 |author-link=John Clute |edition=3rd |editor1-last=Clute |editor1-first=John |editor2-last=Langford |editor2-first=David }}
* {{cite book |title=Dragonholder: The Life and Dreams (So Far) of Anne McCaffrey by her son |last=McCaffrey |first=Todd |publisher=Ballantine |year=1999 |isbn=978-0-345-42217-0 |location=New York |ref={{sfnRef|''Dragonholder''}} |author-link=Todd McCaffrey |url=https://archive.org/details/dragonholder00mcca }}
}}
* {{cite book |last=McCaffrey |first=Todd |authorlink=Todd McCaffrey |year=1999 |title=Dragonholder: The Life and Dreams (So Far) of Anne McCaffrey by her son |location=New York |publisher=Ballantine |isbn=978-0-345-42217-0 |ref={{sfnRef|.27.27Dragonholder.27.27}} * {{cite book |title=], An English-language selection 1949–1984 |last=Pringle |first=David |publisher=Xanadu |year=1985 |isbn=978-0-947761-10-3 |location=London |author-link=David Pringle }}
* {{cite book |title=], An English-language selection, 1946–1987 |last=Pringle |first=David |publisher=Grafton |year=1988 |isbn=978-0-246-13214-7 |location=London }}
}}
* {{cite book |title=Anne McCaffrey: A life with dragons |last=Roberts |first=Robin |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-57806-998-9 }}
* {{cite book |last=Pringle |first=David |authorlink=David Pringle |year=1985 |title=], An English-language selection 1949–1984 |location=London |publisher=Xanadu |isbn=978-0-947761-10-3 |ref=harv
{{Refend}}
}}

* {{cite book |last=Pringle |first=David |year=1988 |title=], An English-language selection, 1946–1987 |location=London |publisher=Grafton |isbn=978-0-246-13214-7 |ref=harv
}}
* {{cite book |last=Roberts |first=Robin |year=2007 |title=Anne McCaffrey: A life with dragons |publisher=University Press of Mississippi |isbn=978-1-57806-998-9 |ref=harv
}}
{{refend}}
'''Interviews''' '''Interviews'''
{{refbegin}} {{Refbegin}}
* {{cite web |last=Karsmakers |first=Richard |month=May |year=1994 |url=http://www.karsmakers.nl/metal-e-zine/annem.htm |title=An Interview with Anne McCaffrey |location=Gouda, NL |work=karsmakers.net |accessdate=2011-07-21 |postscript=. Self-published. |ref=harv * {{cite web |url=http://www.karsmakers.nl/metal-e-zine/annem.htm |title=An Interview with Anne McCaffrey |last=Karsmakers |first=Richard |date=May 1994 |publisher=karsmakers.net |location=Gouda, NL |access-date=2011-07-21 }} Self-published.
* {{cite web |url=http://www.sffworld.com/interview/49p0.html |title=Interview with Anne McCaffrey |date=8 May 2000 |ref={{SfnRef|''SFFWorld''|2000}}|work=Science Fiction and Fantasy World |access-date=2011-07-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110615153701/http://www.sffworld.com/interview/49p0.html |archive-date=2011-06-15 |url-status=live }}
}}
* {{cite web |date=8 May 2000 |url=http://www.sffworld.com/interview/49p0.html |title=Interview with Anne McCaffrey |work=Science Fiction and Fantasy World |accessdate=2011-07-12 |ref={{SfnRef|SFFWorld|2000}} |archiveurl=http://web.archive.org/web/20110615153701/http://www.sffworld.com/interview/49p0.html |archivedate=15 June 2011 |deadurl= no * {{cite web |url=http://www.writing-world.com/sf/mccaffrey.shtml |title=An Interview With Anne McCaffrey |last=Jamneck |first=Lynne |year=2004 |publisher=Writing-World.com |access-date=2011-07-21 }}
* {{cite web |url=http://www.locusmag.com/2004/Issues/11McCaffrey.html |title=Anne McCaffrey: Heirs to Pern |date=November 2004 |ref={{SfnRef|''Locus''|2004}} |work=Locus |access-date=2019-06-08 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110606141650/http://www.locusmag.com/2004/Issues/11McCaffrey.html |archive-date=2011-06-06 |url-status=live }} Excerpts from interview published in the monthly '']'', November 2004.
}}
{{Refend}}
* {{cite web |first=Lynne |last=Jamneck |year=2004 |url=http://www.writing-world.com/sf/mccaffrey.shtml |title=An Interview With Anne McCaffrey |work=Writing-World.com |accessdate=2011-07-21 |ref=harv
}}
* {{cite web |month=November |year=2004 |url=http://www.locusmag.com/2004/Issues/11McCaffrey.html |title=Anne McCaffrey: Heirs to Pern |work=Locus |accessdate=2011-07-21 |postscript=. Excerpts from interview published in '']: The Magazine of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Field'', November 2004. |ref={{SfnRef|Locus|2004}} |archiveurl= http://web.archive.org/web/20110606141650/http://www.locusmag.com/2004/Issues/11McCaffrey.html |archivedate=6 June 2011 |deadurl= no
}}
{{refend}}


== Further reading == == Further reading ==
{{refbegin}} {{Refbegin}}
* {{cite book |last=Brizzi |first=Mary T. |year=1986 |authorlink=Mary Turzillo |title=Anne McCaffrey |location=Mercer Island, Washington |publisher=Starmont |isbn=978-0-930261-29-0 * {{cite book |title=Anne McCaffrey |last=Brizzi |first=Mary T. |publisher=Starmont |year=1986 |isbn=978-0-930261-29-0|location=Mercer Island, Washington |author-link=Mary Turzillo }}
* {{cite book |title=Of Modern Dragons and other essays on Genre Fiction |last=Lennard |first=John |publisher=Humanities-Ebooks |year=2007 |isbn=978-1-84760-038-7|location=Penrith, UK |chapter=Of Modern Dragons: Antiquity, Modernity, and the Descendants of Smaug |author-link=John Lennard }}
}}
* {{cite encyclopedia |year=1988 |title=Retrospection |encyclopedia=Women of Vision |publisher=St Martin's Press |location=New York |last=McCaffrey |first=Anne |editor-last=DuPont |editor-first=Denise |isbn=978-0-312-02321-8 |url=https://archive.org/details/womenofvision00dupo }}
* {{cite book |last=Lennard |first=John |authorlink=John Lennard |year=2007 |chapter=Of Modern Dragons: Antiquity, Modernity, and the Descendants of Smaug |title=Of Modern Dragons and other essays on Genre Fiction |location=Penrith, UK |publisher=Humanities-Ebooks |isbn=978-1-84760-038-7
* {{cite book |title=The Dragonlover's Guide to Pern |last2=<!-- with -->McCaffrey |first2=Anne |publisher=Ballantine |year=1989 |isbn=978-0-345-37946-7|location=New York |last1=Nye |first1=Jody Lynn |author-link1=Jody Lynn Nye }}
}}
* {{cite book |title=Anne McCaffrey: A Critical Companion |last=Roberts |first=Robin |publisher=Greenwood Press |year=1996 |isbn=978-0-313-29450-1 |location=Westport, CT |url=https://archive.org/details/annemccaffreycri00robe }}
* {{cite encyclopedia |last=McCaffrey |first=Anne |year=1988 |title=Retrospection |editor-last=DuPont |editor-first=Denise |encyclopedia=Women of Vision |location=New York |publisher=St Martin's Press |isbn=978-0-312-02321-8
* {{cite book |title=Anne McCaffrey. Science Fiction Storyteller |last=Trachtenberg |first=Martha P. |publisher=Enslow |year=2001 |isbn=978-0-7660-1151-9 |location=Berkeley Heights, NJ |url=https://archive.org/details/annemccaffrey00mart }}
}}
{{Refend}}
* {{cite book |last=Nye |first=Jody Lynn |authorlink=Jody Lynn Nye |coauthors=with McCaffrey, Anne |year=1989 |title=The Dragonlover's Guide to Pern |location=New York |publisher=Ballantine |isbn=978-0-345-37946-7
}}
* {{cite book |last=Roberts |first=Robin |year=1996 |title=Anne McCaffrey: A Critical Companion |location=Westport, CT |publisher=Greenwood Press |isbn=978-0-313-29450-1
}}
* {{cite book |last=Trachtenberg |first=Martha P. |year=2001 |title=Anne McCaffrey. Science Fiction Storyteller |location=Berkeley Heights, NJ |publisher=Enslow |isbn=978-0-7660-1151-9
}}
{{refend}}


== External links == == External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
{{Commons category|Anne McCaffrey}} {{Commons category|Anne McCaffrey}}
<!--======================== {{No more links}} ============================ <!--======================== {{No more links}} ============================
Line 243: Line 241:
| and link back to that category using the {{dmoz}} template. | | and link back to that category using the {{dmoz}} template. |
======================= {{No more links}} =============================--> ======================= {{No more links}} =============================-->
* {{dmoz|Arts/Literature/Genres/Science_Fiction/Authors/M/McCaffrey,_Anne|McCaffrey, Anne}}


=== Bibliography === === Bibliography ===
{{Library resources box|by=yes|onlinebooksby=yes|viaf=110586836}} {{Library resources box|by=yes|onlinebooksby=yes|viaf=110586836}}
* {{ibdof name|id=9|name=Anne McCaffrey}} * {{ibdof name|id=9|name=Anne McCaffrey}}
* {{isfdb name|176}} * {{ISFDB name|176}}


=== Other === === Other ===
* {{official website |http://pernhome.com/aim |name=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey}}&nbsp;– official website, Anne McCaffrey<!-- son/coauthor Todd McCaffrey is responsible so I would make these two the first listed Ext links --> * {{official website |pernhome.com/aim |name=The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey}}&nbsp;– official website, Anne McCaffrey <!-- by son/co-author Todd McCaffrey -- perhaps should be the first listed Ext links -->
* &nbsp;– official website, Pern and The Dragonriders of Pern™ <!-- same as preceding --> * &nbsp;– official website, Pern and The Dragonriders of Pern™ <!-- same as preceding -->
* {{sfhof |944 | Anne McCaffrey}} * {{sfhof |944 | Anne McCaffrey}}
* *
* by ] * by ]
* about co-authoring two books, ''A DISCUSSION WITH National Authors on Tour'' TV Series, Episode #105 (1994)
* {{Find a Grave|81822612}}


{{Anne McCaffrey}} {{Anne McCaffrey}}
{{Pern stories}}

{{Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Awards}}
{{Authority control |VIAF=110586836 |LCCN=n/50/9225 |GND=11920732X }}
{{Hugo Award Best Novella}}

{{Nebula Award Best Novella}}
{{Persondata
{{Authority control}}
| NAME = McCaffrey, Anne Inez
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION = American-Irish novelist
| DATE OF BIRTH = 1 April 1926
| PLACE OF BIRTH = Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA
| DATE OF DEATH = 21 November 2011
| PLACE OF DEATH = Dragonhold-Underhill, County Wicklow, Republic of Ireland
}}


{{DEFAULTSORT:McCaffrey, Anne}} {{DEFAULTSORT:McCaffrey, Anne}}
]
] ]
] ]
]
]
]
]
]
] ]
] ]
] ]
]
]
]
]
]
] ]
]
]
]
]
] ]
] ]
] ]
] ]
] ]
] ]
] ]
]
]
]
]
]
]
]

Latest revision as of 12:01, 28 December 2024

Irish science fiction writer (1926–2011) For the Canadian swimmer, see Anne Marie McCaffrey.

Anne McCaffrey
Anne McCaffrey Author PhotoAnne McCaffrey Author Photo
BornAnne Inez McCaffrey
(1926-04-01)1 April 1926
Cambridge, Massachusetts, U.S.
Died21 November 2011(2011-11-21) (aged 85)
Dragonhold-Underhill, County Wicklow, Ireland
OccupationWriter
NationalityAmerican & Irish (naturalised citizen)
Period1965–2011
GenreScience fiction, romance
Notable worksRestoree, Dragonriders of Pern, The Ship Who Sang
SpouseHorace Wright Johnson (divorced)
Children3, including Todd
Website
pernhome.com/aim

Anne Inez McCaffrey (1 April 1926 – 21 November 2011) was an American writer known for the Dragonriders of Pern science fiction series. She was the first woman to win a Hugo Award for fiction (Best Novella, Weyr Search, 1968) and the first to win a Nebula Award (Best Novella, Dragonrider, 1969). Her 1978 novel The White Dragon became one of the first science-fiction books to appear on the New York Times Best Seller list.

In 2005 the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America named McCaffrey its 22nd Grand Master, an annual award to living writers of fantasy and science fiction. She was inducted by the Science Fiction Hall of Fame on 17 June 2006. She also received the Robert A. Heinlein Award for her work in 2007.

Life and career

Anne McCaffrey was born in Cambridge, Massachusetts, the second of three children of Anne Dorothy (née McElroy) and Col. George Herbert McCaffrey. She had two brothers: Hugh ("Mac", died 1988) and Kevin Richard McCaffrey ("Kevie"). Her father had Irish and English ancestry, and her mother was of Irish descent. She attended Stuart Hall (a girls' boarding school in Staunton, Virginia), and graduated from Montclair High School in Montclair, New Jersey. In 1947 she graduated cum laude from Radcliffe College with a degree in Slavonic languages and Literature.

In 1950 she married Horace Wright Johnson (died 2009), who shared her interests in music, opera and ballet. They had three children: Alec Anthony, born 1952; Todd, born 1956; and Georgeanne ("Gigi", Georgeanne Kennedy), born 1959.

Except for a short time in Düsseldorf, the family lived for most of a decade in Wilmington, Delaware. They moved to Sea Cliff, Long Island in 1965, and McCaffrey became a full-time writer.

McCaffrey served a term as secretary-treasurer of the Science Fiction Writers of America from 1968 to 1970. In addition to handcrafting the Nebula Award trophies, her responsibilities included production of two monthly newsletters and their distribution by mail to the membership.

McCaffrey emigrated to Ireland with her two younger children in 1970, weeks after filing for divorce. Ireland had recently exempted resident artists from income taxes, an opportunity that fellow science-fiction author Harry Harrison had promptly taken and helped to promote. McCaffrey's mother soon joined the family in Dublin. The following spring, McCaffrey was guest of honour at her first British science-fiction convention (Eastercon 22, 1971). There she met British reproductive biologist Jack Cohen, who would be a consultant on the science of Pern.

Writer

McCaffrey had had two short stories published during the 1950s. The first ("Freedom of the Race", about women impregnated by aliens) was written in 1952 when she was pregnant with her son Alec. It earned a $100 prize in Science-Fiction Plus. Her second story, "The Lady in the Tower", was published in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction by editor Robert P. Mills and published again by editor Judith Merril for The Year's Greatest Science Fiction. McCaffrey said "she thought of the story when wishing herself alone, like a lady in an ivory tower".

Judith Merril matched McCaffrey with her long-time literary agent Virginia Kidd and invited her to the Milford Writer's Workshop (to which she returned many times), where participants each brought a story to be critiqued. After her first Milford workshop in 1959 she worked on "The Ship Who Sang", the story which began the Brain & Brawn Ship series. At the story's end, the spaceship Helva sings "Taps" for her human partner. Decades later, McCaffrey's son Todd called it "almost an elegy to her father". In interviews between 1994 and 2004, she considered it her best story and her favourite. "I put much of myself into it: myself and the troubles I had in accepting my father's death and a troubled marriage."

McCaffrey then wrote two more "Ship" stories and began her first novel. Regarding her motivation for Restoree (1967), her son recalled her saying, "I was so tired of all the weak women screaming in the corner while their boyfriends were beating off the aliens. I wouldn't have been—I'd've been in there swinging with something or kicking them as hard as I could". McCaffrey explained that it did not require a sequel; it "served its purpose of an intelligent, survivor-type woman as the protagonist of an s-f story".

Regarding her 1969 Decision at Doona (which she dedicated "To Todd Johnson—of course!"), her son recalled that he was directed to lower his voice in his fourth-grade school play when his mother was in the auditorium. That inspired the Doona story, which opens on "an overcrowded planet where just talking too loud made you a social outcast". As a settler on Doona, the boy talker has a priceless talent.

McCaffrey made a fast start in Ireland, completing for 1971 publication Dragonquest and two Gothic novels for Dell, The Mark of Merlin and The Ring of Fear. With a contract for The White Dragon (which would complete the "original trilogy" with Ballantine), her writing stalled. During the next few years the family moved several times in the Dublin area and struggled to make ends meet, supported largely by child-care payments and meager royalties.

The young-adult book market provided a crucial opportunity. Editor Roger Elwood sought short contributions for anthologies, and McCaffrey started the Pern story of Menolly. She delivered "The Smallest Dragonboy" for $154, and four stories which later became The Crystal Singer. Futura Publications in London signed her to write books about dinosaurs for children. Editor Jean E. Karl at Atheneum Books sought to attract more female readers to science fiction and solicited "a story for young women in a different part of Pern". McCaffrey completed Menolly's story as Dragonsong and contracted for a sequel before its publication in 1976. The tales of Menolly are continued in Dragonsinger: Harper of Pern, and Dragondrums as the "Harper Hall Trilogy". With a contract with Atheneum she was able to buy a home (named "Dragonhold" for the dragons who bought it). Her son wrote, 20 years later, that she "first set dragons free on Pern and then was herself freed by her dragons."

Dragons

The first Pern story, "Weyr Search", was published in 1967 by John W. Campbell in Analog Science Fiction and Fact. It won the 1968 Hugo Award for best novella, voted by participants in the annual World Science Fiction Convention. The second Pern story, "Dragonrider", won the 1969 Nebula Award for best novella, voted annually by the Science Fiction Writers of America. Thus she was the first woman to win a Hugo for fiction and the first to win a Nebula.

"Weyr Search" covers the recruitment of a young woman, Lessa, to establish a telepathic bond with a queen dragon at its hatching, thus becoming a dragonrider and the leader of a Weyr community. "Dragonrider" explores the growth of the queen dragon Ramoth, and the training of Lessa and Ramoth. Editor Campbell requested "to see dragons fighting thread ", and also suggested time travel; McCaffrey incorporated both suggestions. The third story, "Crack Dust, Black Dust", was not separately published, but the first Pern novel (Dragonflight, published by Ballantine Books in 1968) was a fix-up of all three.

Agent Virginia Kidd and editor Betty Ballantine provided advice and assistance for its sequel Dragonquest. It was almost complete (and the contract for another sequel signed) before the 1970 move to Ireland. Both Ballantine and fellow writer Andre Norton made suggestions for the mutant white dragon.

Readers waited a long time for the completion of the original trilogy. Progress was not made until 1974–1975, when the New England Science Fiction Association invited McCaffrey to its annual convention (Boskone) as guest of honour (which included publication of a novella for sale on-site). She wrote A Time When, which would become the first part of The White Dragon.

The White Dragon was released with new editions of the first two Pern books, with cover art illustrated by Michael Whelan. It was the first science-fiction book by a woman on the New York Times best-seller list, and the cover painting is still in print from Whelan. The artists share credit for their career breakthroughs.

Collaborations

McCaffrey said of her collaborations with son Todd McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough, "While I would dearly love to have the energy to tell a tale all on my own, I really cannot say that I am not ably represented with my collaborations". In the Pern collaboration with Todd, she was mainly "making suggestions or being a sounding board". McCaffrey also gave Todd and his sister Gigi permission to write their own stories set in the Pern universe.

McCaffrey collaborated with author Mercedes Lackey to write The Ship Who Searched, the third of seven books in the Brain & Brawn Ship series by McCaffrey and four other authors. She wrote two books in the Planet Pirates trilogy with Elizabeth Moon

Death

McCaffrey died at age 85 on 21 November 2011 at her home in Ireland, following a stroke.

Books

Main article: Anne McCaffrey bibliography

Classification

In August 1987, Locus: The magazine of the science fiction & fantasy field ranked two of the eight extant Pern novels among the "All-Time Best Fantasy Novels", based on a poll of subscribers; Dragonflight was 9th and The White Dragon 23rd. Commenting on the Locus list, David Pringle called them "arguably science fiction rather than fantasy proper" and named McCaffrey a "leading practitioner" of the planetary romance subgenre of science fiction.

McCaffrey considered most of her work science fiction and enjoyed "cutting them short when they call me a 'fantasy' writer". All the Pern books may be considered science fiction, since the dragons were genetically engineered by the Pern colonists. Regarding science, she said "I don't keep up with developments, but I do find an expert in any field in which I must explain myself and the science involved". Astronomer Steven Beard often helped with science questions, and McCaffrey acknowledged reproductive biologist Jack Cohen several times.

The Science Fiction Hall of Fame citation of Anne McCaffrey summarises her genre as "science fiction, though tinged with the tone and instruments of fantasy", and her reputation as "a writer of romantic, heightened tales of adventure explicitly designed to appeal—and to make good sense to—a predominantly female adolescent audience."

McCaffrey said in 2000, "There are no demographics on my books which indicate the readers are predominantly of an age or sex group. Dragons have a universal appeal!" Formerly, it was another matter:

I started writing s-f in the late 50s/early 60s, when readership was predominantly male. And their attitudes unreconstructed. began reading s-f and fantasy—and, by preference, women writers. My stories had themes and heroines they could, and did, relate to. I never had any trouble with editors and publishers. I had trouble getting male readers to believe I was serious, and a good enough writer to interest them.

In 1999, the American Library Association gave McCaffrey the 11th Margaret A. Edwards Award for lifetime achievement in writing for teens. The librarians credited her with "over 50 novels for young adults and adults" and cited seven published from 1968 to 1979 for the "significant and lasting contribution to young adult literature" that the award features: The Ship Who Sang (1969) and the first six Pern books (those sometimes called the "original trilogy" and the "Harper Hall trilogy"). The panel chair observed that "McCaffrey's focus on the personal and emotional need of human beings mirrors the quest of today's teens to find their own place in society."

Restoree

McCaffrey's first novel was Restoree, published by Ballantine Books in 1967. Unlike most science fiction books of the era, Restoree's heroine is a strong-willed, intelligent woman who is willing and able to think for herself and act on her own initiative. McCaffrey was widely quoted as saying that Restoree was intended as a "jab" at how women were usually portrayed in science fiction.

Federated Sentient Planets universe

Several of McCaffrey's series (and more than half her books) are set in a universe governed by the "Federated Sentient Planets" ("Federation" or "FSP"). Although Pern's history is connected to the Federation, McCaffrey only used it as a backdrop for storytelling and did not consider her different "worlds" to be part of the same universe.

Dragonriders of Pern series

Main article: Dragonriders of Pern See lists in publication order and Pern chronological order

McCaffrey's best-known works are the Dragonriders of Pern series. When colonists from Earth and other planets make a decades-long space journey to Pern (an acronym designating "Parallels Earth, Resources Negligible" stamped on the original exploration team report) to escape interstellar wars, their fledgling society is threatened by Thread, a mindless organism that falls like a "hungry rain" to consume all organic material. The survivors of the original expedition create genetically engineered "dragons" from a native species of small fire-breathing, winged reptiles as self-propagating weapons to destroy the encroaching organism in the sky. The majority of the Dragonriders of Pern books take place approximately 2500 years after the planet's colonization, when new challenges face the now low-tech, agrarian society that depends on the telepathically linked dragons and riders for protection from their ancient menace, and their long-forgotten origins are ultimately rediscovered.

The Brain & Brawn Ship series

Main article: The Ship Who Sang See list of books

The Brain & Brawn Ship series comprises seven novels, only the first of which (a fix-up of five previously published stories) was written by McCaffrey alone. The stories in this series deal with the adventures of "shell-people" or "Brains", who as infants (due to illness or birth defects) have had to be hard-wired into a life-support system. With sensory input and motor nerves tied into a computer they serve as starship pilots (or colony administrators), seeing and feeling the colony or ship as an extension of their own body. They perform this job to pay off their debt for education and hardware, and continue as free agents once the debt is paid. To compensate for the Brains' inability to move within human habitats they are paired with partners known as "Brawns", who are trained in a wide array of skills (including the protection of their Brain counterparts). It was considered impossible for a person to adjust to being a shell after the age of two or three. An exception, in The Ship Who Searched, was a shell-person who was seven when she became quadriplegic.

The Ship books are set in the same universe as the Crystal Singer books; Brainship-Brawn pairings were also characters in the second and third volumes of that series.

The Crystal series

See list of books

The first book (and first of the trilogy), The Crystal Singer (1982) is a fix-up of four stories published in 1974–1975.

The Crystal Singer series revolves around the planet Ballybran. Under a permanent biohazard travel restriction due to a potentially-fatal symbiotic organism on the planet's surface, Ballybran is the source of valuable crystals that are vital to a number of industries, and home to one of the FSP's wealthiest (and most reclusive) organisations: the Heptite Guild. The Heptite Guild is known to require absolute, perfect pitch in hearing and voice for all applicants (especially those seeking to mine crystal by song). Because Ballybran's weather is unpredictable and dangerous (Ballybran's windstorms will cause exposed crystal to 'scream' in a discordant, deafening cacophony), the Heptite Guild is prohibited from actively recruiting members.

The Coelura series

'The Coelura' explores the theme of environmental abuse, as a precious animal is hunted to near extinction for the thread it spins for its net. The Lady Caissa must choose between protecting the Coelura or meeting her obligations to her father and mother.

'Nimisha's Ship' takes place in the same universe, as a woman in the First Families becomes a ship designer and on a test run her ship is captured by a wormhole. On exploring a nearby planet, she finds and befriends the remaining crew of a stranded ship who suffered the same fate years before, plus a new sapient species.

Ireta

See list of books

The Ireta series (as catalogued by the Internet Speculative Fiction Database) comprises five novels published 1978 to 1991, the first two by McCaffrey as subseries "Dinosaur Planet" and three as "Planet Pirates" by McCaffrey and co-writers.

They share a fictional premise, and some characters and events overlap. Dinosaur Planet and its sequel follow the Exploration and Evaluation Corps team on the planet Ireta, which did not expect to find dinosaurs. In "Planet Pirates", all is not well in the FSP: pirates attack the spacelanes. Survivors on Ireta join forces with the survivors of space pirate attacks.

The Talents universe

Main article: To Ride Pegasus See list of books

"The Talents Universe" (as catalogued by the Internet Speculative Fiction Database) comprises two series: "Talent" and "The Tower and Hive" and share a fictional premise. Eight books (all by McCaffrey alone) tell the story of telepathic, telekinetic individuals that become increasingly important to the proper function of interstellar society.

Doona

See list of books

Two civilisations in near-identical circumstances – an overlarge, lethargic population and a tragic history with sentient aliens – end up attempting to colonise the same planet by accident. What the humans do not know is that the people they have misidentified as nomadic natives are more technically advanced than themselves (and under no such illusions regarding the humans). The books are set prior to the formation of the Federation of Sentient Planets; in this series, the ruling body is the 'Amalgamated Planets'.

Petaybee universe

See list of books

The Petaybee universe comprises two trilogies (Powers and The Twins of Petaybee) by McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.

The Barque Cat series

See list of books

This series introduces a new universe with space faring Barque Cats and their special telepathically linked humans.

The Freedom series

Main article: Catteni Series See list of books

The Freedom series (or the "Catteni Sequence") comprises one 1970 short story and four Freedom novels written between 1995 and 2002.

Acorna universe

Main article: Acorna See list of books

The "Acorna Universe series" comprises ten novels published between 1997 and 2007: seven sometimes known as Acorna and three sometimes known as Acorna's Children. The series involve a group of intergalactic miners who adopt a mysterious alien foundling with unicorn-like physiognomy and apparent magical abilities. The first two were written by McCaffrey and Margaret Ball, and the rest by McCaffrey and Elizabeth Ann Scarborough.

Other works

McCaffrey also published two short-story collections, several romances, and children's books.

Her nonfiction work includes two cookbooks and a book about dragons in general.

See also

Notes

  1. Dragonholder, pp. 8–9. Evidently Merril did not include the story.
     Judith Merril at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
     Anne McCaffrey at the Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
  2. Dragonholder, p. 98. "A Time When by Anne McCaffrey". NESFA Press. Retrieved 8 February 2007.
  3. Dragonholder, pp. 107–08, 113. Todd McCaffrey explains the reissue as a trilogy and says that the success gave his mother "a secure perch on the ground". With Menolly's story and the white dragon's she was "freed by her dragons".
    Hans van der Boom calls the painting, "The cover art that, according to Anne and many of her fans, lured many to the shelves of the bookshop to buy ...". "Michael Whelan". Official Pern Art. Art Gallery. The Pern Museum & Archives. Hans van der Boom (2008). Retrieved 2011-07-20.
    According to a fan report of McCaffrey's address at her SF Hall of Fame induction (2006), "She first thanked Michael Whelan for the cover of White Dragon. ... that's exactly how I came to read Anne ...". "Anne McCaffrey Induction 6/17/06". Becky Coelura MoM Staff. A Meeting of Minds: An Anne McCaffrey discussion forum. Retrieved 2011-07-25.
  4. Whelan identifies his career turning point: "it was when I did the cover for The White Dragon by Anne McCaffrey. It was the first book with one of my covers to make the bestseller lists and 'everyone' noticed." FAQ: Illustration: Early Years. Michael Whelan. Retrieved 2014-02-05.
  5. Pringle does not rank any of McCaffrey's works among the "hundred best" recent English-language science fiction novels or fantasy novels. He concedes a blind spot regarding planetary romance. See Pringle 1985, p. 17.

References

  1. Murphy, Caitriona (22 February 2013). "The luxury house 'that dragons built'". Independent.ie. Retrieved 3 February 2016.
  2. Pomerico, D (22 November 2011). "Anne McCaffrey: April 1, 1926 – November 21, 2011". suvudu.com. Archived from the original on 17 February 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
  3. Fox, Margalit (24 November 2011). "Anne McCaffrey, Author of 'Dragonriders' Fantasies, Dies at 85". The New York Times. New York City. Retrieved 24 November 2011.
  4. ^ "McCaffrey, Anne". The Locus Index to SF Awards: Index to Literary Nominees. Locus Publications. Archived from the original on 15 October 2011.
  5. "Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master". Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America (SFWA). Archived from the original on 1 July 2011.
  6. "Presenting". Archived from the original on 26 April 2006. Retrieved 28 August 2016.. Press release 15 March 2006. Science Fiction Museum (sfhomeworld.org). Archived 2006-04-26. Retrieved 2013-04-06.
  7. "Science Fiction Hall of Fame". The Cohenside. 15 May 2006. Archived from the original on 14 October 2016.
  8. ^ "Anne McCaffrey 1926–". Science Fiction Hall of Fame (Members). EMP Science Fiction Museum. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 16 July 2011. Acknowledges content from The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction 1993, 1999; see also its online third edition.
  9. "The Locus Index to SF Awards: 2007 Robert A. Heinlein Award". Locus Publications. 2007. Archived from the original on 6 July 2008. Retrieved 21 November 2016.
  10. ^ "Anne's Biography". The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. Pern Home. Retrieved 7 July 2011.
  11. Dragonholder, pp. 15–18.
  12. "(Anne Inez McCaffrey)". RootsWeb. Ancestry.com. Archived from the original on 18 June 2016. Retrieved 16 June 2012.
  13. Dragonholder, pp. 24, 31.
  14. Sherman, Ted. "Fantasy writer, former N.J. resident Anne McCaffrey dead at 85", The Star-Ledger, 23 November 2011. Retrieved 6 February 2012. "Born in Cambridge, Mass., McCaffrey was raised in New Jersey, where she graduated from Montclair High School."
  15. ^ McCaffrey, Anne (17 December 2009). "A Letter From Anne". The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. Pern Home. Retrieved 12 July 2011.
  16. Dragonholder, p. 36.
  17. Dragonholder, pp. 10–11, 14, 36–37, 45–46.
  18. Dragonholder, pp. 57–58, 63.
  19. Dragonholder, pp. 5, 68–69, 73.
  20. Dragonholder, p. 78.
  21. See forewords or acknowledgments in some Pern books.
  22. Dragonholder, pp. 9, 13, 38.
  23. Dragonholder, p. 13.
  24. Dragonholder, pp. 8–10.
  25. Dragonholder, pp. 13–14.
  26. ^ Jamneck 2004.
  27. ^ SFFWorld 2000.
  28. Karsmakers 1994.
  29. ^ Locus 2004.
  30. Dragonholder, pp. 45–46.
  31. McCaffrey, Anne. "Frequently Asked Questions". The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. Pern Home. Archived from the original on 15 July 2011. Retrieved 16 July 2011.. See questions 2, 10, 17, 19, 22.
  32. Dragonholder, pp. 2, 50.
  33. "Anne McCaffrey – Summary Bibliography". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Retrieved 17 November 2011.
  34. Dragonholder, p. 74.
  35. Dragonholder, pp. 71–101.
  36. Dragonholder, pp. 82–83, 95.
  37. Dragonholder, p. 101.
  38. Dragonholder, pp. 103–04.
  39. Dragonholder, pp. 104–05.
  40. Dragonholder, p. 113 (conclusion).
  41. "Anne McCaffrey Named a Grand Master in 2004". Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Retrieved 22 August 2017.
  42. Dragonholder, p. 49.
  43. Dragonholder, pp. 51–52, 54–55.
  44. "Anne McCaffrey (1926–2011)". Locus online. 22 November 2011. Retrieved 23 November 2011.
  45. "The Locus Index to SF Awards: 1987 Locus All-time Poll". Locus. Archived from the original on 13 January 2004. Retrieved 12 October 2011. Originally published in the monthly Locus, August 1987.
  46. Pringle 1988, p. 21.
  47. Pringle 1985, p. 17.
  48. Roberts 2007, p. 5.
  49. "1999 Margaret A. Edwards Award Winner". Young Adult Library Services Association (YALSA). Archived from the original on 22 January 2012.
    "Edwards Award". YALSA. 27 February 2012. Archived from the original on 5 April 2012.
    • McCaffrey also contributed to the reflections by previous winners that were solicited for the 20th anniversary award, "Looking Back". YALSA. 2008. Archived from the original on 30 January 2012.
  50. Frequently Asked Questions (2007). The Worlds of Anne McCaffrey. Pernhome.com (c) 2010 Todd McCaffrey. Question 21. Retrieved 2011-11-23.
  51. The Ship Who Sang (series). The Internet Speculative Fiction Database.
  52. The Crystal Universe (series). ISFDB.
  53. Ireta (series). ISFDB.
  54. The Talents Universe (series). ISFDB. Subpages for all constituent stories and books. Retrieved 2011-08-01.
  55. Petaybee Universe (series). ISFDB.
  56. Catteni Sequence (series). ISFDB.
  57. Acorna Universe (series). ISFDB.

Citations – books

Interviews

Further reading

External links

Bibliography

Library resources about
Anne McCaffrey
By Anne McCaffrey

Other

Works by Anne McCaffrey
Bibliography
Acorna
Acorna's Children
Brain & Brawn Ships
Crystal Singer
Ireta
Talents
Tower and Hive
Other series
Standalone novels
Short story collections
Dragonriders of Pern
by Todd McCaffrey
Dragonriders of Pern by Anne McCaffrey and Todd McCaffrey
The Dragonriders of Pern trilogy
The Harper Hall of Pern trilogy
Other novels
By Anne and Todd McCaffrey
By Todd McCaffrey
By Gigi McCaffrey
Short story collections
Uncollected stories
  • "The Impression" (in The Dragonlover's Guide to Pern)
  • "Beyond Between" (in Legends II)
Companion books
Games
Related
Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Awards (SFWA Grand Masters)
1975–1999
2000–present
Hugo Award for Best Novella
Retro Hugos
1968–1980
1981–1990
1991–2000
2001–2010
2011–2020
2021–present
Nebula Award for Best Novella
1966–1980
1981–2000
2001–2020
2021–present
Categories: