# Who's the most famous {living} writer of science fiction? **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** books-writing-myths\ **Created:** [July 6, 2024, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796 "2024-07-06T01:37:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/1 "2024-07-06T01:37:20Z")
Neil Gaiman’s name up in another thread. (Don’t know how to link on my phone. We’re having an outage.) To the readers of f&sf, he’s a big name. Yet a number of posters said they had no idea who he was. I said he might be the most famous f&sf writer in the world. That quickly got shot down. J. K. Rowling and George R. R. Martin surely top him. Neither is a writer of science fiction, though. (Martin did some long ago before his game.) So who is the most famous living sf writer? They can be media famous, but it has to rest on books, so George Lucas doesn’t count. Bonus points if they are still writing. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/2 "2024-07-06T01:43:09Z")
Isaac Asimov? Or perhaps H.G. Wells. Or Ray Bradbury, noted author of That One Book We All Had To Read In High School. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/3 "2024-07-06T01:44:59Z")
If we don’t count Rowling or Martin, or writers who focus on horror (Steven King, Dean Koontz) or other genres that aren’t strictly science fiction, then, according to this YouGov poll on “contemporary writers,” Gaiman has 48% “fame” (awareness, I’m guessing); the only arguably sci-fi author above him is Suzanne Collins (The Hunger Games), at 60%. > **[The most popular contemporary fiction writers in America | Entertainment |...](https://today.yougov.com/ratings/entertainment/popularity/contemporary-fiction-writer/all)** > > The most popular contemporary fiction writers in America according to YouGov Ratings. Popularity is based on millions of responses from the American public and YouGov's innovative survey methodology. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:45am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/4 "2024-07-06T01:45:32Z")
Living. No dead guys. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/5 "2024-07-06T01:47:21Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > No dead guys. OP said living is a bonus, not mandatory. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/6 "2024-07-06T01:48:03Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > OP said living is a bonus Actually, OP said “still writing” is a bonus. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/7 "2024-07-06T01:51:02Z")
Bah. Me no read good. In that case, I nominate Stephen King, since a good chunk of his most well-known books (It, The Stand, The Dark Tower etc.) are at least sci-fi adjacent. ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/8 "2024-07-06T01:53:08Z")
Right. Living and still writing. The fame list had only two names I would consider to be sf. Orson Scott Card and William Gibson. I’d choose Gibson. Is Card still writing? ---
**Author:** ![echoreply](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/echoreply/32/3641_2.png) [@echoreply](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/echoreply)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 1:55am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/9 "2024-07-06T01:55:46Z")
Do sci-fi authors who are not famous for being sci-fi authors count? Perhaps the _Tek-War_ series by William Shatner or Kendall Jenner, _et al’s_, _Rebels: City of Indra: The Story of Lex Livia_ is probably a sci-fi (“In a world of the far future…”). They are both certainly famous, but not primarily for being authors. > **[Amazon.com: Rebels: City of Indra: The Story of Lex and Livia (1):...](https://www.amazon.com/Rebels-City-Indra-Story-Livia/dp/1451694555)** > > Amazon.com: Rebels: City of Indra: The Story of Lex and Livia (1): 9781451694550: Jenner, Kendall, Jenner, Kylie, Killmond-Roman, Elizabeth, Sloan, Maya: Books ---
**Author:** ![Exapno\_Mapcase](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/exapno_mapcase/32/1051_2.png) [@Exapno\_Mapcase](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Exapno_Mapcase)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/10 "2024-07-06T02:01:44Z")
It would be nice to nominate just people who truly are sf writers, like Asimov and Clarke were even though they got famous for other reasons that dragged their sf into bestseller status. It’s telling that people need to drag in others because no obvious answer is in sight. And Shatner never wrote a word of his sci-fi books. ---
**Author:** ![Smapti](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/smapti/32/17938_2.png) [@Smapti](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Smapti)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/11 "2024-07-06T02:02:38Z")
> [@echoreply](#): > > Perhaps the _Tek-War_ series by William Shatner Weren’t Shatner’s books ghostwritten? If we’re counting ghostwriters, then George Lucas wins since his name was on the novelization of A New Hope despite it actually being written by Alan Dean Foster (who is also still alive and writing.) ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/12 "2024-07-06T02:07:27Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > Is Card still writing? Yes, though maybe not as prolifically as he used to (bear in mind that he’s now 72 years old). [His bibliography on Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orson_Scott_Card_bibliography) shows several novels and short stories published in the last few years, across several different series. ---
**Author:** ![kenobi\_65](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kenobi_65/32/13178_2.png) [@kenobi\_65](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/kenobi_65)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:09am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/13 "2024-07-06T02:09:16Z")
> [@Smapti](#): > > Weren’t Shatner’s books ghostwritten? That’s my understanding, though it appears that the TekWar books were based on some story ideas which were originally created by Shatner. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/14 "2024-07-06T02:14:48Z")
> [@Exapno\_Mapcase](#): > > It’s telling that people need to drag in others because no obvious answer is in sight. I can’t really think of anyone today that is famous to the general public in the way that Clarke, Asimov, etc were famous. It might have to do with SF writers of the 20th century being actual degreed scientists in addition to writers and therefore were more likely to be brought on TV to be asked real science questions, the role Neil deGrasse Tyson and Michio Kaku have today. ---
**Author:** ![Galactus](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/galactus/32/3581_2.png) [@Galactus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Galactus)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/15 "2024-07-06T02:17:23Z")
Maybe Andy Weir, because of the Martian? ---
**Author:** ![RealityChuck](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/realitychuck/32/195_2.png) [@RealityChuck](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RealityChuck)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 2:17am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/16 "2024-07-06T02:17:24Z")
Shatner named the ghostwriter of each novel in the acknowledgements. The first two thanked Ron Goulart, for instance. I’ve heard that Shatner wanted to name a coauthor for the books, but his publisher felt people wouldn’t think Shatner wrote any of it. It appears he did come up with the premise for each book. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/17 "2024-07-06T03:03:25Z")
[2 Dope polls on the authors of the above linked poll](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/polls-only-no-discussion/953642/5066) ---
**Author:** ![Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/elmer_j.fudd/32/1211_2.png) [@Elmer\_J.Fudd](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elmer_J.Fudd)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 3:19am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/18 "2024-07-06T03:19:51Z")
It’s gotta be Stephen King even if he is better known as a Horror writer. His SF output alone is more prolific than that of most writers who exclusively write Science Fiction. ---
**Author:** ![Jack\_Burden](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/958977/32.png) [@Jack\_Burden](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jack_Burden)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 3:29am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/19 "2024-07-06T03:29:34Z")
Certainly not the most famous but up there: Neal Stephenson burst onto the SF scene with Snow Crash in 1992 and has been regularly publishing since. I know that views of his work are deeply divided on this message board but I’m a fan. ---
**Author:** ![ParallelLines](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/parallellines/32/3575_2.png) [@ParallelLines](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ParallelLines)\ **Post date:** [July 6, 2024, 3:32am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796/20 "2024-07-06T03:32:14Z")
Most famous is hard, because there are people that are famous _in the genre_ but if we’re talking about the whole, SF authors normally only become widely famous if there’s a TV/Movie adaptation of their works that gets mass market attention outside the genre. There’s also the issue about quantity as opposed to quality, as there are SFI series with a huge number of sequels, sub sderies, and secondary series (For example David Weber) who has a metric ton of scifi novels (Safehold, Honorverse, Empire of Man plus others) with countless novels written and sold, but isn’t in any way famous for the reasons mentioned earlier (no TV or Movie Series). So back to @Exapno_Mapcase - do you want famous, alive, and (ideally) still writing to the general population? Or within readers of the genre? And how narrowly do you want to define science fiction, which encompasses a huge variety of subgenres. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/whos-the-most-famous-living-writer-of-science-fiction/1003796.md?page=2)