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John M. Ford

ジョン・エム・フォード

Jon M. Fōdo

Aliases: John Milo Ford / Mike Ford
Pen Names: Michael J. Dodge（Pseudonym for children's gamebooks）, Milo Dennison（Pseudonym for children's books）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1957-04-10 （East Chicago, Indiana）
Died
2006-09-25 （Minneapolis, Minnesota） age 49
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
East Chicago, Indiana → Whiting, Indiana → Bloomington, Indiana → New York City → Minneapolis, Minnesota

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Writer, Game designer, Poet
Active Years
1976-2006
Affiliations
Friends of the Minneapolis Public Library, Society for Creative Anachronism
Memberships
Friends of the Minneapolis Public Library
Influenced
Neil Gaiman
Nominations
2005 World Fantasy Award for Best Collection - Heat of Fusion and Other Stories, 1996 Nebula Award for Best Novelette - Erase/Record/Play, 1996 Theodore Sturgeon Award - Erase/Record/Play

Education

Indiana University Bloomington
Unknown
Period: 1970年代中盤
Country: United States
Active in SF club and SCA, left without graduating

Awards

World Fantasy Award for Best Novel
1984
Work: The Dragon Waiting
Category: Best Novel
Organization: World Fantasy Convention
Result: 受賞
Origins Award for Best Roleplaying Supplement
1985
Work: The Yellow Clearance Black Box Blues
Organization: Game Manufacturers Association
Result: 受賞
World Fantasy Award for Best Short Fiction
1989
Work: Winter Solstice, Camelot Station
Category: Best Short Fiction
Organization: World Fantasy Convention
Result: 受賞
Rhysling Award for Long Poem
1989
Work: Winter Solstice, Camelot Station
Category: Long Poem
Organization: Science Fiction Poetry Association
Result: 受賞
Origins Award for Best Roleplaying Supplement
1991
Work: GURPS Time Travel
Organization: Game Manufacturers Association
Result: 受賞
Philip K. Dick Award
1993
Work: Growing Up Weightless
Result: 受賞
Minnesota Book Award for Fantasy & Science Fiction
1998
Organization: Minnesota Humanities Commission
Result: 受賞
Origins Award for Role-Playing Game Supplement of the Year
2005
Work: GURPS Infinite Worlds
Category: 4th Edition
Organization: Game Manufacturers Association
Result: 受賞

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Dragon Waiting

1983 Fantasy alternate history

Alternate history fantasy combining vampires, the Medicis, and English politics around Edward IV and Richard III.

Coming-of-ageResponsibilityPolitics

The Final Reflection

1984 SF Star Trek

Star Trek novel from Klingon perspective.

Coming-of-ageCulture

Growing Up Weightless

1993 Science fiction

Coming-of-age story of a boy growing up on the Moon.

Coming-of-ageResponsibility

The Last Hot Time

1999 Urban fantasy

Urban fantasy set in a magical Chicago.

Coming-of-ageMagic

Bibliography

  • Web of Angels
  • The Princes of the Air
  • The Scholars of Night
  • Fugue State
  • Aspects

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Varied stylesImprovised poetryParodies
Recurring Motifs
BildungsromanComing-of-age and responsibilityComplex plots

Health

  • Diabetes
    幼少期から死亡まで
    Complications led to renal dysfunction requiring dialysis and kidney transplant in 2000
  • Renal failure
    成人期
    Required dialysis and transplant, affecting quality of life

Legacy

Highly respected by peers; works reissued posthumously. John M. Ford Book Endowment established at Minneapolis Public Library.

In Popular Culture

  • Klin zha game from his work adopted by Klingon fandom

Quotes

  • The best writer in America – bar none.
    Source: Robert Jordan
  • My best critic ... the best writer I knew.
    Source: Neil Gaiman

Trivia

  • Partner was sculptor Elise Matthesen since mid-1990s
  • Performed 'Ask Dr. Mike' at Minicon
  • Used pseudonyms for children's fiction