C. J. Cherryh facts for kids

Quick facts for kids C. J. Cherryh
Cherryh at NorWesCon in 2006
Born	Carolyn Janice Cherry (1942-09-01) September 1, 1942 (age 82) St. Louis, Missouri, U.S.
Pen name	C. J. Cherryh
Occupation	Novelist, short story author, essayist, high school teacher
Education	University of Oklahoma (BA) Johns Hopkins University (MA)
Period	1976–present
Genre	Science fiction, fantasy
Notable works	Alliance–Union universe, Foreigner series
Notable awards	Hugo Award, Locus Award, Prometheus Award
Spouse	Jane Fancher ​ (m. 2014)​
Relatives	David A. Cherry (brother)
Website
cherryh.com/WaveWithoutAShore/

Carolyn Janice Cherry (born September 1, 1942), known as C. J. Cherryh, is an American writer. She writes speculative fiction, which includes science fiction and fantasy stories. She has written over 80 books since the mid-1970s.

Some of her famous books include Downbelow Station (1981) and Cyteen (1988). Both of these books won the Hugo Award, a very important award in science fiction. They are part of her Alliance–Union universe. She also wrote the popular Foreigner series.

Cherryh is known for her amazing worldbuilding. This means she creates fictional worlds that feel very real. She does this by doing a lot of research into history, languages, how people think (psychology), and archaeology (studying old cultures).

Her last name is pronounced "Cherry." She added a silent "h" to her name. Her editor, Donald A. Wollheim, thought "Cherry" sounded too much like a romance writer. She also used only her initials, C. J., to hide that she was a woman. At the time, most science fiction writers were men.

An asteroid named 77185 Cherryh was named in her honor. The people who discovered it said she "challenged us to be worthy of the stars." This means she made them think about how humans could live among the stars.

About C. J. Cherryh's Life

Early Life and Education

C. J. Cherryh was born in 1942 in St. Louis, Missouri. She grew up mostly in Lawton, Oklahoma. She started writing stories when she was just ten years old. This happened after her favorite TV show, Flash Gordon, was canceled.

In 1964, she earned a degree in Latin from the University of Oklahoma. She also studied archaeology, mythology, and the history of engineering. In 1965, she received a master's degree in classics from Johns Hopkins University in Baltimore, Maryland.

Teaching and Writing Journey

After college, Cherryh taught Latin, Ancient Greek, and ancient history. She taught at John Marshall High School in Oklahoma City. Even though she taught Latin, she loved the history and culture of ancient Rome and Greece.

During her summer breaks, she would take students on tours of old ruins in Europe. In her free time, she wrote stories. She often used ideas from Roman and Greek mythology for her future-themed tales.

Unlike many science fiction writers, she didn't start by writing short stories for magazines. She wrote full novels first. She sent these books directly to publishers. At first, she had some trouble. Publishers sometimes lost her manuscripts. This meant she had to retype them from her own copies.

First Books and Awards

Cherryh's big break came in 1975. A publisher named Donald A. Wollheim bought two of her books for DAW Books. These books were Gate of Ivrel and Brothers of Earth.

She said that Gate of Ivrel was the first book that truly felt complete. She was able to write for an editor whose work she admired. The characters in Gate of Ivrel were ones she had invented when she was about thirteen.

Both novels were published in 1976. Gate of Ivrel came out first. These books quickly made her famous. She won the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer in 1977.

Becoming a Full-Time Writer

In 1979, her short story "Cassandra" won the Best Short Story Hugo. After this, she quit teaching to write full-time. She has since won the Hugo Award for Best Novel twice. She won for Downbelow Station in 1982 and for Cyteen in 1989.

Cherryh has also written for other story collections. These include Thieves' World and Elfquest. Her books have been translated into many languages around the world. She has also translated French books into English.

Today, she lives near Spokane, Washington, with her wife, Jane Fancher. Jane is also a science fiction and fantasy writer and artist. Cherryh enjoys skating and traveling. She often attends science fiction conventions. Her brother, David A. Cherry, is a science fiction and fantasy artist.

How C. J. Cherryh Writes

Creating Believable Worlds

Cherryh's books show fictional worlds that feel very real. This is thanks to her strong background in languages, history, archaeology, and psychology. Another famous author, Andre Norton, compared Cherryh's work to Tolkien's. Norton said she had not been so captivated by a story since reading The Lord of the Rings.

Cherryh creates believable alien cultures and species. She makes readers think about what it means to be human. Her worlds are praised for being complex and realistic. She shows them through hints and actions, rather than just explaining everything. This is clear in her Chanur and Foreigner series. These series show how hard it can be to understand different languages and ideas.

Building Alien Societies

Cherryh has explained how she creates alien societies for her stories. She asks herself many questions. The answers to these questions help her build the alien culture. She believes that "culture is how biology responds to its environment." It's about how a species makes its living conditions better.

Here are some things she thinks about when creating an intelligent alien race:

• The environment where the species lives.
• Where and how their homes are built.
• What they eat and how they get and prepare food.
• How they share knowledge.
• Their customs and ideas about death and the afterlife.
• Their ideas about themselves and the fictional universe they live in.

In an interview, Cherryh was asked how much science is in science fiction. She replied, "Quite a bit and if I get something wrong, I know I’m going to hear about it." She also mentioned, "I’ve had operational conferences with astronauts." This shows how much research she puts into her work.

Main Ideas in Her Books

Cherryh's stories often feature characters who try to keep society's rules and traditions. They do this for the good of everyone. The bad guys, however, often try to change society for their own selfish reasons.

She often writes about outsiders finding their place in society. She also explores how people interact with those who are different from them. Many of her books focus on military and political themes.

Another important idea in her work is how gender roles are explored. Her characters, both male and female, show strengths and weaknesses. Her female main characters are often very capable and determined. Many of her male characters are shown as being hurt or vulnerable.

C. J. Cherryh's Works

Her writing career began in 1976 with Gate of Ivrel and Brothers of Earth. Since then, she has published over 80 novels and short story collections. She continues to write, as shown on her blog.

Ms. Cherryh has won the Hugo, Locus, and Prometheus Awards for her novels. Her books are often grouped into different series. These include the Alliance–Union universe, The Chanur novels, the Foreigner series, and her fantasy novels.

Awards and Recognitions

C. J. Cherryh has received many awards and honors for her writing.

Major Awards

Other Honors

• John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer – 1977
• NESFA Edward E. Smith Memorial Award (The Skylark) – 1988
• Guest of Honor at BucConeer, the 1998 World Science Fiction Convention
• Asteroid 77185 Cherryh, named in her honor in 2001.
• Oklahoma Book Awards – Arrell Gibson Lifetime Achievement Award 2005
• SFWA Damon Knight Memorial Grand Master Award – 2016
• Robert A. Heinlein Award – 2021

Organizations She Belongs To

• Swordsmen and Sorcerers' Guild of America (SAGA) – She is a member because of her "Morgaine" novels.
• National Space Society – She is on the Board of Advisors.
• Endangered Language Fund – She is on the Board of Directors.

See also

In Spanish: C. J. Cherryh para niños