Frederik Pohl

Frederik Pohl (1919-2013) exerted a profound and multifaceted influence on the science fiction genre throughout his prolific 75-year career, distinguishing himself as an author of seminal works, editor of four significant periodicals, and literary agent for a cadre of notable writers, thereby shaping the landscape of speculative literature in the 20th century.

Pohl began writing in his teens as a member of the Futurians, a New York fan club, and published much of his early work in collaboration with other members of the group. He edited the magazines Astonishing Stories and Super Science Stories from 1939 to 1943 before serving in WWII. After the war, he concentrated on his career as a science fiction literary agent, representing many of the field's most celebrated writers.

Returning to writing in the 1950s, Pohl published a number of solo works as well as collaborations. The Space Merchants (1952), written with C.M. Kornbluth, is a prescient tale of a capitalist/consumerist dystopia that has become a classic of the genre. Pohl's novel Man Plus (1976) won a Nebula award, and his celebrated Heechee series began with Gateway (1977), which won the Hugo, Nebula and John W. Campbell Memorial awards. The novel tracks humanity's exploration of the galaxy using artifacts abandoned by aliens who have gone into hiding.

Pohl was president of the Science Fiction Writers of America from 1974 – 1976 and president of World Science Fiction Society from 1980 – 1982. In 1993, he received the Nebula Grand Master Award.