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Friday 13 February 2026
Welcome to the Encyclopedia of Science Fiction, Fourth Edition. Some sample entries appear below. Click here for the Introduction; here for what we mean by Science Fiction; here for the masthead; here for some Statistics; here for the Acknowledgments; here for the FAQ; here for advice on citations. Find entries via the search box above (more details here) or browse the menu categories in the grey bar at the top of this page.
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Carver, Jeffrey A
(1949-2026) US author who began publishing sf with "... Of No Return" in Fiction Magazine for 1974. His first novel, Seas of Ernathe (1976), which serves as an introduction to the loose Star Rigger sequence of Space Operas, showed early signs of a love of plot and thematic complexity which would take him some time, and several novels, to control. The continuation, Star Rigger's Way (1978), for instance, combines quest ...
Sayles, John
(1950- ) US author and film-maker who made his reputation as a writer with the novels Pride of the Bimbos (1975) and Union Dues (1977) and his collection The Anarchist's Convention (coll 1979). He began writing scripts for exploitation movies in the late 1970s, and enjoyed a burst of creativity in association with Roger Corman, Joe Dante, Lewis Teague and Steven ...
Rocket Attack U.S.A.
Film (1961; vt Five Minutes to Zero). Exploit Films/Joseph Brenner Associates. Produced by Barry Mahon. Directed by Mahon. Written by uncertain, possibly by Mahon. Cast includes Monica Davis and John McKay. 68 minutes. Black and white. / US special agent John Manston (McKay) is sent to the Soviet Union to find out how much data the Soviets have obtained from their Sputnik One satellite. Deposited by plane in a remote area, he makes his way to Moscow by foot and teams up with ...
Shortt, Vere
(1874-1915) UK soldier and author who fought with distinction in South Africa and served as a Captain in World War One. His first novel, Lost Sheep (1915), uninterestingly incorporates some elements of black magic. He saw active service in France, dying in combat in 1915 before completing The Rod of the Snake (1917), which was completed by his sister Frances Mathews. The tale, a not entirely coherent, clottedly erotized occult ...
Kurodahan Press
Small Press begun in 2002 by three expatriate Westerners based in Japan, Kurodahan Press focused on bringing a wide range of Japanese texts to Anglophone readers. Kurodahan's goals, according to co-founder Edward Lipsett, were "to preserve and circulate contemporary and historical observations of Asia [and] produce informative and entertaining translations." Kurodahan published works in multiple genres including ...
Langford, David
(1953- ) UK author, critic, editor, publisher and sf fan, in the latter capacity recipient of 21 Hugo awards for fan writing – some of the best of his several hundred pieces are assembled as Let's Hear It for the Deaf Man (coll 1992 chap US; much exp vt The Silence of the Langford 1996; exp 2015 ebook) as Dave Langford, edited by Ben Yalow – plus five Best Fanzine Hugos ...