SF Encyclopedia Home Page
Thursday 12 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 ...
Judd, Cyril
Pseudonym used by C M Kornbluth and Judith Merril (both of whom see for further details) for their two collaborative novels: Outpost Mars (May-July 1951 Galaxy as "Mars Child"; 1952; rev vt Sin in Space 1961) and Gunner Cade (March-May 1952 Astounding; 1952). [BS]
Nearing, H, Jr
Working name of Homer C Nearing Jr (1915-2003), US author and professor of English at Pennsylvania Military College, married to Alice Eleanor Jones. His series of fourteen stories about Professor Cleanth Penn Ransom and Professor Archibald MacTate, mathematician and philosopher respectively, appeared in The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, beginning with "The Poetry Machine" in Fall 1950 (see ...
Timescape Books
US sf publishing imprint, issuing both hardcover and paperback, whose logo first appeared in March 1981 and whose last titles were published in 1984. Timescape Books was formed by Simon and Schuster and Pocket Books (owned by the former), for both of whom David G Hartwell had been director of sf, and he was set in charge of the new imprint. It was named after the resonant title of Gregory Benford's successful novel ...
Baffling Mysteries
US Comic (1951-1955). 22 issues (starting from #5). Ace Magazines, Inc. Artists include Lou Cameron, Jim McLaughlin, Kenneth Rice and Louis Zansky. 36 pages. Usually 4 long strips, 2 one-page strips entitled "Baffling Mysteries" and a two-page text story per issue. / Like its sister publication The Beyond, Baffling Mysteries heavily featured supernatural ...
Nicholls, Peter
(1939-2018) Australian editor and author, primarily a critic and historian of sf through his creation and editing of The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction [see below]; resident in the UK 1970-1988, in Australia from 1988; worked as an academic in English literature (1962-1968, 1971-1977), scripted television documentaries, was a Harkness Fellow in Film-making (1968-1970) in the USA, worked as a publisher's editor (1982-1983), often broadcast film and book reviews on BBC Radio from 1974 and ...