Collins, Paul
Entry updated 13 May 2024. Tagged: Author, Editor.
(1954- ) UK-born author, editor, publisher, writer and bookseller, in Australia from 1972. At an early age he began publishing and editing a Semiprozine, Void Science Fiction and Fantasy (1975-1981), which in due course transmuted into a series of original Anthologies, beginning with Envisaged Worlds: From the Editor of Void, Australia's First Original Science Fiction Anthology (anth 1978), the first three published by his first Small Press, Void Publications, and later volumes published through a second small press, Cory & Collins, in partnership with Rowena Cory. Despite variable production standards, Cory & Collins was of some importance in providing a platform for Australian sf and fantasy novelists – its list included Russell Blackford, A Bertram Chandler, David J Lake, Wynne N Whiteford and Jack Wodhams – but the venture ceased in 1985 after 14 books. Collins's own later anthologies, including Metaworlds: Best Australian Science Fiction (anth 1994) and Fantastic Worlds (anth 1998), were released through other firms.
Collins's writing career began with Hot Lead – Cold Sweat (1975), a Western, and he began publishing work of genre interest with "The Test" for Weirdbook 12 in 1977. He has since been prolific in shorter forms, with many sf stories published, mostly in Australia but some overseas. His book-length tales have tended to be for Young Adult readers, including the Earthborn sequence – comprising The Earthborn (2003), The Skyborn (2005) and The Hiveborn (2007) – which features the experiences of a young protagonist who lands by accident on a Ruined Earth that has become barbarous and mean, a population his compatriots intend to exterminate. The Quentaris Chronicles sequence of Shared World tales, created and supervised and partially written by Collins and fantasy writer Michael Pryor, is fantasy [see Checklist for the series] set in the mysterious, eponymous City; though Quentaris Chronicles: Quest of the Lost City, a follow-on sub-sequence beginning with The Spell of Undoing: Quentaris: Quest of the Lost City, Book One (2009), moves towards a Science Fantasy reading by virtue of being set in several Parallel Worlds.
For his work as a critic – as editor of and principal contributor to The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian Science Fiction & Fantasy (1998) – he has received a mixed press for perceived deficiencies in this ambitious work, which has been taken to task for limiting its coverage to sf from 1950 on, and for the wide variety of quality and critical focus in its author entries. Collins received the Chandler Award in 2011. [PN/JC]
see also: Australia.
Paul A Collins
born Canvey Island, Essex: 21 May 1954
works
series
Jelindel Chronicles
- Dragonlinks (Melbourne, Victoria: Penguin Australia, 2002) [Jelindel Chronicles: pb/Cathy Larsen]
- Dragonfang (Melbourne, Victoria: Penguin Australia, 2004) [Jelindel Chronicles: pb/Marco Nero]
- Dragonsight (Melbourne, Victoria: Penguin Australia, 2005) [Jelindel Chronicles: pb/Anton Petrov]
- Wardragon (Melbourne, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Press, 2009) [Jelindel Chronicles: pb/Cathy Larsen]
The Earthborn
- The Earthborn (New York: Tor Starscape, 2003) [The Earthborn: hb/Jon Foster]
- The Skyborn (New York: Tor Starscape, 2005) [The Earthborn: hb/Jon Foster]
- The Hiveborn (Andover, Kansas: Bohemian Ink, 2007) [The Earthborn: hb/Howard Levy]
Quentaris Chronicles
Titles in this Shared World sequence not by Collins are so indicated.
- The Revognase (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2003) by Lucy Sussex [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- The Perfect Princess (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2003) by Jenny Pausacker [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Beneath Quentaris (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2003) by Michael Pryor [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- The Swords of Quentaris (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2003) [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Quentaris in Flames (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2003) by Michael Pryor [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Slaves of Quentaris (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2003) [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Dragonlords of Quentaris (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2004) [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- The Mind Master (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2004) by John Heffernan [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Treasure Hunters of Quentaris (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2004) by Margo Lanagan [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Stones of Quentaris (Melbourne, Victoria: Lothian Publishing Co, 2004) by Michael Pryor [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Angel Fever (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Children's Books, 2004) by Isobelle Carmody [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- Murderers' Apprentice (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Children's Books, 2005) by Pamela Freeman [Quentaris Chronicles: illus/pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- The Cat Dreamer (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Children's Books, 2005) by Isobelle Carmody [Quentaris Chronicles: illus/pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- The Plague of Quentaris (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2005) by Gary Crew [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
- The Forgotten Prince (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2006) [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
- Prisoner of Quentaris (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2006) by Anna Ciddor [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
- The Stolen Children of Quentaris (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2006) by Gary Crew [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
- Nightmare in Quentaris (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2006) by Michael Pryor [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
- Vampires of Quentaris (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2008) [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
- Battle for Quentaris (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Books, 2008) by Michael Pryor [Quentaris Chronicles: pb/Jeremy Reston]
Quentaris: Quest of the Lost City
- The Spell of Undoing: Quentaris: Quest of the Lost City, Book One (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Children's Books, 2009) [Quentaris: Quest of the Lost City: illus/pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
- The Equen Queen: Quentaris: Quest of the Lost City, Book One (Sydney, New South Wales: Hachette Livre Australia/Lothian Children's Books, 2009) by Alyssa Brugman [Quentaris: Quest of the Lost City: illus/pb/Mark McBride and Grant Gittus]
The Warlock's Child
- The Burning Sea (Ormond, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Publishing, 2015) with Sean McMullen [The Warlock's Child: pb/Grant Gittus and Marc McBride]
- Dragonfall Mountain(Ormond, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Publishing, 2015) with Sean McMullen [The Warlock's Child: pb/Grant Gittus and Marc McBride]
- The Iron Claw (Ormond, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Publishing, 2016) with Sean McMullen [The Warlock's Child: pb/Marc McBride]
- Trial by Dragons (Ormond, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Publishing, 2016) with Sean McMullen [The Warlock's Child: pb/Marc McBride]
- Voyage to Morticas (Ormond, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Publishing, 2016) with Sean McMullen [The Warlock's Child: pb/Marc McBride]
- The Guardians (Ormond, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers/Ford Street Publishing, 2016) with Sean McMullen [The Warlock's Child: pb/Marc McBride]
individual titles
- The Government in Exile and Other Stories (Melbourne, Victoria: Sumeria Press, 1995) [coll: dated 1994 but published 1995: pb/Debbie Plueckhahn]
- The Wizard's Torment (Moss Vale, New South Wales: HarperCollins, 1995) [pb/Peter Townsend]
- Old Bones (Moss Vale, New South Wales: HarperCollins, 1997) [story: chap: dos: pb/Marc McBride]
- Cyberskin (Melbourne, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers, 2000) [story: chap: reverts to unidentified early version of text: pb/Marc McBride]
- Spaced Out! (Melbourne, Victoria: Macmillan Education, 1997) with Meredith Costain [hb/]
- Cyberskin (Munich, Germany: Heyne Verlag, 1998) [trans of English language manuscript by Erik Simon working as Mike Noris: pb/]
- Cyberskin (Melbourne, Victoria: Hybrid Publishers, 2000) [original English version: pb/Marc McBride]
- The Shadow Factory (Melbourne, Victoria: Macmillan Education, 1998) [hb/]
- Tricking (Harlow, Essex: Addison Wesley Longman, 1998) [hb/]
- Stalking Midnight (Holicong, Pennsylvania: Wildside Press/Cosmos Books, 2001) [coll: pb/]
- Mack Dunstan's Inferno (Lincoln, Nebraska: iUniverse/Writer's Club Press, 2012) [pb/]
nonfiction
- Selling Your Fiction and Poetry Made Easy (Perth, Western Australia: TAFE Publications, 1996) [nonfiction: chap: also 1997 revision: pb/]
- The MUP Encyclopaedia of Australian Science Fiction & Fantasy (Melbourne, Victoria: Melbourne University Press, 1998) [encyclopedia: hb/]
works as editor
- Envisaged Worlds: From the Editor of Void, Australia's First Original Science Fiction Anthology (St Kilda, Victoria: Void Publications, 1978) [anth: hb/Michael Payne]
- Ron Graham Presents Other Worlds (St Kilda, Victoria: Void Publications, 1978) [anth: introduction by Roger Zelazny: illus/Steph Campbell: hb/Michael Payne]
- Alien Worlds (St Kilda, Victoria: Void Publications, 1979) [anth: hb/Francesco Turco]
- Other Worlds (St Kilda, Victoria: Void Publications, 1979) [anth: hb/Michael Payne]
- Distant Worlds (St Kilda, Victoria: Cory and Collins, 1981) [anth: hb/Rowena Cory]
- Sf aus Australien ["Australian SF"] (Munich, Germany: Goldmann, 1982) with Peter Wilfert [anth: pb/]
- Frontier Worlds (St Kilda, Victoria: Cory and Collins, 1983) [anth: hb/Rowena Cory]
- Metaworlds: Best Australian Science Fiction (Melbourne, Victoria: Penguin Australia, 1994) [anth: pb/Grant Gittus]
- Strange Fruit: Tales of the Unexpected (Melbourne, Victoria: Penguin Australia, 1995) [anth: pb/Jay Palmer]
- Dreamweavers (Melbourne, Victoria: Penguin Australia, 1996) [anth: pb/Elizabeth Kyle]
- Fantastic Worlds (Melbourne, Victoria: HarperCollins Australia/Moonstone, 1998) [anth: pb/Marc McBride]
- Tales from the Wasteland: Stories from the 13th Floor (Melbourne, Victoria: Hodder Headline Australia, 2000) [anth: pb/Marc McBride]
links
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