Amal El-Mohtar

Amal El-Mohtar
El-Mohtar in 2017
El-Mohtar in 2017
Born (1984-12-13) 13 December 1984 (age 40)
Ottawa, Canada
OccupationWriter
LanguageEnglish
NationalityCanadian
GenreScience fiction, fantasy
Notable workThis Is How You Lose the Time War
Notable awardsHugo Award for Best Short Story (2017)
Hugo Award for Best Novella (2020)
Nebula Award for Best Short Story (2017)
Nebula Award for Best Novella (2020)
Locus Award for Best Short Story (2015, 2017)
Locus Award for Best Novella (2020)

Amal El-Mohtar (born 13 December 1984[1]) is a Canadian poet and writer of speculative fiction.[2] She is the editor of Goblin Fruit and reviews science fiction and fantasy books for the New York Times Book Review and is best known for the 2019 novella This Is How You Lose the Time War, co-written with Max Gladstone, which won the 2019 Nebula Award for Best Novella,[3][4] the 2020 Locus Award for Best Novella, the 2020 Hugo Award for Best Novella,[5] and several other awards.

Writing career

She has published short fiction, poetry, essays and reviews, and has edited the fantastic poetry quarterly magazine Goblin Fruit since 2006.[6]

El-Mohtar began reviewing science fiction and fantasy books for the New York Times Book Review in February 2018.[7] She has worked as a creative writing instructor at Carleton University and the University of Ottawa.[8] In 2018, she also served as a host on Brandon Sanderson's creative writing podcast Writing Excuses for Season 13.[9]

Awards and honors

Selected awards:

Award[a] Category Work Result Ref.
Aurora Award Short fiction This Is How You Lose the Time War (2019)[b] Won [10]
BSFA Award Shorter fiction This Is How You Lose the Time War (2019)[b] Won [11]
Hugo Award Novella This Is How You Lose the Time War (2019)[b] Won [12]
Short story "Seasons of Glass and Iron" (2016) Won [13][8]
Locus Award Novella This Is How You Lose the Time War (2019)[b] Won [12]
Short story "The Truth About Owls" (2014) Won [14]
"Madeleine" (2015) Nominated [12]
"Seasons of Glass and Iron" (2016) Won [15]
Nebula Award Novella This Is How You Lose the Time War (2019)[b] Won [16][17]
Short story "The Green Book" (2010) Nominated [18]
"Madeleine" (2015) Nominated [19]
"Seasons of Glass and Iron" (2016) Won [20]
World Fantasy Award Short fiction "Pockets" (2015) Nominated [21]
"Seasons of Glass and Iron" (2016) Nominated [22]

This Is How You Lose the Time War was also a finalist for the 2019 Shirley Jackson Award in the Novella category,[23] a finalist for the inaugural Ray Bradbury Award for Science Fiction, Fantasy & Speculative Fiction at the 2019 Los Angeles Times Book Prizes,[24] and a finalist for the 2019 Kitschies in the Novel category.[25] It also achieved second place in the 2020 Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award.[26] El-Mohtar announced in 2019 that the book has been optioned for television, with scripts to be written by herself and Gladstone.[27]

El-Mohtar has also received the Rhysling Award for Best Short Poem in 2009, 2011 and 2014.[28]

Amal El-Mohtar, winner of the Best Short Story Hugo, at the Hugo Award Ceremony 2017 at Worldcon in Helsinki

Personal life

El-Mohtar was born in Ottawa, Ontario to a family of Lebanese descent. She grew up in Ottawa with the exception of two years spent in Lebanon beginning when she was six years old.[1][29]

She is married[30] and lives in Ottawa.[31] She is bisexual.[32]

Selected works

El-Mohtar's full bibliography includes an extensive list of short stories, poems, essays, and reviews.[33] Her most notable works include a short story collection and novella.

  • The Honey Month, collected short fiction, Papaveria Press 2010; ISBN 978-1907881008
  • This Is How You Lose the Time War (with Max Gladstone), novella, 2019; ISBN 9781534431003
  • The River Has Roots, novel, 2025; ISBN 9781250341082

Notes

  1. ^ Awards are listed in alphabetical order.
  2. ^ a b c d e With her co-author Max Gladstone.

References

  1. ^ a b "Amal El-Mohtar & Max Gladstone: Letter Space". Locus. 10 February 2020. Retrieved 21 July 2020.
  2. ^ McDermott, J. M. (November 2011). "Nebula Awards Interview: Amal El-Mohtar". Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  3. ^ 2019 Nebula Award Finalists Announced Archived 2020-02-20 at the Wayback Machine, at Science Fiction Writers of America, published February 20, 2020; retrieved February 20, 2020
  4. ^ Liptak, Andrew (30 May 2020). "Announcing the 2019 Nebula Awards Winners!". Tor.com. Archived from the original on 20 January 2021. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  5. ^ 2020 Hugo Awards Announced Archived 2020-08-17 at the Wayback Machine, at The Hugo Awards; retrieved August 1, 2020
  6. ^ El-Mohtar, Amal (25 October 2013). "Interview: Amal El-Mohtar". Amazing Stories (Interview). Interviewed by Diane Severson Mori. Retrieved 20 October 2015.
  7. ^ "Amal El-Mohtar Replaces N.K. Jemisin as The New York Times Book Review's Otherworldly Columnist". Tor.com. 29 January 2018. Retrieved 29 January 2018.
  8. ^ a b Blackmore, Olivia (15 August 2017). "Ottawa writer's 'fairy-tale mashup' wins prestigious Hugo Award for science-fiction". Ottawa Citizen. Retrieved 5 February 2018.
  9. ^ Writing Excuses podcast hosts https://writingexcuses.com/about-2/
  10. ^ The Canadian Science Fiction and Fantasy Association (CSFFA). "2020 Aurora Awards". Retrieved 8 December 2023.
  11. ^ editors, Vector (19 May 2020). "2019 BSFA Award winners". Retrieved 21 November 2024. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  12. ^ a b c "Amal El-Mohtar Awards". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Retrieved 13 August 2021.
  13. ^ "2017 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. 31 December 2016. Retrieved 11 August 2017.
  14. ^ "2015 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. 27 June 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  15. ^ "2015 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. 27 June 2017. Retrieved 27 June 2017.
  16. ^ "2019 Nebula Award Finalists Announced". The Nebula Awards®. Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. 20 February 2020. Retrieved 22 February 2020.
  17. ^ Liptak, Andrew (30 May 2020). "Announcing the 2019 Nebula Awards Winners!". Tor.com. Retrieved 31 May 2020.
  18. ^ "SFWA announces the 2010 Nebula Award Nominees". 22 February 2011. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  19. ^ "Nebula Awards". SFWA. 25 November 2009. Retrieved 18 June 2016.
  20. ^ "Announcing the 2016 Nebula Awards Winners". Tor.com. 21 May 2017. Retrieved 21 May 2017.
  21. ^ "World Fantasy Awards 2016". Science Fiction Awards Database. Locus Science Fiction Foundation. Retrieved 15 July 2016.
  22. ^ "Nominees". World Fantasy Convention. Retrieved 7 September 2017.
  23. ^ "Nominees Announced for the 2019 Shirley Jackson Awards". Archived from the original on 10 May 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2022.
  24. ^ "2019 Book Prize Winners & Finalists". Los Angeles Times. Archived from the original on 17 July 2020. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  25. ^ "2019 Kitschies Shortlists". Locus. 9 March 2020. Archived from the original on 21 August 2021. Retrieved 9 June 2020.
  26. ^ "Suzanne Palmer Wins the 2020 Theodore Sturgeon Award". 21 October 2020. Archived from the original on 16 October 2022. Retrieved 12 October 2022.
  27. ^ This is How You Lose the Time War Archived 2021-01-24 at the Wayback Machine, by Cheryl Morgan, at Cheryl-Morgan.com; retrieved October 27, 2019
  28. ^ "SFPA Rhysling Award Archive". Archived from the original on 29 August 2015. Retrieved 28 June 2015.
  29. ^ "Amal El-Mohtar, Pocket Interview No. 3". STORYOLOGICAL.
  30. ^ "Landing Myself a Husband". Amal El-Mohtar. Archived from the original on 16 August 2016. Retrieved 5 November 2022.
  31. ^ "Worldcon 2019 Schedule". Amal El-Mohtar. Archived from the original on 6 March 2021. Retrieved 29 January 2021.
  32. ^ El-Mohtar, Amal ) [@tithenai] (10 June 2020). "I am here to tell you that I, a bisexual cis woman in Pride Month 2020, am harmed by JKR's terrible essay..." (Tweet). Retrieved 21 November 2024 – via Twitter.
  33. ^ Full bibliography https://amalelmohtar.com/bibliography/
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