newstalk

My people.

A few years ago, I was introduced to the concept of “my people”–authors and thinkers whom I can really jam with (thanks, Eleanor!). At the time, I didn’t really know who my people were, but ever since, I’ve been building up a list. Currently, my list includes the following, in no particular order:

Douglas Coupland — An author with a true Pacific Northwest mentality and his finger on the pulse of my generation.
Orson Scott Card — The only talented mainstream contemporary sf author I’ve ever read who takes issues of faith seriously. (If you know of another, please let me know.)
C.S. Lewis — Does he need introduction? An erudite Christian scholar who also just happened to write the Space Trilogy, the best space fantasy I’ve ever read. His apologetics are inspiring, too.
J.R.R. Tolkien — The original world-builder. This man single-handedly invented the modern fantasy novel, and the genre’s lived under his shadow ever since.
Sir Philip Sidney — His theory of literature is laughed at in the modern academy, but I think it’s crucial to a Christian author: good literature inspires us to be virtuous.
Chris Crawford — The old man of computer game design, and a recent addition to the list. He’s done some ground-breaking work in computer-based storytelling.
Dan Simmons — Genre-hopping giant, author of the Hyperion saga and other works of deeply literary sf.
John C. Wright — A relatively new sf author, but wow. If my first novel can be even half as good as his first novel (and subsequent trilogy), then I’ll consider myself lucky.