Naomi Novik

Naomi Novik
Robert Snyder · Public domain · source
Name	Naomi Novik
Birth date	1973
Birth place	New York City, New York, United States
Occupation	Novelist
Nationality	American
Notable works	Uprooted; Temeraire series; Spinning Silver

Naomi Novik is an American novelist known for fantasy fiction that blends historical settings with mythic elements and speculative premises. Her work includes the Napoleonic-era alternate history Temeraire series, the standalone novels Uprooted and Spinning Silver, and short fiction appearing in outlets associated with Tor Books and Orbit Books. Novik's writing has engaged with subjects ranging from the Napoleonic Wars to Eastern European folklore and has been recognized by awards such as the Hugo Award and the Locus Award.

Early life and education

Novik was born in New York City to parents of Polish and Ukrainian descent and spent portions of her childhood in New Jersey and the United Kingdom. She attended Harvard University, where she studied computer science and earned a reputation among peers for interest in anime and role-playing games; she later moved to New York City and worked in the technology sector, including positions at AOL and in software development for projects tied to Microsoft platforms. Influences during her formative years included exposure to Witchcraft and Wizardry-related fan communities, J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, Patricia A. McKillip, and the translated myth cycles of Poland and Russia.

Career

Novik began her professional writing career in the mid-2000s with the publication of the Temeraire novels, which reimagined the Napoleonic Wars with an aerial corps of dragons under the command structures of entities like the Royal Navy and the British Army. Her debut, His Majesty's Dragon, was serialized online and later published by Del Rey Books, drawing attention from reviewers at outlets such as The New York Times and Locus Magazine. She has worked with publishers including Del Rey, Macmillan Publishers, and Orbit Books, and participated in collaborations and anthologies alongside authors like George R. R. Martin, Kelly Link, and Ursula K. Le Guin-era scholarship. Novik’s engagement with fandom, conventions such as Worldcon and World Fantasy Convention, and organizations like the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America has influenced her public profile and advocacy within speculative fiction communities.

Works

Novik's bibliography includes the ten-volume Temeraire sequence, beginning with His Majesty's Dragon, through entries such as Throne of Jade and concluding with Crucible of Gold, which place characters in theaters of conflict tied to historical campaigns like the Peninsular War and the Battle of Trafalgar. Her standalone novels include Uprooted, inspired by Polish folklore and fairy tale cycles akin to those collected by Péter Bálint-era scholars, and Spinning Silver, a reworking of the Rumpelstiltskin motif set against motifs from Eastern Europe and the Kievan Rus' cultural sphere. Novik has also written short stories for periodicals and anthologies alongside editors and writers associated with Tor.com and Lightspeed Magazine, and has produced non-fiction commentary for venues connected to Locus Online and trade discussions at BookExpo America.

Themes and influences

Novik frequently explores the interaction between historical events—such as the Napoleonic Wars and 19th-century geopolitics—and fantastical elements like sympathetic dragons and enchanted contracts, drawing on sources including Polish and Lithuanian folklore, the fairy tale scholarship of Jack Zipes, and military history studies from figures like David Chandler and Andrew Roberts. Her protagonists often navigate tensions between duty to institutions such as the Royal Navy and personal loyalties reminiscent of narratives in works by Jane Austen, Mary Shelley, and Gustave Flaubert-era realism. Themes of identity, translation of oral tradition to written narrative, and reworking of folktale archetypes connect her work to scholarly traditions represented by Vladimir Propp, Marina Warner, and contemporary fantasy peers such as Patricia A. McKillip, N. K. Jemisin, and Susanna Clarke.

Awards and recognition

Novik's novels have received multiple nominations and awards, including wins and nominations from the Hugo Award, the Nebula Award, the Locus Award, the Mythopoeic Award, and the World Fantasy Award. Uprooted won the Nebula Award for Best Novel and the Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel and was shortlisted for the Hugo Award; Spinning Silver won the Locus Award and was a finalist for the Nebula Award and the World Fantasy Award. The Temeraire series received critical recognition from outlets such as Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, and the Guardian, and has been optioned and discussed in adaptation contexts with production companies tied to adaptations of speculative fiction like those that produced works by Peter Jackson and Guillermo del Toro.

Personal life

Novik lives in the United States and has been involved in community activities tied to literary festivals such as NECon and Readercon, panels at San Diego Comic-Con and Worldcon, and charity initiatives supported by organizations like LibriVox and Room to Read. She married and has family connections that inform her engagement with Polish and Eastern European cultural heritage, and she continues to participate in conversations about authors’ rights within organizations like the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America and at events sponsored by major publishers, booksellers, and academic institutions.

Category:American novelists Category:Fantasy writers