Seanan McGuire
Introduction '''Seanan McGuire''' (pronounced SHAWN-in; born January 5, 1978, in Martinez, California) is an American author and filker. McGuire is known for her urban fantasy novels. She uses the pseudonym '''Mira Grant''' to write science fiction/horror and the pseudonym '''A. Deborah Baker''' to write the "Up-and-Under" children's portal fantasy series.In 2010, she was awarded the John W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer by the World Science Fiction Convention. Her 2016 novella ''Every Heart a Doorway'' received a Nebula Award, Hugo Award, Locus Award, and Alex Award.In 2013, McGuire received a record five Hugo nominations in total, two for works as Grant and three under her own name.
Biography McGuire was born in California, to parents who were separated for most of her childhood. She traveled with her father, a carnival worker of Romani origin, during the summer, an experience that she described as "Bradbury-esque running wild and unfettered through farmers' fields, building Ferris wheels and living on funnel cake." This experience had a strong influence on her later work, particularly ''InCryptid'': several of the stories in the series (particularly ''Magic for Nothing, Married in Green'' and ''The Flower of Arizona)'' are set in or feature carnivals, and the companion ''Ghost Roads'' series tells the story of a highway ghost. She has at least two brothers on her father's side of the family.Her mother, Micki McGuire, had "primary custody, two other children, no money, and an abusive husband who targeted her", and her early childhood was difficult.McGuire, who attended University of California, Berkeley, currently lives in Washington State.She has described her interests as including "swamps, long walks, long walks ''in'' swamps, things that live in swamps, horror movies, strange noises, musical theater, reality TV, comic books, finding pennies on the street, and venomous reptiles. "McGuire frequently posts online about roleplaying games, ''My Little Pony'', and caring for her menagerie of cats. Before becoming a full-time writer, she worked at a reptile rescue organization.She identifies as pansexual, bisexual and demisexual, and writes numerous queer characters into her work.She has autism, which she was diagnosed with in 2020, attention deficit hyperactivity disorder and obsessive–compulsive disorder, diagnosed when she was nine.
Professional career McGuire has published filk music, poetry, short fiction, essays, and novels. Most follow speculative fiction themes of fantasy, science fiction, and horror.Her earliest publication was a contribution to the June 2002 poetry anthology ''Speculon.'' She produced the musical album ''Pretty Little Dead Girl'' in 2006 and published her first short story in ''The Edge of Propinquity'' in 2008. ''Rosemary and Rue'' was her first published novel, released in 2009.She published ''Feed'' under the pseudonym Mira Grant in 2010, thus establishing herself as an urban fantasy writer and her Grant persona as a horror/science fiction writer.Her longest-running series is the October Daye books, which began in 2009 with ''Rosemary and Rue.'' Sixteen books are currently available and the next installment is planned for September 2023.In 2018, McGuire began writing for Marvel Comics. She is the author of the Spider-Gwen series and has contributed to several other franchises.
Notable works === Series ===* October Daye* InCryptid* Wayward Children* Alchemical Journeys* Ghost Roads* Newsflesh (as Mira Grant)* Parisitology (as Mira Grant)* Up-and-Under (as A. Deborah Baker)=== Franchise tie-ins ===* ''Star Wars: Canto Bight'' anthology (contributor, as Mira Grant)* Marvel's Spider-Gwen comics* ''Deadlands: Boneyard''* ''Overwatch: Declassified''* Magic: The Gathering short stories=== Short fiction ===McGuire's short fiction has been published in Apex Magazine, Nightmare Magazine, Lightspeed Magazine, and others. Her works appear in anthologies edited by Charlaine Harris, Jim Butcher, and John Joseph Adams.She has self-published hundreds of short stories. From 2008 to 2017, she posted installments of the Velveteen series to LiveJournal with the support of fan sponsorships. Tie-ins to her October Daye and InCryptid series are available for free on her website. In 2016, she launched a Patreon account to post monthly short stories for her subscribers.
Anticipated releases * ''Magic: Soul and Stone'' (July 11, 2023)* October Daye #17: ''Sleep No More'' (September 2023)* October Daye #18: ''The Innocent Sleep'' (October 2023)* ''Overwatch: Declassified. Blizzard Entertainment'' (October 10, 2023)
Awards and nominations === Literary awards ===McGuire holds the record for most Hugo Award nominations in a single year, with five nominations in 2013.McGuire was the first author to win the American Library Association's Alex Awards for two consecutive years. She has been nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Series every year since its inception in 2017.In 2010, ''Feed'' was recognized as #74 out of the 100 top thriller novels of all time by NPR. It was also recognized as a Publishers Weekly Best Books of 2010.In 2012, McGuire (as Mira Grant) was inducted in to the Darrell Awards Hall of Fame for the best American Mid-South regional speculative fiction.+YearAwardWorkResultRef2010John W. Campbell Award for Best New WriterN/A2011Hugo Award for Best Novel''Feed'' (as Mira Grant)2012Hugo Award for Best Novel''Deadline'' (as Mira Grant)Hugo Award for Best Novella"Countdown" (as Mira Grant)Hugo Award for Best Related Work''Wicked Girls''Hugo Award for Best FancastSF Squeecast2013Hugo Award for Best FancastSF SqueecastHugo Award for Best Novel''Blackout (as Mira Grant)''Hugo Award for Best Novella"San Diego 2014: The Last Stand of the California Browncoats" (as Mira Grant)Hugo Award for Best Novelette"In Sea-Salt Tears"Hugo Award for Best Novelette"Rat-Catcher"2014Hugo Award for Best Novel''Parasite'' (as Mira Grant)2016Nebula Award for Best Novella''Every Heart a Doorway''2017World Fantasy Award for Best Novella''Every Heart a Doorway''Alex Awards''Every Heart a Doorway''Hugo Award for Best Novella''Every Heart a Doorway''Locus Award for Best Novella''Every Heart a Doorway''Hugo Award for Best Series''October Daye''2018Alex Awards''Down Among the Sticks and Bones''Hugo Award for Best Novella''Down Among the Sticks and Bones''Hugo Award for Best Series''InCryptid''2019World Fantasy Award for Best Novella''Beneath the Sugar Sky''Hugo Award for Best Novella''Beneath the Sugar Sky''Hugo Award for Best Series''October Daye''2020Hugo Award for Best Series''InCryptid''Hugo Award for Best Novella''In an Absent Dream''Hugo Award for Best Novel''Middlegame''Locus Award for Best Fantasy Novel''Middlegame''Alex Awards''Middlegame''2021Hugo Award for Best Series''October Daye''Hugo Award for Best Graphic Story''Ghost-Spider Vol. 1: Dog Days Are Over''Hugo Award for Best Novella''Come Tumbling Down''2022Hugo Award for Best Series''Wayward Children''Hugo Award for Best Short Story"Tangles" (Magic: The Gathering)Hugo Award for Best Fanzine''Small Gods''Hugo Award for Best Novella''Across the Green Grass Fields''2023Hugo Award for Best Series''October Daye''Hugo Award for Best Novella''Where the Drowned Girls Go''=== Filk awards ===Pegasus Award presented by the Ohio Valley Filk Festival.YearAwardWorkResult2005Best Writer/ ComposerN/A2006Best Writer/ ComposerN/A2006Best Torch Song"Maybe It's Crazy"2007Best PerformerN/A2008Best Writer/ ComposerN/A2008Best Tragedy Song"The Black Death"2010Best Mad Science Song"What a Woman's For"2011Best Filk Song"Wicked Girls"2011Most Badass Song"Evil Laugh"2012Best Filk Song"My Story Is Not Done"2015Best Filk Song"My Story Is Not Done"2018Best Horror Song"Dear Gina"2021Best Mad Science Song"Maybe it's Crazy"2021Best Cheery-Ose Song"Dear Seanan" (with Erin Bellavia and Merav Hoffman)
References
External links *  SeananMcGuire.com* * *  Mira Grant at LC Authorities, with 4 records