WRITER

John Scalzi

1969 - Today

Photo of John Scalzi

Icon of person John Scalzi

John Michael Scalzi II (born May 10, 1969) is an American science fiction author and former president of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. He is best known for his Old Man's War series, three novels of which have been nominated for the Hugo Award, and for his blog Whatever, where he has written on a number of topics since 1998. He won the Hugo Award for Best Fan Writer in 2008 based predominantly on that blog, which he has also used for several charity drives. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of John Scalzi has received more than 1,339,615 page views. His biography is available in 25 different languages on Wikipedia. John Scalzi is the 6,356th most popular writer (down from 5,689th in 2019), the 11,593rd most popular biography from United States (down from 10,342nd in 2019) and the 850th most popular American Writer.

Memorability Metrics

  • 1.3M

    Page Views (PV)

  • 41.62

    Historical Popularity Index (HPI)

  • 25

    Languages Editions (L)

  • 3.22

    Effective Languages (L*)

  • 3.61

    Coefficient of Variation (CV)

Notable Works

Metatropolis
American Science fiction, American Short stories, Future, The, in literature
" ... METAtropolis is the brainchild of five of science fiction's hottest writers ... who combined their talents to build a new urban future and then wrote their own stories in this collectively-constructed world. The results are individual glimpses of a shared vision ..."--Dust cover flap.
2009
The Sagan Diary
Space warfare, Fiction
2007
Old Man's War
Space warfare, Life on other planets in fiction, Older men
John Scalzi channels Robert Heinlein (including a wry sense of humor) in a novel about a future Earth engaged in an interstellar war against more advanced species. Citizens volunteer for the Colonial Defense Forces after retirement, in exchange for which they have their consciousness transferred into a young body, cloned from their DNA but enhanced. If, against the odds, they survive two years of combat (or 10 years if things aren't going well, which they're not), they get another body and enjoy a fresh start on a colony. This is Scalzi's first novel, and it creates a future he will revisit in subsequent stories. John Perry did two things on his 75th birthday. First he visited his wife’s grave. Then he joined the army. The good news is that humanity finally made it into interstellar space. The bad news is that planets fit to live on are scarce—and alien races willing to fight us for them are common. So: we fight. To defend Earth, and to stake our own claim to planetary real estate. Far from Earth, the war has been going on for decades: brutal, bloody, unyielding. Earth itself is a backwater. The bulk of humanity’s resources are in the hands of the Colonial Defense Force. Everybody knows that when you reach retirement age, you can join the CDF. They don’t want young people; they want people who carry the knowledge and skills of decades of living. You’ll be taken off Earth and never allowed to return. You’ll serve two years at the front. And if you survive, you’ll be given a generous homestead stake of your own, on one of our hard-won colony planets. John Perry is taking that deal. He has only the vaguest idea what to expect. Because the actual fight, light-years from home, is far, far harder than he can imagine—and what he will become is far stranger.
2005
Agent to the Stars
Theatrical agents, Extraterrestrial beings, Fiction
2005
Tor.com
2014
Redshirts
Science Fiction, Space Opera, Satire
Scalzi’s take on the trope of “expendable extras” in action tv shows and movies begins as a satire of Star Trek-like sf programs. But Scalzi takes an original twist that blurs the line between fiction and “the real.” This is a light read with lots of snarky humor that, by lampooning well worn sf tropes make the book enjoyable for both sci-fi fans and non-fans alike.
2012

Among WRITERS

Among writers, John Scalzi ranks 6,356 out of 7,302. Before him are John Skelton, Mark Boal, Chris Hedges, Shin Kyung-sook, Damon Runyon, and James Truslow Adams. After him are P. H. Newby, Charles Lock Eastlake, Nabaneeta Dev Sen, Tom Wilson, Edward Everett Hale, and Kaifi Azmi.

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Contemporaries

Among people born in 1969, John Scalzi ranks 469. Before him are Ron "Bumblefoot" Thal, Roy Hargrove, Francesco Moriero, Colman Domingo, Stephan Eberharter, and Tony Meola. After him are Amy Pietz, Joe Carnahan, Nezha Bidouane, Nathalie Becquart, Mariusz Błaszczak, and Meredith Monroe.

Others Born in 1969

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In United States

Among people born in United States, John Scalzi ranks 11,593 out of 20,380. Before him are Tony Meola (1969), James Truslow Adams (1878), Buddy Jeannette (1917), Loren Shriver (1944), Guinevere Turner (1968), and Christian Pollas (1947). After him are Howie Dorough (1973), Chuck Leavell (1952), Rosa Smith Eigenmann (1858), Peyton Manning (1976), Ezra Taft Benson (1899), and Amy Pietz (1969).

Others born in United States

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Among WRITERS In United States

Among writers born in United States, John Scalzi ranks 850. Before him are Oscar Hijuelos (1951), Ann Coulter (1961), Mark Boal (1973), Chris Hedges (1956), Damon Runyon (1880), and James Truslow Adams (1878). After him are Tom Wilson (1931), Edward Everett Hale (1822), John P. Marquand (1893), S. E. Hinton (1948), Joel Osteen (1963), and Richard Price (1949).

American born Writers

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