Frederik Pohl

Frederik Pohl’s 75-year career touched all aspects of science fiction literature. A giant of the field, he wrote a number of classic works, edited four magazines, and worked as a literary agent to numerous authors.

Pohl began writing in his teens as a member of the Futurians, a New York fan group, and published much of his early work in collaboration with other members of the group. He edited the magazines Astonishing Stories and Super Science Stories from 1939 to 1943 before serving in WWII. After the war he concentrated on his career as a science fiction literary agent, representing many of the field's most celebrated writers.

Returning to writing in the 1950s, he published a number of solo works as well as collaborations. The Space Merchants (1952), written with C.M. Kornbluth, is a prescient tale of a capitalist/consumerist dystopia that has become a classic of the genre. Pohl's novel Man Plus (1976) won a Nebula award, and his celebrated Heechee series began with Gateway (1977), which won the Hugo, Nebula and John W. Campbell Memorial awards. The novel tracks humanity's exploration of the galaxy using artifacts abandoned by aliens who have gone into hiding.

Pohl was president of the Science Fiction Writers of America from 1974 – 1976 and president of World Science Fiction Society from 1980 – 1982. In 1993 he received the Nebula Grand Master Award.

Induction Year: 1998

SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY

The Space Merchants (1952)
Wolfbane (1959)
Man Plus (1976)
Gateway (1977)