| Orson Scott Card |
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Card's launch in the publishing industry was with Science Fiction ('' Hot Sleep '' and '' Capitol '') and later Fantasy ('' Hart's Hope ''). He remains best known for the seminal '' Ender's Game '', which has been among the most popular SF novels ever since its publication in 1985 . ''Ender's Game'' and its sequel '' Speaker For The Dead '' were awarded both the Hugo Award and the Nebula Award , making Card the only author ( As Of 2005 ) ever to win both of SF's top prizes in consecutive years for a novel and its sequel. Card continued the series with ''Xenocide'', ''Children of the Mind'', ''Ender's Shadow'', ''Shadow of the Hegemon'', ''Shadow Puppets'', and the 2005 release of ''Shadow of the Giant''. Card has also announced a 'Christmas in Battle School' book, a book that connects the "Shadow" series and "Speaker" series together, and a book that takes place after Shadow of the Giant and before Card's short story " Investment Counselor ". Furthermore, Card recently announced that '' Ender's Game '' will soon be made into a movie (''see Ender's Game (film) ''). He has since branched out into contemporary fiction, such as '''', the comic book '' Ultimate Iron Man '' for Marvel Comics ' Ultimate Marvel Universe series, and '' Robota '', a collaboration with '' Star Wars '' artist Doug Chiang . His writing is dominated by detailed Characterization and moral issues. As Card says, "We care about moral issues, nobility, decency, happiness, goodness—the issues that matter in the real world, but which can only be addressed, in their purity, in fiction." Some of his novels, for example '' Stone Tables '', about the life of the Biblical prophet Moses ; his ''Women of Genesis'' series; '' The Folk Of The Fringe '' stories; and '' Saints '', about Latter-day Saint pioneers, have explicit religious themes. In his other writings, the influence of his Mormon beliefs is less obvious; Card's ''Homecoming'' and ''Alvin Maker'' sagas are partly retellings of the Book Of Mormon and the life of LDS founder Joseph Smith, Jr. In addition to his novels and short stories, Card has had an active career as a Nonfiction writer. He helped create the scripts for the "Dramatized Church History" series radio play type productions telling the story of the LDS church from its inception to the mid 1980s. During the 1980 s he wrote many technical articles and columns, primarily for '' Compute!'s Gazette '' and '' Ahoy! '', two magazines covering Commodore Home Computer s. EARLY LIFE, FAMILY, AND CAREER Card is descended from (who adapted his short story " A Sepulchre Of Songs " to the stage in '' Posing As People ''), Charlie Ben (deceased), Zina Margaret, and Erin Louisa (deceased). The children are named for the authors Chaucer , Brontë and Dickinson , Dickens , Mitchell , and Alcott . In 2005 , Card accepted a permanent appointment as professor at Southern Virginia University in Buena Vista, Virginia , a small liberal arts college with a Mormon atmosphere. (It is run by a group of LDS people, but unlike the BYU schools, is not owned by The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.) Card has justified this action by citing his frustration with pervasive and dismal teaching methodology for creative writing. Card has worked closely with colleagues to develop new and effective ways to educate aspiring writers and has published two books on the subject. He was eager for the opportunity to apply these techniques in a university environment—his assorted workshops did not allow the follow-through he desired. Card splits his time evenly between writing and teaching. Card has stated that one of the most important elements of writing is gauging reader interest. This can be achieved by having someone be a specially "trained reader" who makes a note of every time attention flags. This allows him to spot weak sections and shore them up. But he cautions that this "training" ruins the ability of this person to just go with the flow and enjoy good books, without constantly making mental notes of places where interest lags. PERSONAL VIEWS Card is also active as a critic, political writer and speaker. Shortly after the September 11, 2001 Attacks Card began to write a weekly "War Watch" (renamed to "World Watch" and then to "Civilization Watch") column for the Greensboro Rhino Times , as well as an "Uncle Orson Reviews Everything" column, both of which are archived on Card's websites. A self-described Moynihan , Tony Blair , Zell Miller Democrat , Card is a vocal supporter of George W. Bush , the War On Terror , the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq , the USA PATRIOT Act , and U.S. support of Israel . Card argues that a continuing strain of tolerating Racism within the Republican Party in the South morally obligates him to be a Democrat. Card also publicly endorses children of Illegal Immigrants receiving in-state college tuition rates and is opposing Tax Cuts , unfettered Deregulation and Same-sex Marriage . He has written columns condemning liberals as being what's wrong with America, and praises Zell Miller for trying to save the Democratic Party. At one point, he has stated that he's a "Tony Blair" Democrat, saying he has to look outside the U.S. for someone representative for his views now that Moynihan has died and the Democrats oppose Bush. Possibly due, in part, to his Mormon upbringing, he is opposed to pre-marital sex (castigating '' Smallville '' for interjecting sensuality into a teen-oriented show) and Same-sex Marriage (believing Homosexual acts to be a Sin ). He has also been a staunch defender of Fox News , stating that he likes his news to share an "American" viewpoint. During the 2004 Election Card wrote many articles supporting the Bush/ Cheney ticket and lambasting his own state's senator, John Edwards , as being absurd, insincere, and an opportunistic shill. Prior to the 2004 presidential race, Card had written that his state needed to regain control from people like Edwards and advocated running a strong primary opponent against Edwards should he run for reelection to the Senate. {Link without Title} Card is pro- Gun Control /anti- NRA , and is highly critical of Free-market Capitalism . He has cited these as the prime reasons why he has not changed his voter registration from Democrat to Republican. Although he supports government-funded research into Alternative Energy sources and the phasing out of Fossil Fuel use, Card has also frequently criticized precipitous action on Global Warming , and has voiced the suggestion that scientific evidence against global warming is suppressed because global warming has become an academic orthodoxy that discourages opposing evidence. His short story "Angles" also features scientists fearing to pursue research because it would run counter to scientific dogma. Similarly, he has voiced distrust of Darwinism as dogma in opposition to Intelligent Design (which he also distrusts, for entirely different reasons). While criticizing scientists for (allegedly) purporting to explain "completely how Evolution works," Card also acknowledged that "real science does not -- and never can -- prove or even support" Intelligent Design. {Link without Title} {Link without Title} OTHER In his short story "The Originist" (1989) he describes a research system that has a number of parallels with Wikipedia . Card's description in ''Ender's Game'' (1985) of two precocious children achieving political prominence through pseudonymous postings on the "Nets" is an early and uncannily accurate prediction of the Internet and the popularity of Blogs . Card has made reference to having lost 95 pounds without dieting (link) , and nevertheless recently refers to his "over-abundant belly" (link) . Card's views on homosexuality, as conveyed in some of his non-fiction writing from more recently in his career, have generated a certain amount of Controversy in the community of Science Fiction Fandom . As a member of the LDS Church , Card believes that homosexuality is a violation of the law of Chastity and that active homosexuals, as well as all others who violate this law, must repent. Card is opposed to gay marriage. This dichotomy of "hate the sin" (homosexuality) and "love the sinner" (people he considers goodhearted but misguided who commit what he considers the sin of homosexuality) has confused many as to how a writer who sometimes portray gays positively in his fiction can be so virulently opposed to the gay-rights movement in his nonfiction writing. He believes it is not Evil to be attracted to members of one's own Gender , but that it is wrong to act on that attraction. Card has also shown support for the idea that at least some homosexuals can be fulfilled by a Heterosexual lifestyle in his ''Homecoming'' series, in which a gay man living within a tiny community of space colonists chooses to marry a woman and have a child in order to "rejoin the web of life" and perpetuate the human race in the new world. Card has made many comments about homosexuality that are viewed as Homophobic by the GLBT community and those who support gay rights: “The argument by the hypocrites of homosexuality that homosexual tendencies are should remain on the books" and "Those who flagrantly violate society's regulation of sexual behavior cannot be permitted to remain as acceptable, equal citizens within that society" (ibid). These quotes were taken from an essay he wrote in ''Sunstone'', a journal read by other members of the LDS church. There are some who maintain that the comments refer solely to Latter-day Saints who engage in a homosexual lifestyle, despite the church's policy that such acts are sinful and to be avoided; however, others point out that he talks about "laws" and mentions in the same essay "This applies also to the polity, the citizens at large", a comment that is clearly not confined to members of the LDS church. SELECTED BIBLIOGRAPHY Pre-''Ender's Game'' works
The Ender Saga
The Shadow series
The Tales Of Alvin Maker
The Homecoming Saga
The "Women of Genesis" series
Other post-''Ender's Game'' works
Plays
Non-fiction works
Books on writing Columns
Other projects
SEE ALSO
EXTERNAL LINKS
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