John W. Campbell is best know as an editor/publisher of science fiction. However, he was also a writer as well. His story Who goes there? was the basis of the 1951 film The Thing from Another Planet, and the 1982 remake, The Thing. Campbell was one of the first writers that tried to make the science in science fiction seem plausible rather than creating an action/adventure story set in some exotic location. He understood that with science fiction fans the background word pictures were more important than the characterization as in other genres. John Wood Campbell was a great man, and the world of science fiction owes him a great debt.
Issac Asimov began his career at the tender age of eighteen when he wrote Cosmic Corkscrew. He admitted it was “not very good” in his compilation; The Early Asimov. However, being young, naive, and confident, Asimov hand delivered the manuscript to John Campbell. Two days later it was rejected. Campbell later admitted, despite the amateurish nature of the work, he saw something in the boy and encouraged him to continue his pursuit as an author. By the fifties Issac was a prolific and extreamly talented scribe with several stories that became classics. Asimov eventually became one of the most successful science fiction writers of all time.
William Tenn was the pen name of Phil Klass. He is often called the humorist of science fiction. His Child’s Play was, and is a classic of sardonic humor.
The Liberation of Earth, an indictment of political interference in underdeveloped regions, was often read allowed during anti-war protest in the sixties.
William Tenn had a unique and eloquent style that is sorely lacking in today’s writers. Others have tried to copy Tenn’s style. However, there was only one Tenn.
Murray Leinster (William Fitzgerald Jenkins) had an uncanny ability to predict the future. In A Logic Named Joe, Leinster describes what is undoubtedly the internet in the form we know it today. He wrote this story in 1946! Being older than most of the golden age writers Leinster started his career before the time of Campbell and was one of the very few to survive the change that occurred in the late thirties. However, Murray continued to produce quality work until his death. He wrote scripts for The Time Tunnel and Land of the Giants TV series. William Fitzgerald Jenkins was an original and critical thinker like few others.
Theodore Sturgeon was born Edward Hamilton Waldo. He was another of those great writers in John Campbell’s stable. Always willing to tackle controversial topics like sex, racism, and intolerance of any kind, Sturgeon was respected by his peers and the public alike for his courage. He wrote scripts for the original Star Trek series and several other TV shows. More than Human is probably one of his better know novels.
Robert Heinlein is another of the “Big Three” of the golden age. In a career that lasted decades Heinlein wrote volumes of great stuff. He was prolific like Asimov, yet cutting edge controversial like Sturgeon. Most of his peers considered him as above them in talent. Stranger in a Strange Land and Starship Troopers are probably two of his most popular novels. Heinlein lived a long life and the SciFi world is a better place for it. His contributions are innumerable.
Arthur C. Clark is the last of the “Big Three”. Best known for his Space Odyssey series, Clark was a master of the first order. He extrapolated on the possible and made it probable. When reading his work you seem to feel a part of the action. That is the mission of any writer, it’s just that Clark did it better than most. 3001: The Final Odyssey was the last in the series of Odyssey novels and is well worth the read. I will personally miss his insight.
Frederik Pohl began his career working with the likes of Asimov and Campbell. He has been an editor, author and all around contributor to the science fiction world. Now in his ninth decade, Pohl has accomplished more than most. As of this writing he is still going strong with a novel (All the Lives He Led) published in 2011 to several articles, and Fred’s Blog is also interesting. Keep it up Fred!
Ray Bradbury was another of those great writers that seemed to have an endless reserve of story ideas. From Fahrenheit 451 to The Martian Chronicles, Bradbury never lost his passion for the science fiction genre. Like most of his peers Ray was a versatile artist and thinker. If you want to know more about this great man, check out his website Ray’s Website
Frank Herbert is best known for Dune and the series of followup novels that he pinned over the decades. He was also a very philosophical man as can be seen in this TV interview given in the eighties, shortly before his death. Herbert Interview Herbert wrote in a style of his own that seemed to contain a great deal of metaphor reflecting his spiritual ideas. Over the years many have tried to copy Herbert. However, like so many of these great writers, there was only one.
Alfred Bester is not as well known as most of the golden age writers. However, in every poll I have read concerning the best science fiction writers, Bester is near, if not at the top of the list. The Demolished Man consistently ranks as the best SciFi novel of all time. He was one of the first to develop his characters in intricate detail and not concentrate solely on the background.
Jerome Bixby was an editor and writer of considerable note during the golden age. However, he is best known for some of the best scripts from the original Star Trek series. He is also the author of one of the best liked Twilight Zone scripts: It’s a Good Life. I will always remember the first time is saw It’s a Good Life, frankly, it scared the crap out of me. Jerome Bixby was an original, and all of his stuff deserves a reading.
Evelyn E. Smith was a fantastic writer and innovative in her style. The Perfect Planet was her first published novel. It is centered on a planet where everyone is obsessed with their physical appearance while neglecting everything else. Wonder if Entertainment Tonight would go over there.
She wrote several short stories that were published in the top SciFi magazines in the 50’s and early 60’s
Of course this list is incomplete. There are dozens more that deserve recognition as contributors to the genre. If you know of any others that I missed feel free to mention them.
Gnostic Science Fiction 