Not very it turns out. Below are the fifty science fiction and fantasy writers I’ve bought the most books of, according to Librarything. Thirtyeight male, twelve female writers, one writer of colour. Part of that discrepancy is of course the inertia of any collection: it takes time and effort to get new writers into the top fifty. But I think part of it is due to the fact that it has been easier for white, male writers to keep their career going than it has been for women/writers of colour. It hasn’t been that long since there were only two first grade Black writers in science fiction: Butler and Delany. I like to think that if I look at this list again in one or two years time, it will be more diverse.
- Terry Pratchett (55)
- Poul Anderson (45)
- Robert A. Heinlein (37)
- C. J. Cherryh (34)
- Andre Norton (34)
- Michael Moorcock (33)
- Jack Vance (33)
- Robert Silverberg (30)
- Frederik Pohl (24)
- Philip K. Dick (23)
- Charlie Stross (23)
- Glen Cook (21)
- Roger Zelazny (20)
- Steven Brust (19)
- Samuel R. Delany (19)
- Isaac Asimov (18)
- Lois McMaster Bujold (18)
- Paul J. McAuley (17)
- Tanya Huff (16)
- Keith Laumer (16)
- Philip Jose Farmer (15)
- Ursula K. Le Guin (15)
- Larry Niven (15)
- Walter Jon Williams (15)
- Iain M. Banks (14)
- John Barnes (14)
- Elizabeth Bear (14)
- Ken MacLeod (14)
- Brian W. Aldiss (13)
- Avram Davidson (13)
- Diane Duane (13)
- Christopher Priest (13)
- Neal Asher (12)
- Leigh Brackett (12)
- Mary Gentle (12)
- Harry Harrison (12)
- E. E. ‘Doc’ Smith (12)
- Bruce Sterling (12)
- Jo Walton (12)
- David Weber (12)
- James Blish (11)
- Lloyd Biggle Jr. (10)
- Steven Erikson (10)
- M. John Harrison (10)
- Gwyneth Jones (10)
- Fritz Leiber (10)
- China Mieville (10)
- Alastair Reynolds (10)
- Kate Wilhelm (10)
- John Wyndham (10)
No Comments