Catherynne M. Valente

1 universe Last reviewed 2026-08-18

Catherynne M. Valente was born on May 5, 1979, in Seattle, Washington. She attended UC San Diego and the University of Edinburgh, and is queer and has spoken publicly, including in a 2025 interview, about having ADHD. An American fiction writer, poet, and literary critic specializing in speculative fiction, Valente coined the term "mythpunk" in 2006 to describe a mode of challenging, folklore-based fantasy that blends postmodernist technique with mythic material. She is a regular panelist on the podcast SF Squeecast and has toured performing readings alongside singer-songwriter S. J. Tucker, incorporating dancers and aerial artists into live shows. Her acclaimed novels include the two-volume Orphan's Tales, The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making, Palimpsest, Deathless, Space Opera, and Six-Gun Snow White. She pioneered crowdfunded publishing in the genre: her Fairyland novel became the first online, crowdfunded book to win a major literary award. Her extensive honors include the James Tiptree Jr. Award (2006), the Andre Norton Award (2009), the Mythopoeic Award (2008), the Lambda Literary Award (2010), and multiple Locus Awards, alongside numerous Hugo, Nebula, and World Fantasy Award nominations across her prolific career.

Universe(s)

Books

• The Girl Who Circumnavigated Fairyland in a Ship of Her Own Making (2011) · Fairyland Core Canon
• The Girl Who Ruled Fairyland -- For a Little While (2011) · Fairyland Expanded Canon
• The Girl Who Fell Beneath Fairyland and Led the Revels There (2012) · Fairyland Core Canon
• The Girl Who Soared Over Fairyland and Cut the Moon in Two (2013) · Fairyland Core Canon
• The Boy Who Lost Fairyland (2015) · Fairyland Core Canon
• The Girl Who Raced Fairyland All the Way Home (2016) · Fairyland Core Canon

Aggregate across all universes

• Total Core Canon books across all universes: 5 books
• Award recognitions across all universes: 2 (1 won, 1 finalist mention)

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