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{{Short description|American writer (born 1968)}}
{{Pp-semi|small=yes}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2020}}
{{infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
| image         = File:Jeff_VanderMeer.jpg
| imagesize     = 
| alt           = 
| caption       = 
| pseudonym     = 
| birth_name    = 
| birth_date    = {{Birth-date and age|July 7, 1968}}
| birth_place   = [[Bellefonte, Pennsylvania]], U.S.
| death_date    =
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| occupation    = {{flatlist|
* Writer
* author
* editor
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}}
| language      = 
| education     =
| alma_mater    =
| period        = 
| genre         = [[Speculative fiction]]<br/>[[Fantasy literature|Fantasy]]<br />[[Metafiction]]<br />[[Horror fiction|Horror]]<br />Science fiction<br/>[[Weird fiction]]
| subject       = 
| movement      = [[New Weird]]
| notableworks  = 
| spouse        = [[Ann VanderMeer]]
| partner(<span class="ltr">s</span>)    =
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| awards        = [[Nebula Award for Best Novel]], [[Shirley Jackson Award]], [[World Fantasy Award]]
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'''Jeff VanderMeer''' (born July 7, 1968<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Jeff_VanderMeer |title=Summary Bibliography: Jeff VanderMeer |website=Internet Speculative Fiction Database |access-date=September 6, 2019 |archive-date=February 1, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180201192950/http://www.isfdb.org/cgi-bin/ea.cgi?Jeff_VanderMeer |url-status=live }}</ref>) is an American author, editor, and literary critic. Initially associated with the [[New weird|New Weird]] literary genre, VanderMeer crossed over into mainstream success with his bestselling [[Southern Reach Trilogy]]. The trilogy's first novel, ''[[Annihilation (VanderMeer novel)|Annihilation]]'', won the [[Nebula Award for Best Novel|Nebula]]<ref name=autogenerated1>{{cite web |url=https://www.sfwa.org/2015/06/nebula-award-winners-announced-2/ |title=SFWA Nebula Award Winners Announced (2014) |date=June 6, 2015 |access-date=June 8, 2015 |archive-date=September 24, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180924170126/http://www.sfwa.org/2015/06/nebula-award-winners-announced-2/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Shirley Jackson Award|Shirley Jackson]] Awards,<ref name=autogenerated2>{{cite web |url=http://www.shirleyjacksonawards.org/nominees/ |title=2014 Shirley Jackson Awards Winners |access-date=September 1, 2017 |archive-date=October 4, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181004114548/https://www.shirleyjacksonawards.org/nominees/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and was adapted into a [[Annihilation (film)|Hollywood film]] by director [[Alex Garland]].<ref name="variety.com">{{cite news |last1=McNary |first1=Dave |title='Annihilation' Movie Gains Momentum at Paramount with Alex Garland (EXCLUSIVE) |url=https://variety.com/2014/film/news/annihilation-alex-garland-1201343824/ |access-date=May 9, 2015 |work=variety.com |date=October 31, 2014 |archive-date=April 26, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150426065803/http://variety.com/2014/film/news/annihilation-alex-garland-1201343824/ |url-status=live }}</ref> Among VanderMeer's other novels are ''[[Shriek: An Afterword]]'' and ''[[Borne (novel)|Borne]]''. He has also edited with his wife [[Ann VanderMeer]] such influential and award-winning anthologies as ''The New Weird'', ''[[The Weird]]'', and ''The Big Book of Science Fiction''.<ref name=LocusAward>"[http://www.locusmag.com/News/2017/06/do-not-touch-2017-locus-awards-winners/ 2017 Locus Awards Winners] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170625031813/http://www.locusmag.com/News/2017/06/do-not-touch-2017-locus-awards-winners/ |date=June 25, 2017 }}," Locus Magazine, June 24, 2017.</ref>

VanderMeer has been called "one of the most remarkable practitioners of the literary fantastic in America today,"<ref name=Gale>"Jeff VanderMeer entry, Contemporary Authors Online, 2016," Gale Biography in Context, accessed September 1, 2017.</ref> with ''[[The New Yorker]]'' naming him the "King of Weird Fiction".<ref name=NewYorker2>"[http://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/weird-thoreau-jeff-vandermeer-southern-reach The Weird Thoreau] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105062232/https://www.newyorker.com/culture/cultural-comment/weird-thoreau-jeff-vandermeer-southern-reach |date=November 5, 2018 }}" by Joshua Rothman, The New Yorker, January 14, 2015.</ref> VanderMeer's fiction is noted for eluding genre classifications<ref name=PW1>"[https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-374-11524-1 Starred review of Borne by Jeff VanderMeer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181104212657/https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-374-11524-1 |date=November 4, 2018 }}," Publishers Weekly, February 6, 2017.</ref> even as his works bring in themes and elements from genres such as [[Postmodern literature|postmodernism]],<ref name=PW3>"Review of City of Saints and Madmen by Jeff VanderMeer," Publishers Weekly, May 6, 2002.</ref> [[ecofiction]],<ref name=NYTBR>"[https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/05/books/review/borne-jeff-vandermeer.html There’s No Escape From Contamination Above the Toxic Sea] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181116032105/https://www.nytimes.com/2017/05/05/books/review/borne-jeff-vandermeer.html |date=November 16, 2018 }}" by Wai Chee Dimockmay, The New York Times Book Review, May 5, 2017.</ref> the [[New weird|New Weird]] and [[Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction|post-apocalyptic fiction]].<ref name=NewYorker1>"[http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/24/jeff-vandermeer-amends-the-apocalypse Jeff VanderMeer Amends the Apocalypse] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181105013823/https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/2017/04/24/jeff-vandermeer-amends-the-apocalypse |date=November 5, 2018 }}" by Laura Miller, The New Yorker, April 24, 2017.</ref>

VanderMeer's writing has been described as "evocative" and containing "intellectual observations both profound and disturbing,"<ref name=PW2>"[https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-374-10409-2 Starred review of Annihilation by Jeff Vandermeer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181104211135/https://www.publishersweekly.com/978-0-374-10409-2 |date=November 4, 2018 }}," Publishers Weekly, December 23, 2013.</ref> and has been compared with the works of [[Jorge Luis Borges]],<ref name=PW2/><ref name=Borges>"[https://www.believermag.com/issues/200609/?read=review_vandermeer SHRIEK: AN AFTERWORD BY JEFF VANDERMEER] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902052146/https://www.believermag.com/issues/200609/?read=review_vandermeer |date=September 2, 2017 }}," Believermag.com, Sept. 2006, accessed June 26, 2017</ref> [[Franz Kafka]], and [[Henry David Thoreau]].<ref name=NewYorker2/>

==Early life and education==
VanderMeer was born in [[Bellefonte, Pennsylvania]] in 1968, and spent much of his childhood in the [[Fiji|Fiji Islands]], where his parents worked for the [[Peace Corps]].<ref name=LocusInterview>"[http://www.locusmag.com/Perspectives/2014/07/jeff-vandermeer-south-of-reality/ Jeff VanderMeer: South of Reality] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170721105309/http://www.locusmag.com/Perspectives/2014/07/jeff-vandermeer-south-of-reality/ |date=July 21, 2017 }}," Locus Magazine, July 6, 2014.</ref> After returning to the United States, he spent time in [[Ithaca, New York|Ithaca]], New York, and [[Gainesville, Florida|Gainesville]], Florida. He attended the [[University of Florida]] for three years and, in 1992, took part in the [[Clarion Workshop|Clarion Writers Workshop]].<ref name=LocusInterview/>

When VanderMeer was 20, he read [[Angela Carter]]'s novel ''[[The Infernal Desire Machines of Doctor Hoffman]]'', which he has said "blew the back of my head off, rewired my brain: I had never encountered prose like that before, never such passion and boldness on the page."<ref name=Atlantic1>"[https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/04/the-invention-of-angela-carter-review/523326/ The Thrill and Pain of Inventing Angela Carter] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726134701/https://www.theatlantic.com/entertainment/archive/2017/04/the-invention-of-angela-carter-review/523326/ |date=July 26, 2022 }}" by Jeff VanderMeer, The Atlantic, April 20, 2017.</ref> Carter's fiction inspired VanderMeer to both improve and be fearless with his own writing.<ref name=Atlantic1/>

== Career ==

=== Writing ===

VanderMeer began writing in the late 1980s while still in high school and quickly became a prolific contributor to small-press magazines.<ref name=StJames>St. James Guide to Horror, Ghost & Gothic Writers by David Pringle, St. James Press, 1998.</ref> During this time VanderMeer wrote a number of [[Horror fiction|horror]] and [[Fantasy literature|fantasy]] short stories, some of which were collected in his 1989 self-published book ''The Book of Frog'' and in the 1996 collection ''The Book of Lost Places''.<ref name=StJames/> He also wrote poetry—his poem "Flight Is for Those Who Have Not Yet Crossed Over" was a co-winner of the 1994 [[Rhysling Award]]—and edited two issues of the self-published [[zine]] ''Jabberwocky''.<ref name=StJames/><ref name=LocusInterview/>

One of VanderMeer's early successes was his 2001 short-story collection ''[[City of Saints and Madmen]],'' set in the imaginary city of Ambergris. Several of VanderMeer's novels were subsequently set in the same place, including ''[[Shriek: An Afterword]]'' (2006) and ''[[Finch (novel)|Finch]]'' (2009), the latter of which was a finalist for the [[Nebula Award for Best Novel]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.sfwa.org/2010/02/2009-nebula-awards-final-ballot/ |title=2009 Nebula Awards Final Ballot – SFWA |work=SFWA |date=February 19, 2010 |access-date=May 28, 2010 |archive-date=February 21, 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100221215940/http://www.sfwa.org/2010/02/2009-nebula-awards-final-ballot/ |url-status=live }}</ref> In 2000, his novella ''The Transformation of Martin Lake'' won the [[World Fantasy Award—Long Fiction|World Fantasy Award]].

VanderMeer has also worked in other media, including on a movie based on his novel ''Shriek'' that featured an original soundtrack by rock band [[The Church (band)|The Church]]. The band [[Murder by Death (band)|Murder By Death]] likewise recorded a soundtrack for ''[[Finch (Murder By Death album)|Finch]]'', which was released alongside a limited edition of the book. VanderMeer also wrote a ''[[List of Predator novels|Predator]]'' tie-in novel for ''[[Dark Horse Comics]]'' called ''Predator: South China Seas'' and worked with animator [[Joel Veitch]] on a Play Station Europe animation of his story "A New Face in Hell".

==== The Southern Reach Trilogy ====
{{Main|Southern Reach Trilogy}}

In 2014, [[Farrar, Straus and Giroux]] published VanderMeer's [[Southern Reach Trilogy]], consisting of the novels ''[[Annihilation (VanderMeer novel)|Annihilation]], [[Authority (novel)|Authority]],'' and ''[[Acceptance (novel)|Acceptance]]''. The story focuses on a secret agency that manages expeditions into a location known as Area X. The area is an uninhabited and abandoned part of the United States that nature has begun to reclaim after a mysterious world-changing event.<ref name="IS inspired">{{cite web |first=Ian |last=Spiegelman |date=February 28, 2014 |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2014/02/28/jeff-vandermeer-annihilation/5902023/ |title=Jeff VanderMeer: 'Power of Nature' Inspired New Sci-Fi Novel 'Annihilation' |newspaper=[[USA Today]] |access-date=2014-04-08 |archive-date=January 9, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180109094030/https://www.usatoday.com/story/life/books/2014/02/28/jeff-vandermeer-annihilation/5902023/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

VanderMeer has said that the main inspiration for Area X and the series was his hike through [[St. Marks National Wildlife Refuge]].<ref>{{cite web |last1=Schardl |first1=Kati |title=Exploring 'Area X': Local author has hit with book series based on St. Marks Wildlife Refuge |url=http://www.tallahassee.com/story/life/2014/03/29/exploring-area-x-local-author-has-hit-with-book-series-based-on-st-marks-wildlife-refuge/7055811/ |work=Tallahassee Democrat |publisher=Gannett |access-date=July 21, 2014 |archive-date=August 11, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140811215616/http://www.tallahassee.com/story/life/2014/03/29/exploring-area-x-local-author-has-hit-with-book-series-based-on-st-marks-wildlife-refuge/7055811/ |url-status=live }}</ref> ''The Other Side of the Mountain'' by [[Michel Bernanos]] is among the books VanderMeer has cited as also having had an influence.<ref name="IS inspired" />

The trilogy was released in quick succession over an 8-month period, in what has been called an innovative "[[Netflix]]-inspired strategy."<ref name=LATimes>"[http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-mcd-imprint-20170728-story.html The boundary-pushing fiction of Sean McDonald and his new FSG imprint, MCD]," by Margaret Wappler, The Los Angeles Times, July 28, 2017.</ref> The strategy helped the second and third books reach the [[New York Times Bestseller list|''New York Times'' Bestseller list]], and established VanderMeer as "one of the most forward-thinking authors of the decade."<ref name=LATimes/><ref>{{cite news |newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 25, 2014 |title=Paperback Trade Fiction |url=https://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2014-05-25/trade-fiction-paperback/list.html?date=2014-05-25&category=trade-fiction-paperback |access-date=March 2, 2017 |archive-date=March 6, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306162548/http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2014-05-25/trade-fiction-paperback/list.html?date=2014-05-25&category=trade-fiction-paperback |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite news |title=Best Sellers – Paperback Trade Fiction |newspaper=The New York Times |date=May 25, 2014 |url=https://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2014-09-21/trade-fiction-paperback/list.html |access-date=September 12, 2014 |archive-date=September 12, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140912230957/http://www.nytimes.com/best-sellers-books/2014-09-21/trade-fiction-paperback/list.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

The series ended up being highly honored, with ''Annihilation'' winning the [[Nebula Award for Best Novel|Nebula]]<ref name="autogenerated1" /> and [[Shirley Jackson Award|Shirley Jackson]] Awards for Best Novel.<ref name="autogenerated2" /> The entire trilogy was also named a finalist for the 2015 [[World Fantasy Award—Novel|World Fantasy Award]]<ref>"[http://www.locusmag.com/News/2015/11/world-fantasy-awards-winners-2015/ World Fantasy Awards Winners 2015] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160613235211/http://www.locusmag.com/News/2015/11/world-fantasy-awards-winners-2015/ |date=June 13, 2016 }}," Locus Magazine, November 8, 2015.</ref> and the 2016 [[Kurd-Laßwitz-Preis]].<ref>"[http://file770.com/?p=28642 2016 Kurd Laßwitz Preis Nominees] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902224931/http://file770.com/?p=28642 |date=September 2, 2017 }}," File 770, April 24, 2016.</ref> ''Annihilation'' was also adapted into [[Annihilation (film)|a film of the same name]] by writer-director [[Alex Garland]].<ref name="variety.com"/> The film stars [[Natalie Portman]], [[Gina Rodriguez]],<ref>{{cite news |title=Alex Garland Sets Natalie Portman and Frances McDormand for 'Annihilation'; Neill Blomkamp Lines Up Next Project |url=http://thefilmstage.com/news/alex-garland-sets-natalie-portman-and-frances-mcdormand-for-annihilation-neill-blomkamp-lines-up-next-project/ |work=thefilmstage.com |date=November 11, 2015 |access-date=September 1, 2017 |archive-date=September 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902095051/https://thefilmstage.com/news/alex-garland-sets-natalie-portman-and-frances-mcdormand-for-annihilation-neill-blomkamp-lines-up-next-project/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Tessa Thompson]],<ref>{{cite news |last1=Sneider |first1=Jeff |title='Creed's' Tessa Thompson Eyed to Join Natalie Portman, Gina Rodriguez in 'Annihilation' (Exclusive) |url=http://www.thewrap.com/creeds-tessa-thompson-eyed-to-join-natalie-portman-gina-rodriguez-in-annihilation-exclusive/ |access-date=January 5, 2016 |work=TheWrap |date=January 4, 2016 |language=en-US |archive-date=January 7, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160107040559/http://www.thewrap.com/creeds-tessa-thompson-eyed-to-join-natalie-portman-gina-rodriguez-in-annihilation-exclusive/ |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Jennifer Jason Leigh]],<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://collider.com/jennifer-jason-leigh-annihilation-movie/ |title=Jennifer Jason Leigh Up for Ex Machina Director's Annihilation |date=February 10, 2016 |website=Collider |language=en-US |access-date=2016-05-17 |archive-date=September 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902045816/http://collider.com/jennifer-jason-leigh-annihilation-movie/ |url-status=live }}</ref> and [[Oscar Isaac]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/annihilation/39553/annihilation-oscar-isaac-joins-alex-garland-s-new-film |title=Annihilation: Oscar Isaac joins Alex Garland's new film |website=Den of Geek |access-date=May 17, 2016 |archive-date=April 1, 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160401204757/http://www.denofgeek.com/movies/annihilation/39553/annihilation-oscar-isaac-joins-alex-garland-s-new-film |url-status=live }}</ref>

==== Later writing ====

In 2017 VanderMeer released ''[[Borne (novel)|Borne]],'' a "biotech apocalypse" novel<ref name=Guardian>"[https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/15/borne-by-jeff-vandermeer-review Borne by Jeff VanderMeer review – after the biotech apocalypse] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902050103/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2017/jun/15/borne-by-jeff-vandermeer-review |date=September 2, 2017 }}" by Neel Mukherjee, The Guardian, June 15, 2017.</ref> about a scavenger named Rachel trying to survive both a city "plunged into a primordial realm of myth, fable, and fairy tale"<ref name=NewYorker1/> and a five-story-tall flying bear named Mord. As with the Southern Reach trilogy, the novel was highly praised, with ''[[The Guardian]]'' saying, "VanderMeer’s recent work has been [[Ovid]]ian in its underpinnings, exploring the radical transformation of life forms and the seams between them."<ref name=Guardian/> ''[[Publishers Weekly]]'' said the novel reads "like a dispatch from a world lodged somewhere between science fiction, myth, and a video game" and that with ''Borne'' Vandermeer has essentially invented a new literary genre, "weird literature."<ref name=PW1/>

[[Paramount Pictures]] has optioned the film rights to ''Borne''.<ref>"[https://variety.com/2016/film/news/paramount-scott-rudin-borne-jeff-vandermeer-1201893053/ Paramount and Scott Rudin Team on Next Novel From ‘Annihilation’ Author (EXCLUSIVE)] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180213084317/http://variety.com/2016/film/news/paramount-scott-rudin-borne-jeff-vandermeer-1201893053/ |date=February 13, 2018 }}" by Justin Kroll, Variety, October 18, 2016.</ref>

In August 2017 VanderMeer released the novella ''[[The Strange Bird: A Borne Story]]''.<ref name=PW4>"[https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/interviews/article/74379-four-questions-for-jeff-vandermeer.html Four Questions for...Jeff VanderMeer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902050040/https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/by-topic/authors/interviews/article/74379-four-questions-for-jeff-vandermeer.html |date=September 2, 2017 }}" by John Maher, Publishers Weekly, August 1, 2017.</ref> The stand-alone story is set in the same world as ''Borne'' but featuring different characters.

[[Dead Astronauts (novel)|''Dead Astronauts'']], a stand-alone short novel set in the Borne universe, was released on December 3, 2019.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.penguinrandomhouse.ca/books/624628/dead-astronauts-by-jeff-vandermeer/9780771049200 |title=Dead Astronauts by Jeff VanderMeer |website=Penguin Random House Canada |language=en |access-date=2020-02-11}}</ref>

VanderMeer's upcoming novels include ''[[Hummingbird Salamander]]'', which is set ten seconds into the future and deals with "bioterrorism, ecoterrorism, and climate change," and a [[Young adult fiction|young adult]] series called ''Jonathan Lambshead and the Golden Sphere''.<ref name=PW4/> He is also working on a story called "The Three," based on the dead astronauts mentioned in ''Borne'', along with another Southern Reach story.<ref name=PW4/>

=== Literary criticism and editing ===
VanderMeer is a frequent writer of critical literary reviews and essays, which have appeared in numerous publications including ''[[The Atlantic]],<ref>[https://www.theatlantic.com/author/jeff-vandermeer/ The Atlantic author page for Jeff VanderMeer] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190412032430/https://www.theatlantic.com/author/jeff-vandermeer/ |date=April 12, 2019 }}, Retrieved July 9, 2019.</ref> [[The Washington Post]]'' Book World, ''[[Publishers Weekly]]'', and other places. For a number of years he was a regular columnist for the Amazon book-culture blog and has served as a judge for the [[Eisner Awards]], among others. He has been a guest speaker at such diverse events as the [[Brisbane Writers Festival]], [[Finncon]] in Helsinki, and the [[American Library Association]] annual conference.

In 2019, VanderMeer was a judge for the [[National Book Award for Fiction]].<ref>[https://www.nationalbook.org/2019-national-book-awards-judges/ 2019 National Book Awards Judges] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190916171020/https://www.nationalbook.org/2019-national-book-awards-judges/ |date=September 16, 2019 }}, Retrieved July 9, 2019.</ref>

VanderMeer has also edited a number of anthologies. He won a 2003 [[World Fantasy Award—Anthology|World Fantasy Award]] for ''Leviathan, Volume Three'', a collection of genre-bending stories he edited with [[Forrest Aguirre]]. He and Mark Roberts were also finalists for the same award the next year for the anthology ''The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases''.

Most of his recent anthologies have been collaborations with his wife, [[Ann VanderMeer]], the Hugo-award-winning former editor of ''[[Weird Tales]]''. These anthologies include ''[[The New Weird]]'', a collection of stories from New Weird authors; ''Last Drink Bird Head'', a charity anthology benefiting literacy; ''[[The Weird]]'', a [[World Fantasy Award—Anthology|World Fantasy Award]] winning collection of weird fiction; ''[[Time Traveler's Almanac]]'', an anthology of time-travel fiction; ''Fast Ships, Black Sails'', a pirate fiction anthology; and the [[Locus Award]] winning ''The Big Book of Science Fiction''.<ref name=LocusAward/>

VanderMeer is the founding editor and publisher of the ''Ministry of Whimsy Press'', which he set up in the late 1980s while still in high school.<ref name=LocusInterview/><ref>{{cite web |url=http://vanderworld.blogspot.com/2004/12/ministry-of-whimsy-on-hiatus.html |title=VanderWorld (under occupation) |publisher=vanderworld.blogspot.com |access-date=June 17, 2007 |archive-date=June 21, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20070621210849/http://vanderworld.blogspot.com/2004/12/ministry-of-whimsy-on-hiatus.html |url-status=live }}</ref> The press is currently an imprint of [[Wyrm Publishing]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.jeffvandermeer.com/2007/10/17/ministry-of-whimsy-press-the-resurrection/ |title=Ministry of Whimsy Press: The Resurrection |work=The Southern Reach |date=October 17, 2007 |access-date=October 19, 2007 |archive-date=October 20, 2007 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20071020090701/http://www.jeffvandermeer.com/2007/10/17/ministry-of-whimsy-press-the-resurrection/ |url-status=live }}</ref> One of the ''Ministry'''s publications, ''[[The Troika]]'' by [[Stepan Chapman]], won the [[Philip K. Dick Award]] in 1997.

=== Teaching ===
VanderMeer has been involved in teaching creative writing. One of the projects he is involved with is Shared Worlds, an annual two-week program that aims to teach creative writing to teenagers.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.wofford.edu/sharedworlds/ |title=Shared Worlds' 2014 Visiting Writers Announced |date=May 6, 2014 |access-date=2014-05-06 |archive-date=May 7, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140507032940/http://www.wofford.edu/sharedworlds/ |url-status=live }}</ref> VanderMeer has also taught at the [[Clarion Workshop]]<ref>{{cite web |title=2014 Clarion Instructors |url=http://clarion.ucsd.edu/faculty.html |access-date=May 28, 2014 |archive-date=January 17, 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080117003534/http://clarion.ucsd.edu/faculty.html |url-status=dead }}</ref> and at [[Trinity Preparatory School|Trinity Prep School]]. In addition to his teaching, VanderMeer has also written guides to creative writing such as ''Wonderbook'', which won a BSFA Award,<ref>[[BSFA Award for Best Non-Fiction#2013]]</ref> a Locus Award, and was nominated for a Hugo and World Fantasy Award.<ref>[[Hugo Award for Best Related Work]]</ref>

=== Critical reputation ===
VanderMeer has been called "one of the most remarkable practitioners of the literary fantastic in America today,"<ref name=Gale/> with ''[[The New Yorker]]'' naming him the "King of Weird Fiction."<ref name=NewYorker2/> VanderMeer's fiction is noted for eluding genre classifications<ref name=PW1/> even as his works bring in themes and elements from genres such as [[Postmodern literature|postmodernism]],<ref name=PW3/> [[ecofiction]],<ref name=NYTBR/> the [[New weird|New Weird]] and [[Apocalyptic and post-apocalyptic fiction|post-apocalyptic fiction]].<ref name=NewYorker1/>

VanderMeer's fiction has been described as "evocative (with) intellectual observations both profound and disturbing"<ref name=PW2/> and "lyrical and harrowing,"<ref>[http://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-borne-vandermeer-20170413-story.html Jeff Vandermeer's new dystopian novel 'Borne' is lyrical and harrowing; Elizabeth Hand reviews]</ref> with his mixing of genres producing "something unique and unsettling."<ref>{{cite news |first=Eric |last=Brown |author-link=Eric Brown (writer) |url=https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/sep/18/finch-jeff-vandermeer-ambergris-review |title=Finch by Jeff VanderMeer |work=[[The Guardian]] |date=September 18, 2010 |access-date=September 2, 2017 |archive-date=September 2, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170902090734/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2010/sep/18/finch-jeff-vandermeer-ambergris-review |url-status=live }}</ref>

VanderMeer's writing has been compared with the works of [[Jorge Luis Borges]],<ref name=PW2/><ref name=Borges/> [[Franz Kafka|Kafka]], and [[Henry David Thoreau|Thoreau]].<ref name=NewYorker2/>

== Personal life ==
In 2003, VanderMeer married [[Ann VanderMeer|Ann Kennedy]], then editor for the small Buzzcity Press and ''Silver Web'' magazine. {{As of|2018|alt=The couple lives in [[Tallahassee, Florida]].}} They have two cats.<ref name="Tallahassee Democrat staff 2017">{{cite web |author=Tallahassee Democrat staff |title=Meet Author Jeff VanderMeer |url=https://www.tallahassee.com/insider/events/2017/05/08/meet-author-jeff-vandermeer/101438014/ |work=[[Tallahassee Democrat]] |publisher=[[Gannett Company]] |date=May 8, 2017 |access-date=May 6, 2018 |archive-date=July 14, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180714170316/https://www.tallahassee.com/insider/events/2017/05/08/meet-author-jeff-vandermeer/101438014/ |url-status=live }}</ref> One is named Neo.<ref name="Harvilla 2017">{{cite web |last=Harvilla |first=Robert |title=The Darkest (and Coolest) Timeline of Jeff VanderMeer |url=https://www.theringer.com/2017/5/30/16040198/jeff-vandermeer-new-book-borne-95e6ac07bea1 |work=[[The Ringer (website)|The Ringer]] |publisher=SBNation.com |date=May 30, 2017 |access-date=May 6, 2018 |archive-date=May 7, 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180507085220/https://www.theringer.com/2017/5/30/16040198/jeff-vandermeer-new-book-borne-95e6ac07bea1 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="Tallahassee Democrat staff 2017" />

== Awards ==

VanderMeer has been nominated for the [[World Fantasy Award]] 14 times.<ref>{{cite web |title=About |url=http://www.jeffvandermeer.com/about/ |access-date=June 3, 2014 |archive-date=May 26, 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140526211127/http://www.jeffvandermeer.com/about/ |url-status=live }}</ref> He has also won an NEA-funded Florida Individual Writers' Fellowship, and, the Le Cafard Cosmique award in France and the Tähtifantasia Award in Finland, both for ''City of Saints''. He has also been a finalist for the [[Hugo Award]], [[Bram Stoker Award]], [[International Horror Guild Award]], [[Philip K. Dick Award]], and many others. Novels such as ''[[Veniss Underground]]'' and ''[[Shriek: An Afterword]]'' have made the year's best lists of Amazon.com, ''[[The Austin Chronicle]]'', the ''[[San Francisco Chronicle]]'', and ''[[Publishers Weekly]]'', among others.

Other Awards include:

* 2000 – [[World Fantasy Award]] for the novella ''The Transformation of Martin Lake''<ref>{{cite web |author=World Fantasy Convention |year=2010 |title=Award Winners and Nominees |url=http://www.worldfantasy.org/awards/awardslist.html/ |access-date=February 4, 2011 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20101201074405/http://worldfantasy.org/awards/awardslist.html |archive-date=December 1, 2010}}</ref>
* 2003 – [[World Fantasy Award]] for his anthology ''Leviathan 3'' (with Forrest Aguirre)
* 2009 – [[World Fantasy Award]] nomination for ''Finch''<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.locusmag.com/News/2010/08/2009-world-fantasy-awards-nominees/ |title=Locus Online News " 2009 World Fantasy Awards Nominees |date=August 24, 2010 |publisher=Locus Publications |access-date=August 24, 2010 |archive-date=August 30, 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170830233936/http://www.locusmag.com/News/2010/08/2009-world-fantasy-awards-nominees/ |url-status=live }}</ref>
* 2009 – [[Nebula Award]] nomination for Best Novel for ''Finch''
* 2012 – [[World Fantasy Award]] for his anthology ''The Weird'' (with [[Ann VanderMeer]])
* 2013 – [[BSFA Award]] for Best Non-Fiction for ''Wonderbook''<ref>http://www.bsfa.co.uk/bsfa-award-winners-announced {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181106132416/https://bsfa.co.uk/bsfa-award-winners-announced/ |date=November 6, 2018 }} "BSFA Award winners announced", accessed on May 3, 2014</ref>
* 2013 – [[Locus Award]] for Best Non-Fiction for ''Wonderbook''
* 2013 – [[Hugo Award]] nomination for ''Wonderbook''
* 2013 – [[World Fantasy Award]] nomination for ''Wonderbook''
* 2014 – [[Nebula Award]] for Best Novel for ''Annihilation''<ref>{{Cite web|date=2015-06-06|title=Nebula Award Winners Announced|url=https://www.sfwa.org/2015/06/06/nebula-award-winners-announced-2/|access-date=2021-05-17|website=SFWA|language=en-US|archive-date=July 26, 2022|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220726134701/https://www.sfwa.org/2015/06/06/nebula-award-winners-announced-2/|url-status=live}}</ref>
* 2014 – [[Shirley Jackson Award]] for Best Novel for ''Annihilation''<ref name=autogenerated2/>

== Bibliography ==

=== Novels ===
* ''Dradin, In Love'' (1996, collected in all editions of ''City of Saints and Madmen'')
* ''The Hoegbotton Guide to the Early History of Ambergris, by Duncan Shriek'' (1999, collected in all editions of ''City of Saints and Madmen'')
* ''[[Veniss Underground]]'' (2003)
* ''[[Shriek: An Afterword]]'' (2006)
* ''[[Predator (novel series)|Predator]]: South China Sea'' (2008)
* ''[[Finch (novel)|Finch]]'' (2009)
* [[Southern Reach Trilogy]]:
** ''[[Annihilation (VanderMeer novel)|Annihilation]]'' (2014)
** ''[[Authority (novel)|Authority]]'' (2014)
** ''[[Acceptance (novel)|Acceptance]]'' (2014)
** ''Absolution'' (forthcoming)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://twitter.com/jeffvandermeer/status/1227284650164400129 |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=Twitter |language=en |title=Jeff VanderMeer on Twitter: "Um, for those who asked if I was joking about a fourth Southern Reach novel, Absolution...um...noooooo. It's a real thing. It's next on my plate to finish after Hummingbird Salamander and the last volume of the YA series." |archive-date=June 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220605063342/https://twitter.com/jeffvandermeer/status/1227284650164400129 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''[[Borne (novel)|Borne]]'' (2017)
* ''[[Dead Astronauts (novel)|Dead Astronauts]]'' (2019) 
* [[The Misadventures of Jonathan Lambshead]]:
** ''[[A Peculiar Peril]]'' (2020)
** ''A Terrible Trouble'' (forthcoming)<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://twitter.com/jeffvandermeer/status/1347602027006844930 |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=Twitter |title=Jeff VanderMeer on Twitter: "Current reading: Tommy Pico, Mariana Enriquez, Johannes Anyuru. Re-reading Magic Prague and the Hearing Trumpet as research for the final Lambshead novel, A Terrible Trouble." |archive-date=June 5, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220605063339/https://twitter.com/jeffvandermeer/status/1347602027006844930 |url-status=live }}</ref>
* ''[[Hummingbird Salamander]]'' (2021)
* ''The Stone Shed'' (forthcoming)<ref>{{Cite web |date=2022-01-30 |title=The State of VanderWorld in 2022: Movie News, New Fiction, Political Activism, and Baby Raccoons |url=https://www.jeffvandermeer.com/2022/01/30/the-state-of-vanderworld-in-2022-movie-news-new-fiction-political-activism-and-baby-raccoons/ |access-date=2022-06-05 |website=Jeff VanderMeer |archive-date=January 30, 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220130182458/https://www.jeffvandermeer.com/2022/01/30/the-state-of-vanderworld-in-2022-movie-news-new-fiction-political-activism-and-baby-raccoons/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

=== Nonfiction ===
* ''Why Should I Cut Your Throat?'' (2004)
* ''Booklife: Strategies and Survival Tips for the 21st Century Writer'' (2009)
* ''The Steampunk Bible'' (2010)
* ''Monstrous Creatures: Explorations of Fantasy through Essays, Articles & Reviews'' (2011)
* ''Wonderbook: The Illustrated Guide to Creating Imaginative Fiction'' (2013)
* ''The Steampunk User's Manual: An Illustrated Practical and Whimsical Guide to Creating Retro-futurist Dreams'' (2014)

=== Collections ===
* ''The Book of Frog'' (1989)
* ''The Book of Lost Places'' (1996)
* ''[[City of Saints and Madmen]]: The Book of Ambergris'' (2001)
** ''City of Saints and Madmen'' (2002, substantially expanded from the 2001 edition)
** ''City of Saints and Madmen'' (2004, expanded from the 2002 edition)
* ''The Day Dali Died'' (2003)
* ''Secret Life'' (2004)
* ''Why Should I Cut Your Throat?'' (non-fiction, 2004)
* ''VanderMeer 2005'' (promotional sampler, 2005)
* ''Secret Lives'' (2006)
* ''The Surgeon's Tale and Other Stories'' (with [[Cat Rambo]], 2007)
* ''The Third Bear'' (2010, [[Tachyon Publications]])
* ''Area X: The Southern Reach Trilogy: Annihilation; Authority; Acceptance'' (2014)

===Short fiction===
* "Mansions of the Moon" (2001) in [[Nemonymous]] 1
* "My Report on the Secret Life of Shane Hamill" (2006) in ''[[Eidolon I]]'' (ed. [[Jonathan Strahan]], [[Jeremy G. Byrne]])
* "Fixing Hanover" (2008) in ''[[Extraordinary Engines]]'' and reprinted in ''[[The Mammoth Book of Steampunk]]'' (2012) ed. [[Sean Wallace]]
* ''The Mona Lisa'' (2009) in [[Halo: Evolutions]]
* [[The Strange Bird: A Borne Story|''The Strange Bird'' (2017)]]
* ''The World is Full of Monsters'' (2017)

=== Other projects ===

* ''[[The Kosher Guide to Imaginary Animals]]'' (with [[Ann VanderMeer]], 2010, [[Tachyon Publications]])

=== Anthologies edited ===

* ''Leviathan 1'' (with [[Luke O'Grady]], 1994)
* ''Leviathan 2'' (with [[Rose Secrest]], 1998)
* ''Leviathan 3'' (with [[Forrest Aguirre]], 2002)
* ''Album Zutique'' (2003)
* ''[[The Thackery T. Lambshead Pocket Guide to Eccentric & Discredited Diseases]]'' (with Mark Roberts, 2003)
* ''[[The New Weird]]'' (with [[Ann VanderMeer]], 2007)
* ''Best American Fantasy'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2007)
* ''Best American Fantasy: v. 2'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2008)
* ''Last Drink Bird Head'', (2008)
* ''[[Steampunk (anthology)|Steampunk]]'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2008)
* ''[[Fast Ships, Black Sails]]'', (with Ann VanderMeer, 2009) – Fantasy pirate stories
* ''Steampunk II: Steampunk Reloaded'' (2010)
* ''The Thackery T. Lambshead Cabinet of Curiosities'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2011)
* ''[[The Weird]]'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2012)
* ''[[The Time Traveler's Almanac]]'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2014)
* ''Sisters of the Revolution: A Feminist Speculative Fiction Anthology'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2015)
* ''The Big Book of Science Fiction: The Ultimate Collection'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2016)
* ''The Big Book of Classic Fantasy'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2019)
* ''The Big Book of Modern Fantasy'' (with Ann VanderMeer, 2020)

== References ==
{{Reflist}}

== External links ==
{{wikiquote}}
* {{official website}}
* [http://www.goldengryphon.com/secret-frame.html Golden Gryphon Press official site] – About ''Secret Life''
* {{isfdb name|id=Jeff_VanderMeer|name=Jeff VanderMeer}}
* {{iblist name|id=678|name=Jeff VanderMeer}}

{{Nebula Award Best Novel}}{{World Fantasy Award Best Anthology}}
{{World Fantasy Award Best Novella 2000–2009}}
{{Jeff VanderMeer}}
{{Authority control}}

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