Frederik Pohl

Born in 1919, Frederik Pohl became one of the most influential figures in American science fiction. He built a rare career on both sides of publishing: as a novelist and short-story writer, and as an editor who helped define what modern science fiction could be.

His best-known books include The Space Merchants, written with C. M. Kornbluth, and Gateway, the novel that won major science fiction honors and introduced one of his most memorable futures. Readers often return to his work for its mix of big speculative ideas, wit, and a clear-eyed view of technology, business, and human ambition.

Pohl remained active for decades, publishing across a remarkably long career and becoming a respected elder statesman of the field before his death in 2013. For many readers, he stands as one of the key voices who connected the early pulp era of science fiction to its later, more ambitious forms.