The Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association (SFWA) is proud to announce that Nicola Griffith (born 30 September 1960) has been named the 41st Damon Knight Grand Master for her contributions to the literature of science fiction and fantasy.

Nicola Griffith, PhD, is a dual UK/US citizen and the author of nine novels, including Hild, Spear, and Ammonite. In addition to her fiction and nonfiction (New York Times, Guardian, Nature) she is known for her data-driven 2015 work on bias in the literary ecosystem; as founder and co-host, with Alice Wong, of #CripLit; and for her work on queering the Early Medieval. Awards include The Los Angeles Times Book Prize, Society of Authors ADCI Literary Prize, two Washington State Book Awards, the Premio Italia, Nebula, World Fantasy, and Tiptree (Otherwise) awards, the Outstanding Mid-Career Authors Prize, and six Lambda Literary Awards. In 2024 she was inducted into the Museum of Popular Culture’s Science Fiction + Fantasy Hall of Fame.

Griffith lives with her wife, writer Kelley Eskridge, in Seattle, where she takes enormous delight in everything. This latest title, SFWA’s 41st Grand Master, is no exception:

“I am thunderstruck,” said Griffith, after receiving the news. “Amazed and moved and brimming with joy. I might never stop smiling.”

Widely acclaimed and bestselling author Karen Joy Fowler has known for years how much of a gift Griffith is to the literary community: “Ever since I first read Ammonite–back in 1993 when the world was young–I’ve made it my business to follow Griffith wherever she goes. And I have loved every place she’s taken me. She’s a writer who stuns. Incisive yet lyrical, pragmatic yet sexy, generous yet scary, always brilliant and, best of all, never ever boring. Every book she writes is one more bit of luck for us readers.”

SFWA President Kate Ristau resoundingly agrees:

“It is SFWA’s honor to recognize and celebrate Nicola’s past achievements, while looking forward to her future triumphs. Her work continues to inspire and challenge me, and when asked to pick a Grand Master to lead us into our Diamond Year, I looked to Nicola for her stunning fiction, as well as her leadership and advocacy. She challenges us to reconsider the past and imagine a better, more inclusive future. She is the perfect Grand Master for our present moment, demonstrating through her life and work how to find one’s self, one’s purpose, and one’s community in complicated times, and to embrace those things joyfully and fully. 50 years after SFWA named its first Grand Master, we are thrilled to shine the spotlight on Nicola Griffith as our 41st.”