Creative Chaos

Abstract

While new writers always enter the realms of science fiction, there are certain periods when creativity is more fertile than at other times. Such creativity was evident in 1927–1929, 1937–1940, and 1947–1954. During the second boom many of the first wave of writers began to disappear, and either stopped writing altogether or moved to comic books. The 1950s was arguably the most fertile period in the history of science fiction, lasting until the mid-1960s, when the boundaries of the genre were shattered by the ‘new wave’ revolution and other factors. This chapter focuses on science fiction authors who emerged during the 1950s, along with earlier writers who adapted during the decade, including Philip K. Dick, Robert Sheckley, Eric Frank Russell, Horace Gold, and Robert Silverberg. It also looks at the publication of several good-quality science fiction magazines in Britain and some women writers who made a considerable mark in science fiction during the 1950s, including Kate Wilhelm, Katherine MacLean, Catherine L. Moore, and Leigh Brackett.