7 reasons why Isaac Asimov is the greatest science fiction writer ever
Science fiction is a literary genre loved and hated in equal measure. Detractors see only silver suits and monsters. Enthusiasts find insight into humanity and tech-fuelled futures. We fall into the second category. Isaac Asimov is the primary reason for this. He opened eyes to the wonders of science and space at a young age.
Asimov is the greatest ever. He stands above legends like Arthur C. Clarke and Robert Heinlein. Emotional attachment aside, several compelling reasons support his claim to the sci-fi crown.
1. He wrote an incredible universe of books
Some authors are renowned for writing very little. Harper Lee, Ralph Ellison and Oscar Wilde managed just three novels between them. Asimov was one of the most prolific writers of all time. He wrote or edited an estimated 515 books. This does not include short stories. He wrote his first novel, The Stars, Like Dust in 1951. His last was published in 1992. He averaged more than 12 books a year.
2. He wrote more sci-fi series than anyone else
Sci-fi writers are attracted to series. Creating a new universe is difficult to let go. Frank Herbert’s Dune spanned six books. Larry Niven’s Ringworld contains thirteen novels and over thirty short stories. Asimov wrote five different series. His most famous are the Foundation series, Robot series and Galactic Empire series. He also wrote the Lucky Starr series under the pen name Paul French and the Norby Chronicles with his wife Janet.
3. He wrote the best sci-fi short story of all time
Short stories have an illustrious sci-fi history. This is due to the magazines of the forties and fifties. Astounding Science Fiction rejected Asimov’s first effort, “Cosmic Corkscrew”. Editor John W. Campbell encouraged him to keep trying. Asimov complied. Twenty Asimov sci-fi short story collections have been published. He also produced eleven mystery collections. He wrote hundreds of short stories. In 1964, the Science Fiction Writers of America voted his story “Nightfall” the best short science fiction story of all time.
4. Prizes, prizes, prizes!
Supporters of Robert Heinlein and Arthur C. Clarke suggest quality matters more than quantity. Asimov’s style is functional. His stories play on a relatively bare stage. However, his awards cabinet is significant. He won eighteen awards in his lifetime. These include the Hugo Award for Best Novel for The Gods Themselves and Best Non-Fiction Book for I. Asimov: A Memoir. The UNESCO Index Translationum lists him as the world’s most translated sci-fi author. He is the 24th most translated author ever. He ranks above Dickens and Hemingway.
5. He wrote amazing science fact too
Asimov wrote more than sci-fi. He is the only sci-fi writer published in nine out of ten major categories of the Dewey Decimal Classification. His works include The Intelligent Man’s Guide to Science, Extraterrestrial Civilizations and Asimov’s Guide to Shakespeare. He was a true renaissance man.
6. His sci-fi words and concepts became reality
Asimov possessed immense scientific knowledge. He held a Ph.D. in Biochemistry from Columbia. This background enabled him to create convincing hard sci-fi. He created the Three Laws of Robotics. The Oxford English Dictionary credits his fiction for introducing the words positronic, psychohistory and robotics into the English language.
Ray Bradbury has both an asteroid (9766 Bradbury) and a planetary feature (the landing site of the Curiosity rover, “Bradbury Landing”) named after him.
However he might have denied being a science fiction writer.
I love Asimov, and this has got to be one of the best lists showing why. Thanks, stumbleupon!
Without a doubt, the greatest of the great. I hit my 30’s determined to read everything he has written, I am now 66 and still plugging along.
Good article and while I’m a bigger fan of Ray Bradbury I can see why Asimov’s definitely a contender for the crown, through his influence and productivity alone.
Even though I find a lot of Asimov’s book a bit dull, I do agree that Nightfall is one of the finest short stories of all time. Any doubters should read to see for themselves.
I love Asimov, but he’s no longer even in my top 4. Heinlein, Wells, Verne, PKD for me. His Foundation Trilogy was what got me into science fiction when I was a kid. Fun article.
Heinlein says……….no..
I enjoyed a lot of Asimov’s work, but the Opus books made me think he was a bit of a show pony. I’m not that well read, but I’m yet to come across another author that writes books about his other books and how awesome they are. I thought only American TV shows did that.
Great article.
Aside of Science Fiction he wrote over 100 books about universal history, biology, physics, mathematics. He truly was an amazing mind and an inspiration to us all young writers.
No question that Asimov is one of the great science fiction writers, but the greatest of all time?? The jury is still out on that one. I would, without hesitation, put him in the top 10, but the genre is too diverse and contributions by other authors too many to award any single writer that crown.
For someone who _admitted_ that he didn’t care much about character development or the emotional issues that are important to fiction, Asimov wasn’t a horrible novelist. He had a clear writing style, he had a pleasant authorial voice, he had a strong pro-science attitude.
He was a C+ who wrote a lot. At this point, he isn’t in the top twenty. When his career was at its peak, he had less competition and he wasn’t really part of any big five, let alone big three.
For me, the collections of his science essays from F&SF (The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction) were the biggest things he did. “Science, Numbers, and I,” “The Stars in Their Courses,” and “The Tragedy of the Moon” come to mind; each contained 17 essays (usually updated or modified slightly for the book edition). From them I first learned about the Lorentz-Fitzgerald contraction, the right way to sing the chemical name paradimethylaminobenzaldehyde to the tune of The Irish Washerwoman, many more reasons why Immanuel Velikovsky should not have been allowed to publish, and so forth and so on.
No. Just no. As great a writer as he was, he could not write a credible female character to save his life. The short story he wrote to “prove” he could was silly, patronizing, and an embarrassment. He was definitely one of the greats, but the greatest? No.
Loved Asimov at 14. 40 years later I find him mostly unreadable. Could not make it halfway thru Caves of Steel a couple of years ago. Just so badly written. The characterizations of the wife and son are awful. And the dialogue-the son talks like a teenager out of a third rate early 50’s sitcom. All “Gee whiz pop” and” golly gee”.