GAIMAN, Neil (Richard)

(1960-)

   UK writer, in the USA from 1992, who has specialized in the scripting of fantasy and sf comics and GRAPHIC NOVELS, but who began publishing work of genre interest with a story, "Featherquest", for Imagine in 1984. His first book, Ghastly Beyond Belief (anth 1985) withKim NEWMAN, presents various kinds of bad writing to be found in sf and fantasy. His first visual book was Violent Cases (graph 1987) with Dave MCKEAN, a dark urban fantasy in graphic-novel form. He then began to writecomics in earnest, with extended stints as scripter for The Sandman (1988-current) and Miracle Man (1990-current), the latter being a genuinesf comic with a UTOPIAN turn (CAPTAIN MARVEL). The Sandman stories - one of which, "A Midsummer Night's Dream" (1990), won a 1991 World Fantasy Award for Best Short Story-have been published in book form as TheSandman: The Doll's House (graph coll 1990) with Mike Dringenberg and Malcolm Jones III, The Sandman: Preludes and Nocturnes (graph coll 1991) with Dringenberg, Jones and Sam Kieth, and The Sandman: Dream Country (graph coll 1991) with various artists; a long tale, which transmutesdark-fantasy material evocative of the work of Jonathan Carroll (1949-), was contained in 6 further issues (1991-2) of the comic and is projected for book release as A Game of You (graph 1992) with Shawn McManus and Colleen Doran. His further graphic novels are Black Orchid (graph 1991)and Signal to Noise (1989-90 The Face; rev as graph 1992), both with Dave McKean, and The Books of Magic (graph coll 1993 US) with various artists.Good Omens: The Nice and Accurate Prophecies of Agnes Nutter, Witch (1990; rev 1991 US) with Terry PRATCHETT is a comic fantasy novel about the Four Horsemen, who do not quite end the world. Unlike graphic novelists such asAlan MOORE, NG has tended to combine draconian verbal economy with an ample romanticism, so that his tales carry, sometimes effortlessly, a burden of half-uttered resonances. He cowrote the entry on the GRAPHIC NOVEL for this encyclopedia.

   JC

   Other works: Don't Panic: The Official Hitch Hiker's Guide to the Galaxy Companion (1988; rev 1992); Now We Are Sick: A Sampler (anth 1986 chap) ed with Stephen Jones (1953-), booklet produced to publicize and sell rights in the next book; Now We Are Sick (anth 1991 chap) ed with Stephen Jones, assembling original poems; TempsVolume l (anth 1991) ed with Alex Stewart (1958-).

   See also: CRIME AND PUNISHMENT; SHARED WORLDS; SUPERMAN. GAKOV, Vladimir

   Originally the collective pseudonym of Russian writers Vladimir Gopman, Andrei Gavrilov and Mikhail Kovalchuk (VLADIMIR Gopman, Andrei GAvrilov, and Mikhail KOValchuk). For the purposes of this encyclopedia, in which he has revised or written many of the entries on Russian sf, including RUSSIA, this is the pseudonym of Kovalchuk writing solo. Russian criticand editor Mikhail (Andreevich) Kovalchuk (1951-) is a trained physicist who began publishing sf criticism in 1976, soon giving up his science career for professional journalism. His three critical works on sf are Vitok Spirali("The Curve of a Spiral") (1980) which was written by allthree authors,Tchetyre Puteshestviiaa Na Mashine Vremeni ("Four Trips in the Time Machine") (1983) and Ultimatum ("The Ultimatum") (1989), the last being an historical study of the relationship between fact and fiction in the nuclear arms race. Among his various anthologies, of interest to English-speaking readers is World's Spring (anth 1979 Sweden). Acontributor to various English-language reference editions, he has revised or written many of the entries on Russian sf in this encyclopedia.

   VG/JC

   See also: CRITICAL AND HISTORICAL WORKS ABOUT SF; RUSSIA.