SERNINE, Daniel

   Pseudonym of Canadian writer Alain Lortie (1955-), a central force in Canadian sf, who began publishing in 1975 with the dark fantasies "Jalbert" and "La Bouteille" ("The Bottle") for Requiem, later serving (from 1983) on the editorial collective of that magazine, now renamed SOLARIS (CANADA). His early work has been collected in Les Contes de l'ombre ("Tales from the Shadow") (coll 1979). His novels, marketed as juveniles, are split into 2 main series: the Grandverger fantasies, set in an imaginary enclave of New France - Legendes du vieux manoir ("Tales from the Old Manor House") (coll 1979), Le Tresor du "Scorpion" (1980; trans as The "Scorpion" Treasure 1990), L'Epee Arhapal (1981; trans as The SwordArhapal 1990) and Le Cercle Violet ("The Purple Circle") (1984) - and the Exode or Argus sequence, about a benevolent extraterrestrial organization keeping watch on the Earth: Organisation Argus (1979; trans David Homel as Those Who Watch the Skies 1990), Argus Intervient (1983; trans David Homelas Argus Steps In 1990), Argus: mission mille ("Argus: The Thousandth Mission") (1989) and Les Reves d'Argus ("The Dreams of Argus") (1991).Both series are brought together in La nef dans le nuages ("The Ship in the Clouds") (1989). Some of the adult stories assembled in Le Vieil Homme et l'espace ("The Old Man and Space") (coll 1981) also belong to the Exode saga; the collection as a whole effectively displays DS's social and political interests, as does the ambitious and well received Les Meandres du temps ("The Meanders of Time") (1983). More recently, he has begun publishing tales set in a neverending Carnival; these have been assembled as Boulevard des etoiles ("Stardust Boulevard") (coll 1991) and A la Recherche de Monsieur Goodtheim ("Looking for Mr Goodtheim") (coll 1991).This more recent work shows a willingness to explore new avenues, a willingness also demonstrated by Chronoreg (1992), a complex and bleak time-travel tale, set in an ALTERNATE WORLD Earth, and featuring a homosexual telepathic death-haunted mercenary.

LP

   Other works: La Cite inconnue ("The Unknown City") (1982); Ludovic (1983); Les Envoutements ("Bewitchments") (1985); Quand vient la nuit ("As Night Falls") (coll1983); Aurores Boreales 2 (anth 1985); Nuits Blemes "Wan Nights" (1990); Quatres destins ("Four Destinies") (1990); La Magicienne bleue ("The Blue Magician") (1991); Le Cercle de Khaleb ("Khaleb's Circle") (1991).