Charles de Lint

Charles Henri Diederick Hoefsmit de Lint, novelist, short story writer (b at Bussum, Netherlands 22 Dec 1951). A fantasy writer, he reflects in his work a thorough knowledge of traditional music, folktales and myths. He grew up in the Yukon, Turkey, Lebanon and Québec, and currently lives in Ottawa, which provides a setting for many of his novels. His first 2 books, The Riddle of the Wren, set in an alternative world, and Moonheart: A Romance, about a contemporary Ottawan who finds herself involved in a centuries-old duel between native and Welsh gods, appeared in 1984.

Since then de Lint has been a prolific writer, publishing over 30 books. These include Jack, the Giant-Killer (1988), about a woman who sees an Ottawa overlapped by the world of Fairie, and its sequel, Drink Down the Moon (1990), in which the same protagonist is imprisoned by a rogue wizard. His one science fiction novel, Svaha (1989), is a near-future tale set in enclaves established by native Americans to fend off the barbarian world outside.

Some of de Lint's short fiction has appeared under various pseudonyms, such as Tanuki Aki, Henri Cuiscard, Jan Penalurik, Cerin Songweaver and Wendelessen, and one horror novel, Angel of Darkness (1990), under the pseudonym Samuel M. Kay. His most recent works, set in the fictional city of Newford, include Dreams Underfoot (1993), Memory and Dream (1994), Someplace to Be Flying (1998) and Moonlight and Vines (1999).