Kelly Link

Kelly Link
Kelly Link and Gavin Grant
Born (1969-07-19) July 19, 1969 (age 57)
Miami, Florida, U.S.
EducationColumbia University (BA)
University of North Carolina, Greensboro (MFA)
OccupationsWriter, professor, bookseller
SpouseGavin Grant
Children1
Writing career
GenresFantasy, horror, magical realism
Notable awardsMacArthur Fellowship
Hugo Award
Nebula Award
World Fantasy Award
Websitekellylink.net

Kelly Link (born July 19, 1969) is an American editor and writer. Mainly known as an author of short stories, she published her first novel, The Book of Love, in 2024. Many of her stories have been described as slipstream or magical realism, combining science fiction, fantasy, horror, and literary fiction. She has won a Hugo Award, three Nebula Awards, and three World Fantasy Awards. She was one of the recipients of the 2018 MacArthur Fellowship.

Biography

Link is a graduate of Columbia University and of the MFA program at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro. In 1995, she attended the Clarion East Writing Workshop.

She and her husband, Gavin Grant, manage Small Beer Press, a publisher based in Northampton, Massachusetts. Small Beer Press has an imprint for intermediate readers called Big Mouth House. Link and Grant co-edit the literary zine Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet, published by Small Beer Press. They also co-edited St. Martin's Press's The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror anthology series with Ellen Datlow for five years, ending in 2008. Link was previously the slush reader for Sci Fiction.

In 2019, Link and Grant opened Book Moon, an independent bookstore in Easthampton, Massachusetts.

Link taught at Lenoir–Rhyne University in Hickory, North Carolina, with the Visiting Writers Series during the 2005-2006 semester. She has taught at a number of schools and workshops including Bard College, Cleveland State University, the Clarion Workshop at Michigan State University, University of Massachusetts Amherst, and Clarion West Writers Workshop.

In 2018, she received a MacArthur Fellowship. She was a professor at Smith College, where she was the Elizabeth Drew Professor of English Language and Literature. She received an honorary degree from Smith College in 2023.

In 2024, Random House published Link's first novel, The Book of Love.

Awards

WorkYear & AwardCategoryResultRef.
"Travels with the Snow Queen" 1997 Otherwise Award Won
1999 World Fantasy Award Short Fiction Nominated
"The Specialist's Hat" 1999 World Fantasy Award Short Fiction Won
"Shoe and Marriage" 2001 World Fantasy Award Short Fiction Nominated
"Louise's Ghost" 2001 Nebula Award Novelette Won
Stranger Things Happen 2001 Salon.com Book Award Fiction Won
2002 World Fantasy Award Collection Nominated
2002 SF Site Readers Poll SF/Fantasy Book 5th Place
2002 Locus Award Collection Nominated
"Lull" 2003 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
Small Beer Press

(with Gavin Grant)

 2003 World Fantasy Special Award—Non-professional award Nominated
2004 World Fantasy Special Award—Professional award Nominated
2005 World Fantasy Special Award—Professional award Nominated
2023 World Fantasy Special Award—Professional award Nominated
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror

(17th Annual Collection) (with Ellen Datlow and Gavin Grant)

 2004 Bram Stoker Award Anthology Won
2005 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
2005 British Fantasy Award Anthology Nominated
Small Beer Press and Big Mouth House

(with Gavin Grant)

 2009 World Fantasy Special Award—Professional award Won
"The Faery Handbag" 2004 BSFA Award Short Fiction Nominated
2005 Locus Award Novelette Won
2005 World Fantasy Award Short Fiction Nominated
2005 Hugo Award Novelette Won
2005 Nebula Award Novelette Won
2012 Premio Ignotus Foreign Story Nominated
"Catskin" 2004 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
"The Hortlak" 2004 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
2004 World Fantasy Award Novella Nominated
Trampoline 2004 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
2004 World Fantasy Award Anthology Nominated
"Stone Animals" 2005 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
2005 Theodore Sturgeon Award Short Science Fiction Finalist
Magic for Beginners 2005 BSFA Award Short Fiction Won
2006 Young Lions Fiction Award Finalist
2006 Locus Award Novella Won
2006 SF Site Readers Poll SF/Fantasy Book 5th Place
2006 World Fantasy Award Novella Nominated
2006 Hugo Award Novella Nominated
2005 Nebula Award Novella Won
2006 Theodore Sturgeon Award Short Science Fiction 3rd Place
2008 Grand prix de l'imaginaire Foreign Short Story/Collection of Foreign Short Stories Nominated
Magic for Beginners 2005 International Horror Guild Award Collection Nominated
2005 Bram Stoker Award Fiction Collection Nominated
2005 Salon Book Award Won
2006 Locus Award Collection Won
2006 World Fantasy Award Collection Nominated
"Some Zombie Contingency Plans" 2005 Bram Stoker Award Long Fiction Nominated
2006 Locus Award Short Story Nominated
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (18th Annual Collection)

(with Ellen Datlow and Gavin Grant)

 2006 Locus Award Anthology Won
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (19th Annual Collection)

(with Ellen Datlow and Gavin Grant)

 2007 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
2007 British Fantasy Award Anthology Nominated
Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet

(with Gavin Grant)

 2007 Hugo Award Semiprozine Nominated
The Best of Lady Churchill's Rosebud Wristlet 2008 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (20th Annual Collection)

(with Ellen Datlow and Gavin Grant)

 2008 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
"Pretty Monsters" 2009 Locus Award Novella Won
Pretty Monsters 2009 Locus Award Collection Nominated
2009 World Fantasy Award Collection Nominated
The Surfer 2009 Locus Award Novella Nominated
The Year's Best Fantasy and Horror (21st Annual Collection)

(with Ellen Datlow and Gavin Grant)

 2009 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
2009 World Fantasy Award Anthology Nominated
"Secret Identity" 2010 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
"The Cinderella Game" 2010 Locus Award Short Story Nominated
"The Summer People" 2011 Shirley Jackson Award Novelette Won
2012 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
2013 O. Henry Award Juror Favorite
Steampunk!: An Anthology of Fantastically Rich and Strange Stories

(with Gavin Grant)

 2012 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
"Valley of the Girls" 2012 Locus Award Short Story Nominated
"I Can See Right Through You" 2015 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
2015 World Fantasy Award Short Fiction Nominated
Monstrous Affections

(with Gavin Grant)

 2015 Locus Award Anthology Nominated
2015 World Fantasy Award Anthology Won
"The Lady and the Fox" 2015 Locus Award Short Story Nominated
"The New Boyfriend" 2015 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
Get in Trouble 2016 Shirley Jackson Award Collection Nominated
2016 World Fantasy Award Collection Nominated
2016 Pulitzer Prize for Fiction Finalist
2016 Locus Award Collection Nominated
2016 Indies Choice Book Awards Adult Fiction Finalist
"The Game of Smash and Recovery" 2016 Locus Award Short Story Nominated
2016 Theodore Sturgeon Award Short Science Fiction Won
2017 World Fantasy Special Award—Professional award Contributions to the Genre Nominated
"The Girl Who Did Not Know Fear" 2020 Locus Award Short Story Nominated
"Skinder's Veil" 2022 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
White Cat, Black Dog 2023 Kirkus Prize Fiction Nominated
2024 BookTube Prize Fiction Octofinalist
2024 World Fantasy Award Collection Nominated
2024 Locus Award Collection Won
2024 Chautauqua Prize Shortlisted
2024 Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award Shortlisted
"Prince Hat Underground" 2024 World Fantasy Award Novella Nominated
2024 Locus Award Novelette Nominated
The Book of Love 2025 Compton Crook Award Novel Nominated
2024 Nebula Award Nominated
2024 Los Angeles Times Book Prize Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Speculative Fiction Won

Bibliography

Books

Selected stories

As editor

References

  1. ↑ "About Kelly". Kelly Link. Archived from the original on March 15, 2013. Retrieved May 1, 2013.
  2. ↑ Grant, Gavin (May 20, 2009). "Small Beer, little baby". Small Beer Press. Retrieved August 12, 2011.
  3. ↑ Miller, Laura (November 19, 2001). "An interview with Kelly Link". Salon.com. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  4. ↑ Miller, Laura (February 4, 2015). "'Get in Trouble': Going back inside the weird and wonderful world of Kelly Link". Salon.com.
  5. ↑ "RA Alert: Slipping into Slipstream with Kelly Link". EarlyWord. February 5, 2015. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  6. 1 2 Shapiro, Rebecca (2024). "The Wild and Wonderful World of Kelly Link". Columbia Magazine. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  7. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 "Kelly Link Awards". science fiction awards database. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  8. ↑ Charles, Ron (October 4, 2018). "Short-story writer Kelly Link wins MacArthur 'genius' grant". The Washington Post. Retrieved October 4, 2018.
  9. 1 2 Trotter, Jessica (July 24, 2006). "Kelly Link talks about her participation in the thirty-eighth Clarion Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Workshop at Michigan State University". MSU Libraries Digital Repository.
  10. ↑ Grant, Gavin J. (January 4, 2012). "Early history". Small Beer Press. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  11. ↑ "Big Mouth House". Small Beer Press. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  12. ↑ "LCRW". Small Beer Press. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  13. ↑ Grant, Gavin J.; Link, Kelly (January 12, 2009). "The Year's Best Fantasy & Horror". Small Beer Press. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  14. ↑ "An Interview with Kelly Link by The Slush God". The Slush God Speaketh. Archived from the original on June 29, 2005.
  15. ↑ "The Moon, The Moon; or: About Us". Book Moon Books. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  16. ↑ "Visiting Writers Series - Past Writers" (PDF). Lenoir-Rhyne University. 2024.
  17. ↑ "Writers Kelly Link and Jedediah Berry '99 to Give Reading at Bard College on March 3". Bard College. February 25, 2025. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  18. ↑ "End-of-Year Round Up". Cleveland State University Poetry Center. December 7, 2017. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  19. ↑ Flynn, Anne-Gerard (October 5, 2018). "Kelly Link of Northampton named MacArthur Genius Grant recipient". masslive. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  20. ↑ "Kelly Link's The Book of Love - Book Club Discussion". Clarion West. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  21. ↑ "Kelly Link - MacArthur Foundation". www.macfound.org.
  22. ↑ "Kelly Link". Smith College. Retrieved April 6, 2026.
  23. ↑ "Author Spotlight: Kelly Link". Lightspeed Magazine. Retrieved September 9, 2026.
  24. ↑ "Speakers & Honorary Degrees". Smith College. Retrieved May 22, 2024.
  25. ↑ Garrett, Yvonne C. (July 29, 2024). "Kelly Link's The Book of Love". The Brooklyn Rail. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  26. ↑ Gould, Emily (February 22, 2024). "How Kelly Link Wrote a Very Good First Novel". The Cut. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  27. ↑ El-Mohtar, Amal (February 12, 2024). "Book Review: 'The Book of Love,' by Kelly Link". The New York Times. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  28. ↑ Iglesias, Gabino (February 15, 2024). "Kelly Link's debut novel 'The Book of Love' is magical, confusing, heartfelt, strange". NPR. Retrieved September 17, 2024.
  29. ↑ "2001". Nebula Awards. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  30. 1 2 "Salon Book Award". LibraryThing. Archived from the original on October 20, 2023. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  31. ↑ "SF Site Readers Poll 2002". science fiction awards database. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  32. ↑ "sfadb : Locus Awards". www.sfadb.com. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  33. 1 2 3 "2004 World Fantasy Awards Final Ballot". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  34. ↑ "Announcing the 2023 World Fantasy Awards Winners". Reactor.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  35. ↑ "2004 Bram Stoker Award Winners & Nominees". The Bram Stoker Awards. Retrieved April 28, 2026.
  36. 1 2 "2005 Locus Finalists". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  37. 1 2 3 "2009 World Fantasy Award Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  38. 1 2 "Magic for Beginners by Kelly Link". smallbeerpress.com. Retrieved 2026-05-20.
  39. ↑ "2005 Locus Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  40. ↑ "2005 Hugo Awards". thehugoawards.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  41. 1 2 "2005 Nebula Awards". nebula.sfwa.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  42. ↑ "2005 Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award". www.isfdb.org. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  43. ↑ "BSFA Past Winners". bsfa.co.uk. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  44. ↑ "2006 Young Lions Fiction Award Finalists". Barnes and Noble. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  45. 1 2 3 "2006 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  46. ↑ "sfadb: SF Site Readers Poll 2006". www.sfadb.com. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  47. 1 2 "2006 World Fantasy Award Finalists". fact.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  48. ↑ "2006 Hugo Awards". thehugoawards.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  49. ↑ "2006 Theodore Sturgeon Memorial Award". www.isfdb.org. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  50. ↑ "2008 Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire". www.isfdb.org. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  51. ↑ "International Horror Guild". horroraward.org. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  52. 1 2 "2005 Bram Stoker Award Winners and Nominees". thebramstokerawards.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  53. ↑ "2006 Locus Awards Finalists". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  54. ↑ "2007 Locus Awards Finalists". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  55. ↑ "British Fantasy Society Award nominees 2007". sffworld.com. Retrieved 2026-05-20.
  56. ↑ "2007 Hugo Award Winners and Nominees". thehugoawards.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  57. 1 2 "2008 Locus Awards Finalists". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  58. ↑ "2009 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  59. 1 2 3 "2009 Locus Awards Finalists". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  60. 1 2 "2010 Locus Awards Finalists". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  61. ↑ "2011 Shirley Jackson Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  62. 1 2 3 "2012 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  63. ↑ "Understanding Kelly Link's "The Summer People"". thoughtco.com. Retrieved 2026-05-20.
  64. 1 2 3 4 "2015 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  65. 1 2 "2015 World Fantasy Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  66. ↑ "sfadb: Shirley Jackson Awards 2016". www.sfadb.com. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  67. ↑ "2016 World Fantasy Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  68. ↑ "2016 Pulitzer Prizes". pulitzer.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  69. 1 2 "2016 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  70. ↑ "Indies Choice and E.B. White Real-Aloud Awards 2016: 2016 Winners & Finalists". bookreporter.com. Retrieved 2026-05-20.
  71. ↑ "2016 Campbell and Sturgeon Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  72. ↑ "2017 World Fantasy Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  73. ↑ "2020 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  74. ↑ "2022 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  75. ↑ "Finalists Announced for 2023 Kirkus Prizes". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  76. ↑ "2024 Fiction - 2025 BOOKTUBE PRIZE". www.booktubeprize.org. Retrieved September 7, 2025.
  77. 1 2 "2024 World Fantasy Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  78. 1 2 "2024 Locus Awards Winners". locusmag.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  79. ↑ "2024 Chautauqua Prize". chautauquabookstore.com. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  80. ↑ "2024 Mark Twain American Voice in Literature Award Shortlist". Publishers Weekly. August 23, 2024. Retrieved August 10, 2026.
  81. ↑ "Compton Crook Award | Nominee | 2025 | Awards and Honors | LibraryThing". LibraryThing.com.
  82. ↑ "2024 Nebula Awards". nebula.sfwa.org. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  83. ↑ "Kelly Link Wins the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for SFF". Reactor. Retrieved 2026-04-28.
  84. ↑ "2024 Los Angeles Times Book Prizes". bookreporter.com. Retrieved 2026-04-29.