Chris Roberson
Roberson atWonderCon 2017
Born	John Christian Roberson (1970-08-25)August 25, 1970 (age 55)
Occupation	Author, publisher
Education	University of Texas at Austin (BA)
Spouse	Allison Baker
Children	1
Website
www.chrisroberson.net

John Christian Roberson (born August 25, 1970), known professionally asChris Roberson, is an American science fiction author and publisher who is best known foralternate history novels and short stories.

Roberson grew up nearDallas, Texas, and attended theUniversity of Texas at Austin. After graduating with a degree in English literature and a minor in history, he leaned towards becoming a literary,post-modernist writer and penned a couple of novels in that style, which went unpublished as Roberson realized that he "wasn't depressed enough for that line of work".^[1] In the 1990s, Roberson wrote a couple ofmystery novels but the end results turned out to be a mix of mystery andscience fiction genres, so the publishers specializing in either of those rejected them. Ultimately, Roberson settled on writing science fiction, citing his upbringing in the 1970s and 1980s as the major inspiration, since the genre was particularly commonplace in America at that time:

"Everything fromSaturday-morning cartoons to comic books to late-nightB-movies topulp novel reprints to blockbuster summer movies--it was all science fiction, in one form or another."^[1]

During this period, Roberson had a variety of day jobs, such as a product support engineer forDell computers, a position he held for seven years and quit in 2003 to concentrate on his work as a writer and publisher.

Between 1998 and 2002, Roberson was part of the writer's collectiveClockwork Storybook, alongside comic book creatorsBill Willingham (ofElementals and, later,Fables fame),Lilah Sturges (who would go on to co-writeJack of Fables with Willingham and relaunchHouse of Mystery forVertigo) andMark Finn (also aRobert E. Howard scholar and playwright). Starting as a writing group, Clockwork Storybook developed into a monthly online anthology, then a publishing imprint of the same name. The collective attempted to capitalize on the growing trend ofprint on demand and launched with four print titles in early 2001. Roberson produced four novels for Clockwork Storybook, three of which were subsequently expanded and reprinted:Voices of Thunder (Feb. 2001) was revised to becomeBook of Secrets (Angry Robot, 2009),Set the Seas on Fire (Dec. 2001) was expanded for its 2007 release bySolaris, whileAny Time at All (Sep. 2002) becameHere, There and Everywhere (Pyr, 2005).

After the dissolution of Clockwork Storybook, Roberson decided to focus on his career as a writer and soon after made his first professional sale with the short story for theLive without a Net anthology, edited byLou Anders and published byRoc. The book was published in 2003 and paved the way for future sales toAsimov's Science Fiction and other anthologies such asTales of the Shadowmen,Postscripts,Black October Magazine,Fantastic Metropolis,RevolutionSF,Twilight Tales,Opi8,Alien Skin,Electric Velocipede,Subterranean Magazine andLone Star Stories. The following year, Anders, whom Roberson considered "something of a personal patron", was hired as an editorial director atPrometheus Books' new science fiction imprint Pyr and bought Roberson'sHere, There and Everywhere, the first novel in hisBonaventure-Carmody series.

In 2003, Roberson also started up his own small-press publishing houseMonkeyBrain, having "discovered <...> in the few years of helping run the CWSB imprint, that [he] really enjoyed being a publisher." Roberson, who runs MonkeyBrain along with his business partner and spouse Allison Baker, decided early on that the company would deal exclusively in "traditional offset trade-paperbacks and hardcovers," distributed internationally, rather than printed on demand.^[2] In November, 2005, Roberson edited the first volume in a projected annual series ofAdventure anthologies, comprising "original fiction in the spirit of early twentieth-century pulp fiction magazines" across the genres, featuring contributions from Lou Anders, Mark Finn,Paul Di Filippo,Michael Moorcock andKim Newman.^[3]

At the 2008San Diego Comic-Con, it was announced that Roberson was set to write a comic book mini-series set in the universe of theVertigo seriesFables, which was created by fellow former Clockwork Storybook author Bill Willingham. The mini-series, titledCinderella: From Fabletown with Love and illustrated byShawn McManus, was described by Roberson as featuring "spies, sex, and shoes."^[4] In late 2010, Roberson was selected byDC Comics to complete the "Grounded" story arc in theSuperman ongoing series,^[5][6] which he worked on alongside his creator-owned Vertigo seriesiZombie and theCinderella: From Fabletown with Love sequel mini-series, subtitledFables are Forever. In 2012, Roberson announced he would no longer write for DC Comics due to their unethical treatment of creators.^[7] That same year, MonkeyBrain launched anew publishing arm for creator-owned comics that would focus solely ondigital distribution throughComixology.^[8][9]

Roberson lives inPortland, Oregon, with his wife and daughter.^[10]

Roberson is a four-time nominee for theWorld Fantasy Award: as awriter in 2004, aneditor and apublisher in 2006 and again a publisher in 2008. He was also nominated for theJohn W. Campbell Award for Best New Writer on two occasions. In 2009, Roberson won theSidewise Award for Alternate History in the "Long Form" category forThe Dragon's Nine Sons. He has also been nominated twice in the "Short Form" category, winning in 2004 with his story "O One". Roberson's novelParagaea was included inWaterstone's "Top Ten Science Fiction" list in 2006.^[11]

Novels published during Roberson's time as part ofClockwork Storybook:

• Voices of Thunder (sc, 322 pages, 2001,ISBN 0-9704841-0-0)
• Cybermancy, Incorporated (sc, 356 pages, 2001,ISBN 0-9704841-6-X)
• Set the Seas on Fire (sc, 272 pages, 2001,ISBN 0-9704841-9-4)
• Any Time at All (sc, 212 pages, 2002,ISBN 1-932004-00-9)

Tales of theBonaventure-Carmody clan, which Roberson first started developing for his Clockwork Storybook novels, continued with a number of short stories:^[12]

The series was subsequently expanded with several revised editions of his Clockwork Storybook novels as well as two newly written entries:

• Here, There and Everywhere (hc, 282 pages,Pyr, 2005,ISBN 1-59102-310-6; sc, 2005,ISBN 1-59102-331-9)
  • Revised and expanded reprint ofAny Time at All (2002)
• Paragaea: A Planetary Romance (hc, 400 pages, Pyr, 2006,ISBN 1-59102-440-4; sc, 2006,ISBN 1-59102-444-7)
• Set the Seas on Fire (sc, 380 pages,Solaris, 2007,ISBN 1-84416-488-8)
  • Revised and expanded reprint ofSet the Seas on Fire (2001)
• End of the Century (sc, 485 pages, Pyr, 2009,ISBN 1-59102-697-0)
• Book of Secrets (sc, 384 pages,Angry Robot, 2009,ISBN 0-00-732245-3)
  • Revised and expanded reprint ofVoices of Thunder (2001)

Roberson'salternate history seriesCelestial Empire began with a number of short stories, which can be sorted in internal chronological order or the publication order:^[14]

The series was further expanded with one novella and three full-length novels:

• The Voyage of Night Shining White (hc, 84 pages,PS Publishing, 2006,ISBN 1-904619-70-3; sc, 2006,ISBN 1-904619-69-X)
• The Dragon's Nine Sons (sc, 416 pages,Solaris, 2008,ISBN 1-84416-619-8)
• Iron Jaw and Hummingbird (hc, 368 pages,Viking, 2008,ISBN 0-670-06236-7)
• Three Unbroken (sc, 416 pages, Solaris, 2009,ISBN 1-84416-707-0)
  • Serialized online viaSolaris' website between 2007 and 2008.

• Vertigo:
  • House of Mystery vol. 2 #13: "13th Time's the Charm" (withNeal Adams andJosh Adams, co-feature, 2009)
    • Collected inHouse of Mystery: The Space Between (tpb, 128 pages, 2010,ISBN 1-4012-2581-0)
  • Fables:
    • Jack of Fables #36: "Jack 'n' Apes" (withTony Akins, 2009)
      • Collected inJack of Fables: The New Adventures of Jack and Jack (tpb, 128 pages, 2010,ISBN 1-4012-2712-0)
      • Collected inJack of Fables: The Deluxe Edition Volume 3 (hc, 400 pages, 2020,ISBN 1-4012-9579-7)
    • Cinderella (withShawn McManus):
      • Cinderella: From Fabletown with Love #1–6 (2010) collected asCinderella: From Fabletown with Love (tpb, 144 pages, 2010,ISBN 1-4012-2750-3)
      • Cinderella: Fables are Forever #1–6 (2011) collected asCinderella: Fables are Forever (tpb, 160 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-4012-3385-6)
    • Another six-issueCinderella story by Roberson and McManus was supposed to be published as part of theFairest anthology series.^[15][16]
    • After Roberson cut ties with DC,^[7] the story was eventually published inFairest #21–26 with script byMarc Andreyko and art by McManus.^[17]
  • iZombie (withMike Allred,Gilbert Hernandez (#12),Jay Stephens (#18),J. Bone (#21) andJim Rugg (#24), 2010–2012) collected as:
    • Dead to the World (collects #1–5, tpb, 144 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-4012-2965-4)
      • Includes the "Trick or Treat!" short story (art by Mike Allred) fromHouse of Mystery Halloween Annual #1 (2009)
    • uVampire (collects #6–12, tpb, 168 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-4012-3296-5)
      • Includes the "Devil's Lake" short story (art by Mike Allred) fromHouse of Mystery Halloween Annual #2 (2010)
    • Six Feet Under and Rising (collects #13–18, tpb, 128 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-4012-3370-8)
    • Repossession (collects #19–28, tpb, 224 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-4012-3697-9)
    • Omnibus (collects #1–28 and the short stories fromHouse of Mystery Halloween Annual #1–2, hc, 656 pages, 2015,ISBN 1-4012-6203-1)
• Superman/Batman #79–80: "World's Finest" (withJesús Merino, 2011)
  • Collected inSuperman/Batman: Sorcerer Kings (hc, 160 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-4012-3266-3; tpb, 2012,ISBN 1-4012-3446-1)
  • Collected inDC One Million Omnibus (hc, 1,080 pages, 2013,ISBN 1-4012-4243-X)
• Superman #707–711, 713–714: "Grounded" (withAllan Goldman (#707 and 709),Eddy Barrows,Travel Foreman (#710),Diogenes Neves (#713) andJamal Igle (#713–714), 2011)
  • Roberson picked up the writing duties afterJ. Michael Straczynski left the title in the middle of the storyline;^[18][19] Straczynski is credited as a co-writer on all of Roberson's issues.^[20]
  • The story originally intended for publication in issue #712 (written by Roberson, art by Eddy Barrows)^[21] was cancelled on the day of release despite being fully drawn and lettered.^[22][23]
  • A previously unpublished story, unrelated to the "Grounded" storyline (written byKurt Busiek, drawn byRick Leonardi), was released as issue #712 instead.^[24]
  • All eight issues are collected asSuperman: Grounded Volume 2 (hc, 168 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-4012-3316-3; tpb, 2012,ISBN 1-4012-3532-8)

• Do Androids Dream of Electric Sheep?: Dust to Dust (withRobert Adler, 2010) collected as:
  • Volume 1 (collects #1–4, tpb, 112 pages, 2010,ISBN 1-60886-027-2)
  • Volume 2 (collects #5–8, tpb, 112 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-60886-618-1)
• Starborn (co-created by Roberson andStan Lee; written by Roberson, art byKhary Randolph andMatteo Scalera (#10), 2010–2011) collected as:
  • Volume 1 (collects #1–4, tpb, 128 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-60886-059-0)
  • Volume 2 (collects #5–8, tpb, 128 pages, 2011,ISBN 1-60886-064-7)
  • Volume 3 (collects #9–12, tpb, 128 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-60886-088-4)
• Elric: The Balance Lost (withFrancesco Biagini, 2011–2012) collected as:
  • Volume 1 (collects #1–4, tpb, 128 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-60886-048-5)
  • Volume 2 (collects #5–8, tpb, 128 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-60886-066-3)
  • Volume 3 (collects #9–12, tpb, 128 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-60886-278-X)
• Adventure Time #5: "Ice King Dumb" (co-written by Roberson and his daughter Georgia, art byLucy Knisley, co-feature,KaBOOM!, 2012)
  • Collected inAdventure Time: Sugary Shorts Volume 1 (hc, 128 pages, 2013,ISBN 1-60886-333-6; tpb, 2014,ISBN 1-60886-361-1)

• Masks #1–8 (withAlex Ross (#1) andDennis Calero, 2012–2013) collected asMasks (tpb, 200 pages, 2013,ISBN 1-60690-422-1)
• The Shadow:
  • The Shadow vol. 5 (withGiovanni Timpano andAndrea Mutti (#19), 2013–2014) collected as:
    • The Light of the World (collects #13–18, tpb, 168 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-60690-461-2)
    • Bitter Fruit (collects #19–25, tpb, 180 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-60690-519-8)
  • The Shadow #100 (withIvan Rodriguez — both creators are uncredited; untitled 8-page story in the anthology special, 2015)
• Codename: Action #1–5 (withJonathan Lau, 2013–2014) collected asCodename: Action (tpb, 128 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-60690-476-0)
• Doc Savage:
  • Doc Savage vol. 6 #1–8 (withBilquis Evely, 2013–2014) collected asDoc Savage Omnibus (tpb, 240 pages, 2015,ISBN 1-60690-583-X)
  • Doc Savage: The Spider's Web #1–5 (withCezar Razek, 2015–2016) collected asDoc Savage: The Spider's Web (tpb, 120 pages, 2016,ISBN 1-5241-0056-0)

• Prometheus: The Complete Fire and Stone (hc, 480 pages, 2015,ISBN 1-61655-772-9) includes:
  • Dark Horse Presents vol. 3 #2: "Aliens: Field Report" (withPaul Lee, anthology, 2014)
  • Aliens: Fire and Stone #1–4 (withPatric Reynolds, 2014) also collected asAliens: Fire and Stone (tpb, 112 pages, 2015,ISBN 1-61655-655-2)
• Hellboy Universe (with all stories co-written by Roberson andMike Mignola):
  • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.:
    • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1952–1954 (hc, 440 pages, 2021,ISBN 1-5067-2526-0) includes:
      • Hellboy Winter Special 2016: "Wandering Souls" (withMichael Walsh, anthology, 2016)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1953 — Beyond the Fences #1–3 (withPaolo Rivera, 2016)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1954 — Black Sun #1–2 (withStephen Green, 2016)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1954 — The Unreasoning Beast (with Patric Reynolds, one-shot, 2016)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1954 — Ghost Moon #1–2 (withBrian Churilla, 2017)
    • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1955 (tpb, 144 pages, 2018,ISBN 1-5067-0531-6) collects:
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1955 — Secret Nature (withShawn Martinbrough, one-shot, 2017)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1955 — Occult Intelligence #1–3 (with Brian Churilla, 2017)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1955 — Burning Season (with Paolo Rivera, one-shot, 2018)
    • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1956 (tpb, 168 pages, 2019,ISBN 1-5067-1105-7) collects:
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1956 #1–3 (withYishan Li,Mike Norton andMichael Avon Oeming, 2018–2019)
      • Hellboy vs. Lobster Johnson: The Ring of Death (with Mike Norton andPaul Grist, one-shot, 2019)
    • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1957 (tpb, 152 pages, 2023,ISBN 1-5067-2845-6) collects:
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1957 — Family Ties (withLaurence Campbell, one-shot, 2021)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1957 — Forgotten Lives (with Stephen Green, one-shot, 2022)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1957 — Falling Sky (with Shawn Martinbrough, one-shot, 2022)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1957 — Fearful Symmetry (withAlison Sampson, one-shot, 2023)
      • Hellboy and the B.P.R.D.: 1957 — From Below (with Mike Norton, one-shot, 2023)
  • B.P.R.D.:
    • B.P.R.D.: Hell on Earth #140–142 (with Mike Norton, 2016) collected inB.P.R.D.: Hell on Earth Volume 4 (hc, 416 pages, 2019,ISBN 1-5067-0654-1; tpb, 2022,ISBN 1-5067-2431-0)
    • Rise of the Black Flame #1–5 (withChristopher Mitten, 2016–2017) collected asRise of the Black Flame (tpb, 144 pages, 2017,ISBN 1-5067-0155-8)
  • Witchfinder:
    • Witchfinder: City of the Dead #1–5 (withBen Stenbeck, 2016) collected asWitchfinder: City of the Dead (tpb, 144 pages, 2017,ISBN 1-5067-0166-3)
    • Witchfinder: The Gates of Heaven #1–5 (withD'Israeli, 2018) collected asWitchfinder: The Gates of Heaven (tpb, 144 pages, 2019,ISBN 1-5067-0683-5)
    • Witchfinder: The Reign of Darkness #1–5 (with Christopher Mitten, 2019–2020) collected asWitchfinder: The Reign of Darkness (tpb, 144 pages, 2020,ISBN 1-5067-1406-4)
  • The Visitor: How and Why He Stayed (tpb, 144 pages, 2017,ISBN 1-5067-0345-3) collects:
    • The Visitor: How and Why He Stayed #1–5 (with Paul Grist, 2017)
    • Hellboy Winter Special 2017: "God Rest Ye Merry" (with Paul Grist, anthology, 2017)
  • Rasputin: The Voice of the Dragon #1–5 (with Christopher Mitten, 2017) collected asRasputin: The Voice of the Dragon (tpb, 136 pages, 2018,ISBN 1-5067-0498-0)
  • The House of Lost Horizons: A Sarah Jewell Mystery (hc, 144 pages, 2022,ISBN 1-5067-2006-4) collects:
    • Hellboy Winter Special 2019: "The Longest Night" (withLeila del Duca, anthology, 2020)
    • The House of Lost Horizons: A Sarah Jewell Mystery #1–5 (with Leila del Duca, 2021)
  • Hellboy: The Silver Lantern Club #1–5 (with Ben Stenbeck and Christopher Mitten, 2021–2022) collected asHellboy: The Silver Lantern Club (hc, 136 pages, 2022,ISBN 1-5067-2816-2)
  • British Paranormal Society: Time Out of Mind #1–4 (with Andrea Mutti, 2022) collected asBritish Paranormal Society: Time Out of Mind (hc, 112 pages, 2023,ISBN 1-5067-3260-7)
  • Panya: The Mummy's Curse #1–4 (with Christopher Mitten, 2023) collected asPanya: The Mummy's Curse (hc, 112 pages, 2024,ISBN 1-5067-3819-2)
• Firefly: Legacy Edition Book Two (tpb, 336 pages,Boom! Studios, 2019,ISBN 1-68415-308-5) includes:
  • Free Comic Book Day 2016: Serenity: "The Warrior and the Wind" (withStephen Byrne, co-feature in one-shot, 2016)
  • Serenity: Firefly Class 03-K64 — No Power in the 'Verse #1–6 (withGeorges Jeanty, 2016–2017)
• God of War (withTony Parker):
  • God of War vol. 2 #0–4 (2018–2019) collected asGod of War (tpb, 120 pages, 2019,ISBN 1-5067-0746-7)
  • God of War: Fallen God #1–4 (2021) collected asGod of War: Fallen God (tpb, 96 pages, 2021,ISBN 1-5067-1872-8)
• Stranger Things Winter Special (withAbel, 2021) collected inStranger Things Holiday Specials (tpb, 128 pages, 2022,ISBN 1-5067-3458-8)

• IDW Publishing:
  • Star Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes #1–6 (withJeff Moy, 2011–2012) collected asStar Trek/Legion of Super-Heroes (hc, 152 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-61377-230-0; tpb, 2013,ISBN 1-61377-660-8)
  • Memorial (withRich Ellis):
    • Memorial #1–6 (2011–2012) collected asMemorial (hc, 148 pages, 2012,ISBN 1-61377-354-4)
    • Memorial: Imaginary Fiends #1–9 (digital, 2012–2013) published in print asMemorial: Imaginary Fiends #1–3 (2013)
• Edison Rex (withDennis Culver):
  • Edison Rex #1–18 (self-published digitally viaMonkeyBrain, 2012–2016) partially collected in print byIDW Publishing as:
    • Into the White! (collects #1–6, tpb, 120 pages, 2013,ISBN 1-61377-654-3)
    • Heir Apparent (collects #7–12, tpb, 120 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-61377-916-X)
  • Defend Comics: "The Amendment That Made a Right Out of 'Wrong'" (anthology one-shot, 2014)
  • Rise: Comics Against Bullying #1: "Be Yourself" (anthology,Northwest Press, 2015)
• Image:
  • Liberty Annual '12: "Sasquatch" (withRoger Langridge, anthology, 2012) collected inCBLDF Presents: Liberty (hc, 216 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-60706-937-7; tpb, 2016,ISBN 1-60706-996-2)
  • Sovereign #1–5 (withPaul Maybury, 2014) collected asSovereign (tpb, 136 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-63215-144-8)
• The Mysterious Strangers #1–6 (withScott Kowalchuk,Oni Press, 2013) collected asThe Mysterious Strangers: Strange Ways (tpb, 152 pages, 2014,ISBN 1-62010-111-4)
• Black Bag #1–6 (withJ. B. Bastos,Legendary, 2015–2016) collected asBlack Bag (tpb, 144 pages, 2016,ISBN 1-68116-027-7)
• Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 — The Official Comic Collection (hc, 240 pages, 2019,ISBN 1-945683-94-5) includes:
  • Call of Duty: Black Ops 4 (free digital comics,Activision, 2018):^[25]
    • "Ruin" (withDébora Caritá, in #1)
    • "Seraph" (withTony Shasteen, in #8)

• Official website
• Chris Roberson at the Internet Book List
• Chris Roberson at theInternet Speculative Fiction Database
• Chris Roberson at theGrand Comics Database
• Chris Roberson at the Comic Book DB (archived fromthe original)

• Living people
• 1970 births
• American comics writers
• American science fiction writers
• 21st-century American novelists
• American male novelists
• Sidewise Award winners
• University of Texas at Austin College of Liberal Arts alumni
• 21st-century American male writers

• Webarchive template wayback links
• Articles with short description
• Short description is different from Wikidata
• Place of birth missing (living people)