Stories of Your Life and Others
The first major collection and a broad introduction to Chiang's early fiction.
Author guide
Ted Chiang Books in Order
Ted Chiang (born 1967) is an American science-fiction and fantasy writer whose highly acclaimed short fiction frequently examines consciousness, free will, mathematics, language, theology, and technological change. His work has received multiple Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards, and he has also written nonfiction about technology and artificial intelligence.
science fictionfantasyspeculative fiction
Catalog record updated .
Not sure where to begin?
Start with one of these
Exhalation: Stories
The most comprehensive collection of his later fiction and the best single overview of his mature work.
Outside the series
Bibliography by category
Novels (1)
- The Lifecycle of Software Objects
novella · 2010
Follows the lives of Ana Alvarado and Derek Brooks as they create and relate to the artificial intelligences they helped design.
Short fiction (5)
- Hell Is the Absence of God
novelette · 2001
In a world where the existence of God and the reality of Heaven and Hell are indisputable facts, divine visitations are common but carry the destructive force of natural disasters. The story follows Neil Fisk, a man whose wife was killed…
- Stories of Your Life and Others
short-story-collection · 2002
With his masterful first collection, multiple-award-winning author Ted Chiang deftly blends human emotion and scientific rationalism in eight remarkably diverse stories, all told in his trademark precise and evocative prose. From a…
- The Merchant and the Alchemist's Gate
novelette · 2007
A Baghdad merchant, who discovers an alchemical device that can send him back in time twenty years, tries to return to an earlier time to save his dead wife.
- Exhalation
short-story · 2008
From the acclaimed author of Stories of Your Life and Others - the basis for the Academy Award nominated film Arrival - comes a groundbreaking second collection of short fiction: nine stunningly original, provocative, and poignant…
- Exhalation: Stories
short-story-collection · 2019
Frequently asked questions about Ted Chiang
Who is Ted Chiang and what is he known for?
Ted Chiang is an American science-fiction writer known for tightly constructed short fiction that combines scientific and philosophical ideas with emotionally rich storytelling.
Sources: santafe.edu (opens in a new tab)penguinrandomhouse.com (opens in a new tab)
Where was Ted Chiang born, and what did he study?
He was born in Port Jefferson, New York, in 1967, and studied computer science at Brown University.
Sources: penguinrandomhouse.com (opens in a new tab)santafe.edu (opens in a new tab)
What was Ted Chiang’s career outside fiction?
Chiang has worked as a technical writer in the software industry, including at Microsoft, while pursuing his fiction career.
Sources: santafe.edu (opens in a new tab)straitstimes.com (opens in a new tab)
What influenced Ted Chiang’s writing?
His early influences included science-fiction writers Isaac Asimov and Arthur C. Clarke, while The Feynman Lectures on Physics helped spark one of his major creative ideas. He also has taught himself subjects such as linguistics to support his fiction.
Source: santafe.edu (opens in a new tab)
What awards has Ted Chiang won, and what is his legacy?
His fiction has won multiple Hugo, Nebula, and Locus Awards, and he received the 2024 PEN/Bernard and Ann Malamud Award for Excellence in the Short Story. He is regarded as an important contemporary short-fiction writer for bringing ambitious scientific and philosophical questions into concise, emotionally grounded stories.
Sources: nebulas.sfwa.org (opens in a new tab)santafe.edu (opens in a new tab)santafe.edu (opens in a new tab)