Hannu Rajaniemi

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Hannu Rajaniemi
Hannu Rajaniemi.jpg
Rajaniemi in 2011
Born (1978-03-09) 9 March 1978 (age 47)
Ylivieska, Finland
OccupationWriter, entrepreneur
LanguageEnglish, Finnish
NationalityFinnish
Period2003–present
Genre Science fiction, fantasy

Hannu Rajaniemi (born 9 March 1978) is a Finnish American author and biotechnology entrepeneur. He has published literary works in science fiction and fantasy, and writes in both English and Finnish. He lives in Oakland, California. He is the founding director of a commercial research organisation ThinkTank Maths. [1] He cofounded the biotechnology company Helix Nano with Nikolai Eroshenko in 2013. [2] [3]

Contents

Early life

Rajaniemi was born in Ylivieska, Finland, in 1978. He holds a BSc in Mathematics from the University of Oulu, a Certificate of Advanced Study in Mathematics from the University of Cambridge and a PhD in Mathematical Physics from the University of Edinburgh. Prior to starting his PhD candidature, he completed his national service as a research scientist for the Finnish Defence Forces. [1]

While pursuing his PhD in Edinburgh, Rajaniemi joined Writers' Bloc, [4] a writers' group in Edinburgh that organizes semi-regular spoken word performances and counts Charlie Stross amongst its members.

Career

Early works included his first published short story "Shibuya no Love" [5] in 2003 and his short story "Deus Ex Homine" in Nova Scotia, a 2005 anthology of Scottish science fiction and fantasy, which caught the attention of his current literary agent, John Jarrold. [6] [7]

Rajaniemi gained attention in October 2008 when John Jarrold secured a three-book deal for him with Gollancz, [8] on the basis of only twenty-four double-spaced pages. [6] [9] His debut novel, The Quantum Thief , was published in September 2010 by Gollancz in Britain [10] and was published in May 2011 by Tor Books in the U.S. [11] [12] The novel has been nominated for the 2011 Locus Award for Best First Novel. [13] A sequel, The Fractal Prince , was published in September 2012 by Gollancz in Britain, and in October 2012 by Tor in the U.S. [14] The third book in the series is called The Causal Angel , and was published in July 2014 by Gollancz in the U.K. and by Tor in the U.S. [15]

Rajaniemi has stated that the literary works of Jules Verne originally inspired both his career in science, as well as his science-fiction writing. [16] Other influences include Maurice Leblanc, Arthur Conan Doyle and architecture blogger Geoff Manaugh. [17] He also co-founded Helix nanotechnologies. [18]

Awards and honors

Personal life

As of 2014, Rajaniemi lives in San Francisco, California, with his wife. [23] [ citation needed ] Before moving to the U.S., he lived in the United Kingdom for over ten years. [24]

Bibliography

Novels

The Jean le Flambeur series

Collections

Short fiction

A partial list follows.

References

  1. 1 2 "About us". ThinkTank Maths. Archived from the original on 12 June 2008. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  2. ↑ Newitz, Annalee (4 August 2016). "Hannu Rajaniemi leads a double life as a scientist and sci-fi writer". Ars Technica . Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  3. ↑ Newitz, Annalee (24 April 2024). "What it's like to invent a coronavirus vaccine in the middle of a pandemic". CNBC . Retrieved 1 December 2025.
  4. ↑ "Writers' Bloc » Hannu Rajaniemi". Writers' Bloc. 4 January 2010. Archived from the original on 10 November 2014. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  5. ↑ "Shibuya no Love".
  6. 1 2 Sam Bandah (3 November 2010). "Interview: Hannu Rajaniemi". SciFiNow. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  7. ↑ John Jarrold: Clients. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  8. ↑ Jarrold, John (6 October 2008). "Major three-book pre-empt deal for debut SF novelist". LiveJournal. Archived from the original on 16 March 2012. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  9. ↑ Richard Lea (9 November 2010). "Hannu Rajaniemi: the science of fiction". The Guardian. London. Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  10. ↑ Hannu Rajaniemi Archived 6 April 2010 at the Wayback Machine on the publisher's site.
  11. ↑ John Jarrold (23 July 2010). "Three-book US rights deal for Hannu Rajaniemi" . Retrieved 7 January 2015.
  12. ↑ Jussi Ahlroth, Hannu Rajaniemen romaanit julkaistaan myös Yhdysvalloissa, Helsingin Sanomat, 20 July 2010, p. B 1.
  13. 1 2 "2011 Locus Award Finalists". Locus. 11 May 2011. Retrieved 13 May 2011.
  14. ↑ Hannu Rajaniemi – The Fractal Prince cover art, release date, and preorder details on Upcoming4.me. Archived 14 April 2012 at the Wayback Machine .
  15. ↑ Endgame: The Causal Angel by Hannu Rajaniemi.
  16. ↑ Popular Finnish authors reveal the books that shaped their student years. Study.eu. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  17. ↑ Once a physicist: Hannu Rajaniemi.
  18. ↑ Helix Nanotechnologies. The Y Combinator Database. Retrieved 19 December 2017.
  19. ↑ "Tähtivaeltaja Award 2012"
  20. ↑ "And The Winners Are…", SF&FTA website, 18 June 2011.
  21. ↑ "The Locus Index to SF Awards: 2011 John W. Campbell Memorial Award". Locus . Archived from the original on 25 October 2012. Retrieved 23 November 2012.
  22. ↑ "Campbell Memorial Award Finalists". Locus . 10 May 2013. Retrieved 16 May 2013.
  23. ↑ "Hannu Rajaniemi vastaanotti Pro Ylivieska-mitalin". Keskipohjanmaa (in Finnish). 16 December 2014. Archived from the original on 17 March 2021. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  24. ↑ Heinilä, Tiina (12 October 2010). "Hannu Rajaniemi aims at world domination". Embassy of Finland, London . Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  25. ↑ "Summerland by Hannu Rajaniemi".
  26. ↑ "ENNAKKOTIEDOTE: Biotekniikkaa ja tekoälyä – Kaliforniassa asuvan kirjailija-tiedemies Hannu Rajaniemen lähitulevaisuuteen sijoittuva trilleri julkaistaan Helsingin kirjamessuilla". STT Info (in Finnish). Finnish News Agency. 2 October 2024. Retrieved 26 November 2024.
  27. ↑ "The John W. Campbell Memorial Award" Archived 31 October 2019 at the Wayback Machine . The John Wayne and Elsie M. Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction. The University of Kansas. Updated 11 July 2011. Retrieved 24 April 2012.
  28. ↑ Hannu Rajaniemi - The Causal Angel announced Archived 23 March 2014 at the Wayback Machine
  29. ↑ "Writer's Bloc - Chapbooks". 9 October 2009. Archived from the original on 24 September 2014. Retrieved 31 July 2014.
  30. ↑ "Tachyon 2015 preview: HANNU RAJANIEMI: COLLECTED FICTION". Tumblr. Retrieved 26 January 2015.
  31. ↑ "And The Winners Are..." Science Fiction & Fantasy Translation Awards. Retrieved 26 June 2011.
  32. ↑ Tilton, Lois (7 December 2010). "Lois Tilton reviews Short Fiction, early December". Locus . Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  33. ↑ Seel, Nigel (11 April 2011). "Book Review: Engineering Infinity (ed) Jonathan Strahan". ScienceFiction.com. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  34. ↑ Waters, Robert E. (8 March 2011). "Engineering Infinity, edited by Jonathan Strahan". Tangent. Archived from the original on 13 April 2017. Retrieved 6 January 2015.
  35. ↑ Alexander, Niall (12 June 2014). "Step into the Stars: Reach for Infinity, ed. Jonathan Strahan". Tor.com . Retrieved 13 December 2015.
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