Science fiction author Jaoh Varley passed away at his home in Beaverton, Oregon on December 10. He was suffering from diabetes and had COPD.

Varley’s firstpublished short story was “Picnic on Nearside” in 1974. He went on to become one of the major science fiction writers to emerge from the 1970s, being nominated fifteen times for hte Hugo and nine times for the Nebula. He was more prolific at short lengths than at novel length.  My favorites among his work are the Anna-Louise Bach stories. They are a blend of mystery and science fiction set on the Moon. The best collection of his short work is the 2004 retrospective, The John Varley Reader.