Larry Niven (Laurence van Cott Niven) was born on April 30th 1938, in Los Angeles, California. In 1956 he entered the California Institute of Technology, only to flunk out a year and a half later after discovering a bookstore jammed with used science-fiction magazines. Larry finally graduated with a B.A. in mathematics (and a minor in psychology) from Washburn University, Kansas, in 1962, and completed one year of graduate work in mathematics at UCLA before dropping out to write.
Larry's first published story, "The Coldest Place", appeared in the December 1964 issue of World of If.
Larry has been seen for some time as HARD SF's last best hope; and there can be no doubt that hard-sf writers dominant in the 1980s, like Greg BEAR, and some of those reaching for eminence in the 1990s and 2000ths, like Paul J. MCAULEY and Roger MacBride ALLEN, and one of Larry's own favorites, Stephen BAXTER owe much to the scope of Larry's inventiveness, the sense he conveys of technological ingenuity as being ultimately beneficial, and his cognitive exuberance.
Together with Jerry Pournelle you won the Heinlein Award in 2005 as the author who best could encourage human exploration of space. Do you still believe deep space remains mankind's next frontier?
There are frontiers in all directions. Yes, I still want the human race to take command of our solar system. The more you know about giant meteoroid impacts, the more you’d want to stop one.
Science fiction has almost removed alien races as main characters. The genre is actually changing its skin, directing itself towards the last developments of genetics and biology. Do you think judge this statement to be correct?
You’re correct. I use aliens far less in my new stories. It’s too hard, too chancy, to guess at what might have evolved elsewhere in the universe. And yet an imaginary alien is a wonderful mirror for what a human being is not.
The mote in god's eye is the novel that made you and Jerry Pournelle well-known as the new space opera authors towards the half of '70's. What is the direction Larry Niven would like to push science fiction to now?
I just write. If there are people following me, that’s a good choice. As for my next direction, it seems to be collaborations.
The mote in god's eye described how an imperial system deals with important science breakthroughs, such as discovering an alien civilization. It was also a metaphor to underline which are a modern superpower's ways to act towards the rest of the world?
Dr. Pournelle’s imperial system of government was no metaphor. He believes, and made me believe, that this is a plausible and workable future.
How do you consider R.A.Heinlein? In Italy he is judged as a right-wing writer, but his critic of modern society looks to my eyes to be instead rather progressive. Do you agree?
Robert Heinlein was considered very left-wing at one time. I believe that it’s difficult to fit science fiction writers in boxes, and Robert certainly never fit someone else’s mold. What he learned about being human and shaping a life, he wrote.
You have been in the entourage of the White House, just like Pournelle and R.A.Heinlein to give suggestions about space-question management. What was exactly that you did at that time? Of course, if you are allowed to speak about it! :-)
None of this is secret. Dr. Pournelle had the ear of the President’s Science Advisor. On that basis we gathered 40 to 50 people to produce a rational space program with costs and schedules—something nobody in Washington was doing. In the course of our work we saw that it was possible to set up a barrier to incoming missiles, several ways. From this evolved the Space Defense Initiative, SDI.
You are also a fantasy author. What does a science fiction novelist feel in approaching a world made out of magic and no - or little - technology?
When writing fantasy, keep it consistent. (When writing anything, keep it consistent—but it’s harder when you have to make up every rule.)
What are you writing at the moment?
I’m working with Dr. Pournelle on reshaping the sequel to Dante’s INFERNO that we wrote 25 years ago. When that’s done, we’ll begin a sequel.
Is the couple Niven-Pournelle ever going to be restored for a novel?
We’re working on Inferno and Inferno 2, and several other projects are waiting for us. Meanwhile, enjoy BURNING TOWER.
