D. J. Butler
David John Butler is an American speculative fiction author. His epic flintlock fantasy novel Witchy Winter won the 2018 AML Award for Best Novel and the 2018 Whitney Award for Best Speculative Fiction. Both Witchy Eye and Witchy Winter were finalists for the Dragon Award in 2017 and 2018 (respectively), and Witchy Eye was a preliminary nominee for the Gemmell Morningstar Award.
D. J. Butler | |
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Born | David John Butler |
Alma mater | |
Genres | |
Notable works |
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Notable awards |
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Years active | 2010-present[1] |
Spouse | Emily Butler[1] |
Website | |
davidjohnbutler |
Life and career
D.J. Butler attended the New York University School of Law, earning his Juris Doctor in 1999. He spent over a decade working as a lawyer for companies including Micron Technology before opening an independent firm in 2010.[2] He is employed as a corporate trainer, using his skills as a storyteller to educate business people.[2] He began pursuing his childhood dream of being an author in 2010.[3] His steampunk Western novel City of Saints was a 2012 Whitney Award finalist in the speculative fiction category.[4] He also worked as acquisitions editor for WordFire Press.[2]
In 2017, Baen published the first of Butler's American epic flintlock fantasy series, Witchy Eye, set in an alternate 1815 America.[5] It was a finalist for a Dragon Award in 2017[6] and was a preliminary nominee for a Gemmell Morningstar Award in 2018.[7] The second book in the series, Witchy Winter, won the 2018 AML Award for Best Novel, the 2018 Whitney Award for Best Speculative Fiction, and was a finalist for the 2018 Dragon Award for Best Alternate History Novel.[8][9][10]
Bibliography
The Buza System
- Crecheling (February 2015, WordFire Press)
- Urbane (July 2016, WordFire Press, ISBN 9781614754268)
City of Saints
Alternate history Civil War era featuring secret agents Samuel Clemens and Edgar Allan Poe trying to obtain the plans for airship and ray gun technology.
- Liahona (June 2012, self, ebook only, no ISBN)
- Deseret (July 2012, self, ebook only, no ISBN)
- Timpanogos (August 2012, self, ebook only, no ISBN)
- Teancum (September 2012, self, ebook only, no ISBN)
An omnibus, collecting all four novels, was also published:
- City of Saints (omnibus, November 2015, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-347-6)[11]
The Extraordinary Journeys of Clockwork Charlie
A clockwork boy, Charlie Pondicherry, has various adventures. This is a middle grade series.
Hiram Woolley
- The Cunning Man with Aaron Michael Ritchey (November 2019, Baen, ISBN 9781982124168)
Indrajit and Fix
- "The Path of the Hunter" in Negotiation edited by Kacey Ezell and Marisa Wolf (October 2019, Seventh Seal Press, ISBN 978-1-950420-57-5)
- "No Trade for Nice Guys" in When Valor Must Hold edited by Rob Howell and Chris Kennedy (February 2020, New Mythology Press, ISBN 978-1-950420-97-1)
- In the Palace of Shadow and Joy (July 2020, Baen, ISBN 9781982124700)
Rock Band Fights Evil
- Hellhound on My Trail (February 2015, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-293-6)
- Snake Handlin' Man (February 2015, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-301-8)
- Crow Jane (February 2015, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-299-8)
- Devil Sent the Rain (February 2015, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-258-5)
- This World Is Not My Home (June 2016, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-406-0)
- The Good Son (July 2016, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-390-2)
- Earth Angel (July 2016, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-392-6)
Two omnibuses collect the first six novels:
- Band on the Run (vol.1-3, March 2016, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-388-9)
- The Road to Hell (vols.4-6, April 2017, WordFire Press, ISBN 978-1-61475-560-9)
The Witchy War
Alternate history flintlock fantasy set in the early 1800s North America.
Witchy Eye trology
Serpent Daughter trilogy
- Serpent Daughter (November 2020, Baen, ISBN 9781982124977)[21]
Awards and honors
Butler has received the following awards and honors:
Year | Organization | Award title, Category |
Work | Result | Refs |
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2012 | Storymakers | Whitney Award, Best Speculative Fiction |
City of Saints | Finalist | [4] |
2016 | Association for Mormon Letters | AML Award, Middle Grade Novel |
The Kidnap Plot | Finalist | [22] |
2017 | Dragon Con | Dragon Award, Best Alternate History Novel |
Witchy Eye | Finalist | [6] |
2018 | DGLA | Gemmell Award, Morningstar Award |
Witchy Eye | Preliminary nominee | [7] |
2018 | Association for Mormon Letters | AML Award, Novel |
Witchy Winter | Won | [9] |
2018 | Dragon Con | Dragon Award, Best Alternate History Novel |
Witchy Winter | Finalist | [8] |
2018 | Storymakers | Whitney Award, Best Speculative Fiction |
Witchy Winter | Won | [10] |
2019 | Association for Mormon Letters | AML Award,
Novel |
The Cunning Man | Finalist | [23] |
References
- "About Dave". Dave Butler Writes. 26 November 2011. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Interview with D.J. Butler, Lawyer and Speculative Writer". Anaphora Literary Press. 12 April 2018. Archived from the original on 13 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- Sharp, Nicole (15 April 2013). "Eagle Goes Gonzo – Eagle Magazine". Eagle Magazine. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "2012 Finalists – The Whitney Awards". Whitney Awards. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Witchy Eye Is a Flintlock Fantasy of a Different Breed". The B&N Sci-Fi and Fantasy Blog. 17 March 2017. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "2017 Dragon Award". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "2018 David Gemmell Awards for Fantasy". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "2018 Dragon Award". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "2018 AML Award Winners". Dawning of a Brighter Day: Twenty-First Century Mormon Literature. Association for Mormon Letters. 30 March 2019. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 31 March 2019.
- Hall, Andrew (11 May 2019). "2018 Whitney Awards winners". Association for Mormon Letters. Archived from the original on 11 May 2019. Retrieved 11 May 2019.
- "Title: City of the Saints". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Title: The Kidnap Plot". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "The kidnap plot". OCLC WorldCat. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Title: The Giant's Seat". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "The giant's seat". OCLC WorldCat. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Title: The Library Machine". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Title: Witchy Eye". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- Witchy Eye. 27 February 2018. ISBN 9781481483117.
- "Title: Witchy Winter". Internet Speculative Fiction Database. Archived from the original on 12 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Witchy winter". OCLC WorldCat. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "Serpent Daughter". Simon & Schuster. Simon & Schuster, Inc. Retrieved 8 April 2020.
- Hall, Andrew (28 February 2017). "2016 AML Awards Finalists #1: Middle Grade and Young Adult Novels". Association for Mormon Letters. Archived from the original on 13 April 2019. Retrieved 12 April 2019.
- "2019 AML Awards Finalists #1: Novels and Short Fiction". Dawning of a Brighter Day. 7 March 2020.