Robert Silverberg was the Master of Ceremonies at the Nebula awards, which Marion and I attended a few weeks ago.

Robert Silverberg, Master of Ceremonies

Robert Silverberg, Master of Ceremonies

Silverberg told stories about the writers of the Golden Age, like Clifford Simak, Damon Knight, Isaac Asimov, Robert Heinlein, and even lesser known writers like Silverberg’s own mentor Randall Garrett.

There were clearly three “eras” in the room; the Golden Age (1938-1946 if you trust Wikipedia); the New Wave (1960s-1970s, again, Wikipedia) and the current era which I want to call The New Golden Age, based on the quality of fantasy and science fiction that is being written now.

The 2013 Grand Master, Gene Wolfe, is squarely New Wave, as are the other Grand Masters who were present, like Silverberg and Joe Haldeman; yet all of them still hark back to the “greats” from the 1930s and 1940s.

Do you have a favorite Golden Age writer? A favorite New Wave writer? Tell us who, and why. Don’t read older science fiction, fantasy and horror? Tell us why.