BEN BOVA, born November 8, 1932, is one of the foremost American science fiction writers, a position he’s enjoyed for over fifty years. He began as a technical writer in the ’50s and ’60s, first for the US Naval Research Laboratory and later for Avco Everett, where he was involved in research on lasers and fluid dynamics. He first began writing science fiction in the late ’50s and early ’60s with his Watchmen series. In 1972 he became the editor of Analog Science Fiction and six years later went on to edit Omni Magazine. In 1973 he first got into the film business, working as a science advisor for the television series The Starlost. However he left the show in disgust after the airing of the first episode.

During this time he wrote many books, and in 1974 he wrote his first television screenplay for the Saturday morning children’s series Land of the Lost. In the ’80s and ’90s he went back to school and earned several degrees. During this time he also served as president for several organizations, including the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. Bova has written over 115 books of varying types including science fiction, fantasy, and nonfiction. He writes primarily from personal knowledge which includes—among lasers, spaceflight, nanotechnology, etc.—fencing, martial arts, environmentalism, and photography. He continues to write and has also been providing various consulting services to projects in Hollywood, including the 2010 film Repo Men.