Bio

Award-winning author J.D. Robinson writes twisty, humanist science fiction, speculating on the human condition as ordinary people face extraordinary challenges, which may involve wormholes, world sims, alien skins, or lost twins. (The usual stuff.)

As a user interface designer for more years than he cares to count, he’s fascinated by exploring why things work (or don’t) the way they do (or don’t). These questions infuse his stories, from social systems all the way down to individual interactions. Also lending richness to his stories are his myriad unusual experiences out in the world, from being a night-shift airport custodian, to a cog in the machinery of a spy satellite government contractor, to a designer of the earliest 3D chat spaces.

A reclusive nerd, he loves transcribing the weird little movies in his head with the hope of connecting to his ideal reader. His upcoming novel Chronophore won third prize in the 2025 Andromeda Award competition. And his novel The Last Shadow was a semifinalist in the 2021 SPSFC competition. His short story “Fruiting” is now available exclusively to subscribers to his newsletter—join here!

J.D. Robinson now lives in California’s Bay Area with his partner, where he’s waiting for the big one. The singularity, that is.


AI disclosure: he’s addressed the topic in a blog post. But essentially, no generative tools were employed in the writing or design of his stories or books.