J.M. Frey

Canadian science fiction and fantasy author
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J.M. Frey
BornJessica Marie Frey
Guelph, Ontario, Canada
OccupationNovelist, Voice actor
Alma materBrock University, St. Catharines; Ryerson University (now Toronto Metropolitan University), Toronto; York University, Toronto
Period2011 to present
GenreSpeculative fiction, Science fiction, Queer Romance, Urban Fantasy, Steampunk, Romance
Notable worksTriptych, City by Night, The Untold Tale (The Accidental Turn Series), The Skylark's Song (The Skylark's Saga), The Maddening Science, Hero is a Four Letter Word, Lips Like Ice (as Peggy Barnett), Time and Tide
Website
jmfrey.net

Jessica Marie Frey /ˈfraɪ/ FRY is a Canadian science fiction and fantasy author. While she is best known for her debut novel Triptych, Frey's work encompasses poetry, academic and magazine articles, screenplays, and short stories. Frey calls herself a "professional geek".[1]

Frey has appeared at Toronto-area science fiction conventions and is involved with charity and community fan groups and initiatives. She regularly appears on radio shows, television talk shows, and podcasts discussing fandom and genre works.[2]

Biography

Frey began writing at the age of eleven. She began by writing fanfiction, which she calls her "apprenticeship to the fandom community",[3] which led her to write original stories at the age of eighteen. Frey's academic and creative writing focused primarily on Japanese mythology, the Classics, and traditional Japanese theatre.[4] She began her first novel while at Brock University, which has not yet been published, and first began to seriously study creative writing there.

After earning her Bachelor of Arts in Dramatic Literature (honors) in 2005, Frey lived in Fukuoka, Japan for two years,[5] where she taught English as a Japanese Exchange Teacher, and worked on several other to-date-unpublished manuscripts. In 2007, Frey returned to Canada to attend Ryerson and York Universities for a Masters of Arts.

Dragon Moon Press acquired Frey's debut novel Triptych in late 2009[6] after Frey and the acquisitions editor Gabrielle Harbowy[7] met at a party at the Ad Astra science fiction convention. The book was released in April 2011, and re-released with bonus content in 2018.[8] From there, Frey published The Accidental Turn Series (four books; meta-Epic Fantasy; 2015–2018) and The Skylark's Saga (two books; Steampunk Young Adult fiction; 2018–2019)[9] with REUTS Publications, and self-published the 2019 Watty Award-winning The Woman Who Fell Through Time in 2020.[10]

Frey was the recipient of the Toronto Arts Council Works in Progress Grant in 2018,[11] and announced that she will be working on a novel-length version of her 2012 short story The Maddening Science[12] as her granted project. Frey announced in 2023 that her novel "The Woman Who Fell Through Time" (also known as "A Woman of the Sea") had been picked up for publication with W by Wattpad (Wattpad Webtoon Studios) in spring 2024.[13]

Frey is based in Toronto, and is currently unrepresented.

Critical reception

Triptych (2011) received a starred review from Publishers Weekly,[14] and was named the #3 best Sci-Fi/Fantasy/Horror book of 2011 by Publishers Weekly's Rose Fox.[15] Triptych was also nominated for the CBC Bookie Award for Science Fiction,[16] the Lambda Literary Award for Bisexual Fiction,[17] and the Lambda Literary Award for Science Fiction. Triptych won best Science Fiction Book at the 2012 San Francisco Book Festival,[18] and was given an honorable mention for Science Fiction Book at the 2012 London Book Festival.[19]

The Untold Tale (2015) was reviewed in Io9, where they compare the book to Redshirts, only "for fantasy, sort of."[20]

The Forgotten Tale (2016) was reviewed by Publishers Weekly where they call the book, "thought-provoking" for the way that it covers the stereotypes of women in fantasy novels.[21]

Frey has frequently presented an academic view on the geek scene in documentaries, podcasts, radio interviews, and television interviews.[4] Her essay, "How Fanfiction Made Me Gay," was written about in the New York Times' Women in the World series.[22]

The Skylark's Saga was optioned on a shopping agreement for an animated children's television series in autumn 2018 by Montreal-based production company Alpaca vs. Lama.[23]

Other Awards and Accolades[24]

Publications

Prose

Screenplays

Poetry

Academic

Journalism

Comics

As Peggy Barnett (Erotica)

References

  1. ^ Frey, JM (2011). "JM Frey, fanpage". JM Frey. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  2. ^ Frey, JM. "Appearances". JMFrey.net. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  3. ^ McCourt, DF. ""I WAS A FAN FIRST": A CONVERSATION WITH J.M. FREY". aescifi.ca. Archived from the original on 2011-10-02. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  4. ^ a b "JM Frey - Press Kit" (PDF). JMFrey.net. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  5. ^ "Anime North: Featured Guests". Anime North. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  6. ^ "Dragon Moon Press: Signed - JM Frey". Dragon Moon Press. 2009. Archived from the original on 2010-12-31. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  7. ^ "Gabrielle Harbowy" (Press release). SF Editors Wiki. Archived from the original on 2012-05-10. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  8. ^ "Triptych". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  9. ^ "J.M. Frey". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  10. ^ "GoodReads". www.goodreads.com. Retrieved 2022-01-20.
  11. ^ Frey, J. M. (2018-09-19). "ANNOUNCEMENT – Toronto Arts Council Grant". J.M. Frey. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  12. ^ Frey, J. M. (2018-12-12). "The Maddening Science – New Writing Process Blog". J.M. Frey. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  13. ^ Frey, J. M. (2023-05-09). "ANNOUNCEMENT: "Time and Tide" to be published with Wattpad". J.M. Frey. Retrieved 2023-06-12.
  14. ^ "Triptych by JM Frey". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  15. ^ "The Best Books of 2011". Publishers Weekly. Archived from the original on 2014-10-28. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  16. ^ "Triptych is nominated for a CBC Bookie Award". Dragon Moon Press. Archived from the original on 2013-01-21. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  17. ^ "24th Annual Lambda Literary Award Finalists Announced". Lambda Literary Awards. Archived from the original on 2012-06-17. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  18. ^ "SAN FRANCISCO BOOK FESTIVAL WINNERS LIST". San Francisco Book Festival. Retrieved 2012-07-15.
  19. ^ "LONDON BOOK FESTIVAL WINNERS". London Book Festival. Retrieved 2012-07-15.[permanent dead link]
  20. ^ Anders, Charlie Jane. "All the Science Fiction and Fantasy Books You Can't Afford To Miss In December!". io9. Retrieved 2017-10-04.
  21. ^ "The Forgotten Tale: The Accidental Turn Series, book II". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved 2017-10-04.
  22. ^ "The geek girl's guide to love and sex". Women in the World in Association with The New York Times - WITW. 2015-12-07. Retrieved 2017-10-04.
  23. ^ Frey, J. M. (2019-01-18). "ANNOUNCEMENT – "The Skylark's Saga" has been picked up!". J.M. Frey. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
  24. ^ Frey, J. M. (2012-01-06). "Bibliography". J.M. Frey. Retrieved 2019-04-14.
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