Patrick S. Tomlinson
Patrick S. Tomlinson is an American science fiction author and stand-up comedian whose fiction blends hard science fiction premises with a sharp satirical wit and an evident enthusiasm for the genre’s classic traditions. He is based in Wisconsin and performs stand-up comedy alongside his writing career — a combination that is less surprising than it might seem, since his fiction consistently demonstrates a comedian’s timing and eye for the absurd within the serious. He is an active and outspoken presence on social media and within the science fiction community.
The Ark (2015), available on WritersReview, is the first novel in his Children of a Dead Earth trilogy and is set aboard a generation ship carrying the last survivors of humanity to a new world. The novel combines the classic SF generation ship premise with a murder mystery plot: Chief of the Security Department Benson must investigate a death that may be more than it appears, with the survival of the entire mission potentially at stake. Tomlinson handles the world-building with confidence — the social, political, and ecological systems of a closed habitat large enough to sustain a human population for generations are worked out with genuine care — while keeping the thriller plot tight and moving. The novel is entertaining, intelligent, and demonstrates a clear love for the classic SF premises it engages with.
The trilogy’s subsequent volumes expand the scope of the story as humanity finally reaches its destination and must confront the realities of establishing a new civilisation, and Tomlinson’s satirical instincts become more prominent as the political dimensions of the narrative develop. His comedy background gives him a sharp eye for institutional absurdity and for the gap between what people say and what they mean — qualities that are enormously useful in political science fiction.
Beyond the Children of a Dead Earth trilogy, Tomlinson has written additional novels and continues to be active in both his writing and performing careers. He represents a tradition of science fiction writers who came to the genre through love of its classic texts and are working within and around those traditions with genuine craft and good humour. His work demonstrates that hard SF and comedy are not in tension — that rigorous engagement with scientific and social ideas can coexist comfortably with genuine wit.
