Andre Norton

Born as Alice Mary Norton in 1912 in Cleveland, Ohio, Norton decided in high school that she'd be a history teacher. Yet, after writing stories for her school's paper, she began penning her first book after her graduation. Continuing her education at Flora Stone Mather College for two years, Norton then worked for the Cleveland Library System. In 1934 she changed her name to Andre Alice Norton to attract male readership of her primarily science-fiction or fantasy stories. At this time as well, she published her first novel and then returned to the book she penned after high school. Re-writing and editing helped her get it published, too.

Norton continued working, helping in the cataloguing department of the Library of Congress from 1940 until 1941, when America entered World War II. Afterwards she bought a bookstore, but it didn't prosper, so she returned to the Cleveland Public Library. Next Norton gained employment at Gnome Press as a reader for Martin Greenberg before deciding to become a full-time writer. Norton was the first woman to receive the Gandalf Grand Master Award from the World Science Fiction Society. The author of Shadow Hawk, Norton also penned a combination of over 300 stories and books. She wrote until her poor health stilled her progress, and Norton passed away on March 17, 2005.