A.E. Van Vogt

Alfred Elton van Vogt was a bestselling science fiction author, known for his intricate and bizarre narrative style. Born in 1912 in Manitoba, Canada, van Vogt grew up in a small Russian Mennonite community where Dutch was spoken at home. His father, Heinrich, was a lawyer who moved the family around several times during van Vogt's childhood. They lived in various places, including Neville, Morden, and Winnipeg, before finally settling down in the latter. The frequent moves were challenging for the young van Vogt, who described himself as feeling like a ship without an anchor.

Due to the 1930s depression in North America, van Vogt's family could not afford to send him to college. As a teenager, he worked as a truck driver and farmhand before finding a job at the Canadian Census Bureau. During this time, he attended the University of Ottawa, graduating in 1928. Van Vogt began writing in the true confession style in the 1930s while working at the census office, and it was during this period that he discovered "The Only Two Ways To Write a Short Story" by John W. Gallishaw. This work significantly impacted and honed van Vogt's unique writing style.

Alfred Elton van Vogt is regarded by some as one of the most popular and complex science fiction writers of the mid-twentieth century, a period often referred to as the "Golden Age" of the genre. Van Vogt was born to a Russian Mennonite family and began his writing career with "true story" romances. However, he soon found his niche in science fiction, a field he identified with deeply. His first story, "Black Destroyer," appeared on the front cover of the July 1939 edition of the popular "Astounding Science Fiction" magazine. Van Vogt's writing was characterized by its intricate and bizarre narrative style, which set him apart from many of his contemporaries in the genre.