The Program books at Science Fiction conventions ask for brief biographies of the participants. I’ve been a Program Participant at the Boston-area Arisia convention for over 15 years. I thought simply asticking to the facts would be a little dull, so I vary my bio from year to year.
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Arisia 2010
Rejected by both his Morlock and his Eloi playmates, Stephen R. Wilk was banished into the distant past, our present, where it was hoped he would do no harm. Unable to cash in on the results of Chariot Races and Consul Elections he’d memorized, he was forced to work as an Optical Engineer. In his spare time he writes The Light Touch for OPN and for MIT’s The Spectroscope, and produces the occasional book. He has appeared on the History Channel’s Clash of the Gods, but we’re hoping no one will notice.
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Arisia 2011
Dropping out of his 11-dimension Home Universe and trapped in ours by a lab accident, Stephen R. Wilk has coped by learning to work with optics in only three dimensions as a Laser Scientist. He also edits for Optics and Photonics News, and writes for The Light Touch, and The Spectrograph. He’s working on Sons of God, the follow-up to his book Medusa, and has appeared on the History Channel’s Clash of the Gods, which so far is only available in 2D.
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Arisia 2012
Critically reviled for his experiments taking high-efficiency laser light and turning it into low-intensity, incoherent, broadband scattering, Stephen R. Wilk continues to work in Optics. He edits for Optics and Photonics News, and writes for The Light Touch, and The Spectrograph. He’s working on his book Sons of God (the follow-up to Medusa), How the Ray Gun Got Its Zap!, and The Creature that Ate Sheboygan. He has appeared on the History Channel’s Clash of the Gods.
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Arisia 2013
Hailed for his innovative use of laser pointers in subduing the Kzinti, Stephen R. Wilk continues to work in Optics and to be a Contributing editor for Optics and Photonics News. This year will see the publication of How the Ray Gun Got Its Zap! by Oxford University Press, as well as The Scarecrow of Os, his follow-up to Medusa: Solving the Mystery of the Gorgon. His story “The Ipswich Abhorrence” is being published by Roar and Thunder. He is also looking into making small light sabres to use as letter openers.
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Arisia 2014
After the failure of his LED Light Sabre, Stephen R Wilk was reduced to selling flashlights on street corners. He did find time to persuade Oxford University Press to publish his collection of articles on weird optics, How the Ray Gun Got Its Zap! He also had fictional pieces appearing in Analog and Tales of the Undead, as well as several online publications. Against everyone’s expectations, he continues to be a Contributing Editor for the OSA.
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Arisia 2015
Having retreated to the basements of the Paris Opera House wearing a demi-mask, Stephen R Wilk has been trying unsuccessfully to find a young protégé willing to learn the rudiments of Optics. He did persuade Oxford University Press to publish his scribbled manuscript of “How the Ray Gun Got Its Zap!”, and has had fiction published in Analog and Tales of the Undead, as well as several online publications. From his dark and miserable lair, he continues to be a Contributing Editor for the OSA.
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Arisia 2016
Stephen R. Wilk stepped in from a Parallel Dimension and now can’t find his way back — they all look ALMOST exactly alike. He spends his time dodging people who say “I know someone who looks just like you!”, working at a Boston High Tech company, and being an editor for the Optical Society of America. In his copious spare time he writes. His How the Ray Gun Got Its Zap! has been published by Oxford University Press, “Alloprene” will be published in Analog this year, and “George Washington and the Dragon” will be in the anthology Live Free or Dragons this September.
The Writings of Stephen R. Wilk 