Iain M. Banks

Author profile

born

in Dunfermline, Fife, Scotland, The United Kingdom

February 16, 1954

gender

male

website

http://www.iain-banks.net

genre

Science Fiction

About this author

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Iain M. Banks is a pseudonym of Iain Banks which he uses to publish his Science Fiction.

Banks's father was an officer in the Admiralty and his mother was once a professional ice skater. Iain Banks was educated at the University of Stirling where he studied English Literature, Philosophy and Psychology. He moved to London and lived in the south of England until 1988 when he returned to Scotland, living in Edinburgh and then Fife.

Banks met his wife Annie in London, before the release of his first book. They married in Hawaii in 1992. However, he announced in early 2007 that, after 25 years together, they had separated. He currently lives in North Queensferry, a town on the north side of the Firth of Forth near the Forth Bridge and the Forth R...more Iain M. Banks is a pseudonym of Iain Banks which he uses to publish his Science Fiction.

Banks's father was an officer in the Admiralty and his mother was once a professional ice skater. Iain Banks was educated at the University of Stirling where he studied English Literature, Philosophy and Psychology. He moved to London and lived in the south of England until 1988 when he returned to Scotland, living in Edinburgh and then Fife.

Banks met his wife Annie in London, before the release of his first book. They married in Hawaii in 1992. However, he announced in early 2007 that, after 25 years together, they had separated. He currently lives in North Queensferry, a town on the north side of the Firth of Forth near the Forth Bridge and the Forth Road Bridge.

As with his friend Ken MacLeod (another Scottish writer of technical and social science fiction) a strong awareness of left-wing history shows in his writings. The argument that an economy of abundance renders anarchy and adhocracy viable (or even inevitable) attracts many as an interesting potential experiment, were it ever to become testable. He was a signatory to the Declaration of Calton Hill, which calls for Scottish independence.

In late 2004, Banks was a prominent member of a group of British politicians and media figures who campaigned to have Prime Minister Tony Blair impeached following the 2003 invasion of Iraq. In protest he cut up his passport and posted it to 10 Downing Street. In an interview in Socialist Review he claimed he did this after he "abandoned the idea of crashing my Land Rover through the gates of Fife dockyard, after spotting the guys armed with machine guns." He relates his concerns about the invasion of Iraq in his book Raw Spirit, and the principal protagonist (Alban McGill) in the novel The Steep Approach to Garbadale confronts another character with arguments in a similar vein.

Interviewed on Mark Lawson's BBC Four series, first broadcast in the UK on 14 November 2006, Banks explained why his novels are published under two different names. His parents wished to name him Iain Menzies Banks but his father made a mistake when registering the birth and he was officially registered as Iain Banks. Despite this he continued to use his unofficial middle name and it was as Iain M. Banks that he submitted The Wasp Factory for publication. However, his editor asked if he would mind dropping the 'M' as it appeared "too fussy". The editor was also concerned about possible confusion with Rosie M. Banks, a minor character in some of P.G. Wodehouse's Jeeves novels who is a romantic novelist. After his first three mainstream novels his publishers agreed to publish his first SF novel, Consider Phlebas. To distinguish between the mainstream and SF novels, Banks suggested the return of the 'M', although at one stage he considered John B. Macallan as his SF pseudonym, the name deriving from his favourite whiskies: Johnnie Walker Black Label and The Macallan single malt.

His latest book is a science fiction (SF) novel in the Culture series, called The Hydrogen Sonata, published in 2012.

Author Iain M. Banks has revealed in April 2013 that he has late stage cancer and is unlikely to live for more than a year.

The Scottish writer posted a message on his official website saying his next novel "The Quarry", due to be published later this year, would be his last.(less)

combine editions
Iain M. Banks's Books

Average rating: 3.99 · 103,916 ratings · 5,299 reviews · 25 distinct works · Similar authors

	Consider Phlebas (Culture, #1) 3.82 of 5 stars 3.82 avg rating — 18,301 ratings — published 1987 — 34 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Player of Games (Culture, #2) 4.21 of 5 stars 4.21 avg rating — 16,349 ratings — published 1988 — 33 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Use of Weapons (Culture, #3) 4.16 of 5 stars 4.16 avg rating — 11,231 ratings — published 1990 — 22 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Excession (Culture, #5) 4.11 of 5 stars 4.11 avg rating — 7,449 ratings — published 1996 — 13 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Matter (Culture, #8) 3.89 of 5 stars 3.89 avg rating — 7,448 ratings — published 2008 — 17 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Surface Detail (Culture, #9) 4.13 of 5 stars 4.13 avg rating — 6,253 ratings — published 2010 — 15 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Algebraist 3.88 of 5 stars 3.88 avg rating — 6,766 ratings — published 2004 — 15 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Look to Windward (Culture, #7) 4.02 of 5 stars 4.02 avg rating — 6,470 ratings — published 2000 — 21 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Against a Dark Background 4.0 of 5 stars 4.00 avg rating — 5,360 ratings — published 1993 — 17 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Inversions (Culture, #6) 3.81 of 5 stars 3.81 avg rating — 4,519 ratings — published 1998 — 17 editions	Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Iain M. Banks…

Series by Iain M. Banks

Culture (10 books)
by Iain M. Banks
4.015188378410299 of 5 stars 4.02 avg rating — 84,670 ratings

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Quotes by Iain M. Banks

“Perdition awaits at the end of a road constructed entirely from good intentions, the devil emerges from the details and hell abides in the small print.”
― Iain M. Banks, Transition

10 people liked it

“it gripped her hand gently. 'regret is for humans,' it said.
she laughed. 'really?'
the machine shrugged and let go of her hand. 'oh no, it's just something we tell ourselves.”
― Iain M. Banks, Against a Dark Background

10 people liked it

“What's one more meaningless act of violence on that zoo of a planet?
It would be appropriate.
When in Rome; burn it.”
― Iain M. Banks, The State of the Art

8 people liked it

See all Iain M. Banks's quotes »

Polls

JUNE SCIENCE FICTION: This poll decides which two books will go on to the run-off poll for our June Science Fiction Book-of-the-month.

Steal Across the Sky by Nancy Kress

29 votes, 32.2%

The Hydrogen Sonata by Iain M. Banks

21 votes, 23.3%

The Time Ships by Stephen Baxter

13 votes, 14.4%

Gateway by Frederik Pohl

13 votes, 14.4%

Grimspace by Ann Aguirre

10 votes, 11.1%

Only Forward by Michael Marshall Smith

4 votes, 4.4%

90 total votes

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Goodreads Librari...: Iain Banks	11	115	Apr 09, 2012 01:55am
The Sword and Laser: Vote on the MAY pick	56	394	Apr 10, 2012 07:00am
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Beyond Reality: Nominations for August 2012	27	96	May 20, 2012 11:24am
The Seasonal Read...: Spring Challenge 2012: Completed Tasks -DO NOT DELETE ANY POSTS IN THIS TOPIC	2344	529	May 31, 2012 09:02pm
Beyond Reality: Welcome to June 2012!	1	27	Jun 01, 2012 09:23am
The Sword and Laser: Suggestions for the July book?	208	468	Jun 13, 2012 04:17pm
Beyond Reality: Welcome to July 2012!	1	25	Jul 01, 2012 10:27am

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