Keith Laumer

John Keith Laumer was an American science fiction author, best known for his Bolo stories and his satirical Retief series. Prior to becoming a full-time writer, he had a diverse career, serving as an officer in the U.S. Air Force and a U.S. diplomat. These experiences greatly influenced his writing, particularly the Retief series, which draws from his time in the United States Foreign Service and satirizes bureaucracy and politics.

Laumer's works often followed one of two patterns: fast-paced, straight adventures in time and space with an emphasis on lone-wolf, latent superman protagonists, self-sacrifice, and transcendence, or broad comedies, sometimes of the over-the-top variety. His writing was prolific during the peak years of 1959-1971, with four of his shorter works receiving Hugo or Nebula Award nominations. His novel A Plague of Demons was nominated for the Nebula Award for Best Novel in 1966. However, in 1971, Laumer suffered a stroke, which significantly impacted his writing career. Despite his determination to continue writing, the quality of his work suffered, and his career declined.

In addition to his writing, Laumer was also a model airplane enthusiast and published two dozen designs between 1956 and 1962 in various U.S. and British magazines. He even published a book on the subject, How to Design and Build Flying Models, in 1960. Laumer's model airplane designs are still admired and replicated today, demonstrating his enduring impact on the hobby.

Laumer's Bolo series, which chronicles the evolution of self-aware tanks, has also been influential in science fiction. The popularity of these stories has led other authors to write standalone novels about them. Overall, John Keith Laumer's contributions to science fiction and model airplane design have left a lasting impact on both genres.