Laurence van Cott Niven (born April 30, 1938) is an American science fiction author.
Niven is the author of numerous science fiction short stories and novels, beginning with his 1964 story "The Coldest Place" (which in the story was said to be the dark side of Mercury, which was thought to be tidally locked with the Sun at the time it was written but which ironically enough was found to rotate in a 2:3 resonance just months before the story was published). His best-known work is perhaps his 1970 novel Ringworld, which received the 1970 Nebula award and Locus award[?], and the 1971 Hugo award, for best novel.
A thinly disguised Niven appears as the character "Lawrence Van Cott" in the Greg Bear novel The Forge of God.
Many of Niven's stories take place in his Known Space universe, in which humanity shares the several solar systems nearest to Sol with a half-dozen alien species.
In recent years, most of his writing has been in collaboration with Jerry Pournelle and/or Steven Barnes.
Niven numbers may have been named in his honor.
(incomplete)
- World of Ptavvs (1966)
- A Gift from the Earth (1968)
- Neutron Star (Collection of short stories, 1968)
- Ringworld (1970)
- All The Myriad Ways (Collection of short stories, 1971)
- Flight of the Horse (Collection of short stories, 1973)
- Protector (1973)
- A Hole in Space (Collection of short stories, 1974)
- Inconstant Moon (Collection of short stories, 1974)
- The Mote in God's Eye (1975) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- Tales of Known Space (Collection of short stories, 1975)
- The Long Arm of Gil Hamilton (Collection of short stories, 1976)
- A World out of Time (1976)
- Inferno (1976) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- Lucifer's Hammer (1977) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- The Patchwork Girl (1980)
- The Ringworld Engineers (1980)
- Dreampark (1981) (with Steven Barnes)
- The Descent of Anansi (1982) (with Steven Barnes)
- Oath of Fealty (1982) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- The Integral Trees (1984)
- Footfall (1985) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- Limits (Collection of short stories, 1985)
- The Smoke Ring (1987)
- The Barsoom Project (1989) (with Steven Barnes)
- The Legacy of Heorot (1989) (with Jerry Pournelle, Steven Barnes)
- N-Space (Collection of short stories, 1990)
- Achilles' Choice (1991) (with Steven Barnes)
- Playgrounds of the Mind (Collection of short stories, 1991)
- Fallen Angels (1992) (with Michael Flynn[?], Jerry Pournelle)
- The California Voodoo Game (1992) (with Steven Barnes)
- Crashlander (Collection of short stories, 1994)
- The Gripping Hand (1994) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- Beowulf's Children (1995) (with Jerry Pournelle, Steven Barnes)
- The Dragons of Heorot (1995) (with Jerry Pournelle, Steven Barnes)
- The Ringworld Throne (1996)
- Destiny's Road (1997)
- Rainbow Mars (1999)
- The Burning City (2000) (with Jerry Pournelle)
- Saturn's Race (2001) (with Steven Barnes)