Ursula Vernon (born May 28, 1977) is an American freelance writer, artist and illustrator. She has won numerous awards for her work in various mediums, including for her graphic novel Digger, fantasy novel Nettle & Bone, and fantasy novella Thornhedge, the Nebula Award for her short story "Jackalope Wives", and for adult and children's literature. Vernon's books for children include Hamster Princess and Dragonbreath. Under the name T. Kingfisher, she is also the author of books for older audiences. She writes short fiction under both names.
Career
Ursula Vernon grew up in
Oregon and
Arizona. She studied
anthropology at Macalester College in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where she first took art classes.
She first became known for her webcomics and as a freelance artist, particularly for her works containing
anthropomorphic animals. She then moved into writing and illustrating a number of children's books, her first being published in 2008, and then books for adults under the pseudonym T. Kingfisher.
[ Books for Adults, by Ursula Vernon, at RedWombatStudio.com; retrieved October 20, 2020] She decided to start using the pseudonym in order to avoid confusion amongst parents who were only familiar with her as a children's book author,
and chose it because she loves
and as an homage to Ursula K. LeGuin, who once joked that the initials "U.K." could stand for "Ulysses Kingfisher".
Vernon has published short fiction under both names, and has won a number of awards for them including the
Hugo Award and
Nebula Award.
She regularly attends conventions to exhibit and sell her work. She has been a guest of honor at Midwest FurFest 2004 and 2009, and the Artist Guest of Honor at Further Confusion 2010. Vernon was the Author Guest of Honor for Mythcon 45
Vernon podcasts with her husband, Kevin Sonney.
In June 2023, Vernon announced she had been diagnosed with breast cancer;
Works
Books for younger audiences
Vernon is the author and illustrator of the
Dragonbreath and
Hamster Princess children's book series, published by Dial Books:
Dragonbreath series
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Dragonbreath. (2009).
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Dragonbreath: Attack of the Ninja Frogs. (2010).
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Dragonbreath: Curse of the Were-Weiner. (2010).
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Dragonbreath: Lair of the Bat Monster. (2011).
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Dragonbreath: No Such Thing as Ghosts. (2011).
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Dragonbreath: Revenge of the Horned Bunnies. (2012).
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Dragonbreath: When Fairies Go Bad. (2012).
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Dragonbreath: Nightmare of the Iguana. (2013).
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Dragonbreath: The Case of the Toxic Mutants. (2013).
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Dragonbreath: Knight-napped!. (2015).
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Dragonbreath: The Frozen Menace. (2016).
Hamster Princess series
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Hamster Princess: Harriet the Invincible. (August 18, 2015).
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Hamster Princess: Of Mice and Magic. (March 15, 2016).
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Hamster Princess: Ratpunzel. (October 18, 2016).
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Hamster Princess: Giant Trouble. (May 9, 2017).
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Hamster Princess: Whiskerella. (January 23, 2018).
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Hamster Princess: Little Red Rodent Hood. (September 25, 2018).
Other children's books
-
Nurk: The Strange Surprising Adventures Of A (Somewhat) Brave Shrew. (2008). Harcourt.
-
Castle Hangnail. (April 21, 2015) Dial Books. )
Books for older audiences
Written as Ursula Vernon:
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It Made Sense at the Time: Selected Sketches. (November 18, 2004). Sofawolf Press.
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Black Dogs Part 1: The House of Diamond. (March 1, 2007). Sofawolf Press.
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Black Dogs Part 2: The Mountain of Iron. (January 1, 2011). Sofawolf Press.
Temple of the White Rat books
The following books were written under the name T. Kingfisher and take place in what Vernon calls "the Temple of the White Rat world."
-
Clockwork Boys. Clocktaur War #1. (November 21, 2017). Red Wombat Tea Company.
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The Wonder Engine. Clocktaur War #2. (February 27, 2018). Red Wombat Tea Company
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Swordheart. (November 27, 2018). Argyll Productions.
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Paladin's Grace. The Saint of Steel #1. (February 11, 2020) Red Wombat Studio.
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Paladin's Strength. The Saint of Steel #2. (February 28, 2021). Red Wombat Studio.
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Paladin's Hope. The Saint of Steel #3. (October 9, 2021). Red Wombat Studio.
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Paladin's Faith. The Saint of Steel #4. (December 5, 2023). Red Wombat Studio.
The Sworn Soldier books
Under the pen name T. Kingfisher:
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What Moves The Dead. (July 12, 2022). Tor Nightfire.
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What Feasts at Night. (February 13, 2024). Tor Nightfire.
Other books for older audiences
Under the pen name T. Kingfisher:
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Nine Goblins. (October 27, 2013). Red Wombat Tea Company.
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The Seventh Bride. (November 11, 2014). Red Wombat Tea Company.
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Bryony & Roses. (May 18, 2015). Red Wombat Tea Company.
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The Raven & The Reindeer. (February 7, 2016). Red Wombat Tea Company.
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Summer in Orcus. (September 2016). Red Wombat Tea Company.
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The Halcyon Fairy Book. (January 19, 2017). NESFA Press.
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Minor Mage. (July 29, 2019). Argyll Productions.
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The Twisted Ones. (October 1, 2019). Simon & Schuster.
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A Wizard's Guide to Defensive Baking. (July 21, 2020). Argyll Productions.
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The Hollow Places. (October 6, 2020). Simon & Schuster.
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Nettle & Bone. (April 26, 2022). Tor Books.
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Illuminations. (November 25, 2022). Argyll Productions.
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A House with Good Bones. (March 28, 2023). Tor Nightfire.
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Thornhedge. (August 15, 2023). Tor Books.
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A Sorceress Comes to Call. (August 6, 2024). Tor Books
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Hemlock & Silver. (August 19, 2025). Tor Books
Webcomics
Vernon is the author of the
Eisner Award-nominated and
Hugo Award-winning webcomic
Digger.
A fantasy story featuring an anthropomorphic
wombat,
it is also available in six paperback books published between 2005 and 2011: Vol. 1 (), Vol. 2 (), Vol. 3 (), Vol. 4 (), Vol. 5 (), and Vol. 6 (), and as
Digger: The Complete Omnibus Edition (), published in 2013. She is also the writer and illustrator of the webcomic
Irrational Fears and the short stories "Little Creature" and "Little Creature and the Redcap".
Illustrations and art
Before becoming a published children's book author Vernon was primarily a freelance artist and illustrator, and she still regularly produces new works of art. Her work includes the creation of
digital art as well as the use of more traditional mediums such as
watercolour and acrylics, with much of her more recent work being
mixed media. Most of her art work is available as prints. Vernon has also taken commercial commissions such as book covers and game art.
The game Black Sheep designed by Reiner Knizia and published by Fantasy Flight Games uses art by Vernon on its playing cards.[
]
Her artwork titled The Biting Pear of Salamanca became an internet meme in the form of the "LOL WUT pear"[
] and has been made into a resin figurine due to its popularity.[
] She has also designed labels for a series of tea and soap products.
Awards and nominations
Vernon has also received the following accolades:
-
For her work on Digger, Vernon was nominated for the 2006 in the category "Talent Deserving of Wider Recognition",
[
]
and won the 2005 Web Cartoonists' Choice Award for "Outstanding Black and White Art".
Digger has also been nominated in the "Outstanding Anthropomorphic Comic" category.
[
][
]
See also
External links
Personal websites
Socials
Catalogs
Publishers
