Darcie Little Badger

Darcie Little Badger
Portrait of Darcie Little Badger, a young Apache woman with short black hair wearing a maroon T-shirt.
Little Badger in 2025
Born
Darcie Erin Ryan

1987 (age 38–39)
Education
Occupations
  • Writer
  • Earth scientist
Writing career
Genres
  • Speculative fiction
  • horror
  • fantasy
Notable works
Websitedarcielittlebadger.com Edit this at Wikidata

Darcie Little Badger (formerly Darcie Erin Ryan; born 1987)[1][2] is an American novelist, short story writer, and Earth scientist.[3] She writes speculative fiction, especially horror, science fiction, and fantasy.[4][5] She is a member of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas.[6] Her stories often feature Apache and/or LGBTQ characters.[6][7] She has described herself and been described by others as writing within the Indigenous Futurisms movement.[8][9][10]

Early life and education

Darcie Little Badger was born Darcie Erin Ryan in 1987.[1][2] Her father was an English professor and her mother, Hermelinda Walking Woman, is the tribal administrator of the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas.[11] At age seven she wrote her first book, which was submitted for publication with her father's help and rejected.[6][12] Throughout her childhood Little Badger moved due to her father's job, but considered Texas to be her home.[12]

After graduating from high school in Texarkana, Texas, Little Badger adopted her current surname, as per Lipan tradition.[12][6] She attended Princeton University in New Jersey, where she earned a bachelor's degree in earth science after being rejected twice from the school's creative writing program.[6][12] Little Badger graduated cum laude in 2010.[13][2]

She subsequently enrolled in the doctoral program in oceanography at Texas A&M University (TAMU), where she earned a PhD. She wrote her dissertation on the genomics of Karenia brevis, a species of plankton that causes toxic red tide in the Gulf of Mexico.[14][2] For her research, she received a Ford Dissertation Fellowship[15] and TAMU's Chapman Award for Graduate Student Research, both under the name Darcie Ryan.[16]

Scientific career

After graduating from Texas A&M, Little Badger took a job as an editor of scientific papers.[6][12] She quit this job after selling her first novel, Elatsoe (2020), becoming a writer full-time.[6]

Writing career

Little Badger is sitting in a chair in front of a backdrop for the 2022 National Book Festival
Little Badger during the 2022 National Book Festival

Short fiction

Little Badger's short fiction has appeared in a range of publications, including Strange Horizons, Fantasy Magazine, Mythic Delirium, and The Dark Magazine, among others.[17][18][19][20]

Little Badger's short stories often feature Apache history and lore. For example, two Apache sisters reunite in "Whalebone Parrot"[18] (The Dark Magazine, 2017), a Victorian horror story set in the late 19th century on an island in the Atlantic Ocean. During the conflict between their tribe and the U.S. Army, the women were orphaned and grew up together in a residential school. Similarly, in "Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch"[17] (Strange Horizons, 2017), she places Owl, a shapeshifting supernatural harbinger of evil from Apache lore, in the setting of contemporary Appalachia.

Novels

Little Badger began writing her debut novel, Elatsoe, in 2017.[12] She sold the manuscript in late 2018.[12] It was published in August 2020 by Levine Querido, and made the Indibound Young Adult bestseller list in its first week.[21] It was a national indie bestseller for 12 weeks.[22] The story is set in modern-day Texas; the main character, Ellie, is a seventeen-year-old asexual Lipan Apache teen. Ellie is accompanied by the ghost of her pet dog Kirby; she used her grandmothers' traditional techniques to bring him back to life. Kirby and Ellie are joined by Ellie's friend and classmate Jay as they work to solve the murder of her cousin. At the same time, they confront an enclave of vampires plaguing people near Willowbee, a mysterious town in South Texas.[23][24][25] It was named a best book of 2020 by NPR,[26] BookPage,[27] Chicago Public Library,[28] Publishers Weekly,[29] BuzzFeed,[30] Shelf Awareness,[31] Tor.com,[5] and Kirkus Reviews.[32] Time named it one of the best fantasy books of all time.[33]

Little Badger began writing her second novel, A Snake Falls to Earth, in early 2020.[12] It was released in November 2021, also through Levine Querido.[6] The story focuses on Nina, a Lipan Apache girl trying to learn about her recently deceased grandmother, who meets a cottonmouth snake named Oli. The setting shifts between near-future Texas and a fantasy dimension from which Oli originates.[34] Climate change plays a pivotal role in the story's plot.[12] It was named a best book of the year by the Young Adult Library Services Association,[35] Publishers Weekly,[36] Kirkus Reviews,[37] Tor.com,[38] the New York Public Library,[39] and the Chicago Public Library.[40] It was a national indie bestseller for 8 weeks.[41]

She released a prequel to Elatsoe called Sheine Lende in 2024, with illustrations by Rovina Cai.[42] The book won the 2025 Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book.[43]

Comics

Little Badger and Magdalene Visaggio co-wrote Strangelands Vol. 1, illustrated by Guillermo Sana. It was published by H1 in 2019.[44] She contributed a story about Danielle Moonstar with art by Kyle Charles to Marvel's Voices: Indigenous Voices #1 in 2020.[45] She also wrote for the second issue of Jim Henson's The Storyteller: Shapeshifters.[46]

Community organizing

Little Badger served as a delegate to the National Congress of American Indians for the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas.[47] She also serves as a science advisor and is the tribe's Storyteller Laureate.[6][47]

Little Badger was one of the plaintiffs in a lawsuit against the United States Department of the Interior, where the plaintiffs sought to use eagle feathers in their ceremonies without fear of prosecution, since protection after 2012 was only extended to members of federally recognized tribes by the U.S. Department of Interior. In 2014, the litigants won the case with a decision by the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.[48] The court acknowledged the Lipan Apache Tribe of Texas as an American Indian Tribe with a long history in Texas.[49] In a settlement between the plaintiffs and the Interior Department, the Interior Department accepted the American Indian status of the plaintiffs who were not members of a federally recognized tribe and granted them lifetime permits to "possess, carry, use, wear, give, loan, or exchange among other Indians, without compensation, all federally protected birds, as well as their parts or feathers" for their "Indian religious use".[50][51]

On November 30, 2021, Little Badger was one of her tribe's representatives who traveled to Presidio, Texas, to be a speaker in a Lipan traditional ceremony celebrating the city of Presidio and Presidio County's transfer of a historical Lipan cemetery back to the tribe. The celebration focused on the local Presidio community's return of many sentinel stones that had been taken from Lipan gravesites throughout the years.[52][53]

Personal life

Little Badger is asexual.[25] She lives in San Marcos, Texas.[6]

Awards and honors

Year Nominated work Award Category Result Ref.
2025 Sheine Lende Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book N/A Winner [43]
2022 A Snake Falls to Earth Los Angeles Times Book Prize Young Adult Novel Finalist [54]
Newbery Medal Newbery Honor Honoree [55]
Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book N/A Finalist [56]
Andre Norton Award Winner [57]
Ursula K. Le Guin Prize Shortlist [58]
Ignyte Awards Outstanding Novel – Young Adult Winner [59]
2021 National Book Award Young People's Literature Longlist [60]
2022 Elatsoe Whippoorwill Book Award N/A Winner [61]
American Indian Youth Literature Awards Young Adult Honor Book Honoree [55]
2021 Golden Kite Award Young Adult [62]
Locus Award Best First Novel Winner [63]
Lodestar Award for Best Young Adult Book N/A Finalist [64]
2020 Andre Norton Award [65]
New England Book Award Young Adult [66]

Published works

Novels

  • —— (2020). Elatsoe. Levine Querido. ISBN 978-1646140053.
  • —— (2021). A Snake Falls to Earth. Levine Querido. ISBN 978-1646140923.
  • —— (2024). Sheine Lende. Levine Querido. ISBN 9781646144020.

Short fiction

Year Title Publication
2014 "First Ride of the Day" —— (2014). "First Ride of the Day". Vignettes from the End of the World. Apokrupha.
"Siren Son" —— (May 2014). "Siren Song". Dark Eclipse (34).
"Nkásht íí" —— (December 15, 2014). "Nkásht íí". Strange Horizons.
2015 "The Sea Under Texas" —— (2015). "The Sea Under Texas". Quantum Fairy Tales (11).
"The Girl Turns West" —— (Summer 2015). "The Sea Under Texas". Mirror Dance (30).
"When Whales Fall" —— (Autumn 2015). "When Whales Fall". The Colored Lens.
2016 "Né łe!" —— (2016). "Né Łe!". Love Beyond Body, Space, and Time.
"Black, Their Regalia" —— (December 2016). "Black, Their Regalia". Fantasy Magazine (60).
"Their Laughing Gal" —— (2016). "Spirit's Tincture". Love Beyond Body, Space, and Time.
2017 "Skinwalker, Fast-Talker" —— (2017). "Skinwalker, Fast-Talker". No Shit, There I Was.
"Owl vs. The Neighborhood Watch" —— (July 10, 2017). "Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch". Strange Horizons.
"The Whalebone Parrot" —— (October 2017). "The Whalebone Parrot". The Dark (29).
2019 "Kelsey and the Burdened Breath" —— (2019). "Kelsey and the Burdened Breath". New Suns. Solaris.
"Robo-Liopleurodon!" —— (2019). "Robo-Liopleurodon". The New Voices of Science Fiction. Tachyon.
"Homecoming" —— (2019). "Homecoming". Take the Mic: Fictional Stories. Scholastic Publishing.
"Grace" —— (2019). "Grace". Take the Mic: Fictional Stories. Scholastic Publishing.
"Story for a Bottle" —— (2019). "Story for a Bottle". Love After the End. Bedside Press.
2020 "Unlike Most Tides" —— (2020). "Unlike Most Tides". Drabblecast (425).
"Venom and Bite" —— (2020). "Venom and Bite". Glitter + Ashes. Neon Hemlock Press.
"The Orphan of Greenridge (Water)" —— (2020). Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh; Yant, Christine (eds.). "The Orphan of Greenridge (Water)". The Dystopia Triptych #1. Self-published.
"How to Use Your Visor (Fire)" —— (2020). Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh; Yant, Christine (eds.). "How to Use Your Visor (Fire)". The Dystopia Triptych #1. Self-published.
"Making Faces (Earth)" —— (2020). Adams, John Joseph; Howey, Hugh; Yant, Christine (eds.). "Making Faces (Earth)". The Dystopia Triptych #1. Self-published.
2022 "The Dancers" —— (2022). "The Dancers". Jim Henson's the Storyteller: Shapeshifters #2. Boom! Studios.
2023 "The Scientist's Horror Story" (2023). The Scientist's Horror Story". Never Whistle At Night: An Indigenous Dark Fiction Anthology

Nonfiction

As editor

  • Mermaids Never Drown (Feiwel and Friends, 2023), with Zoraida Córdova and Natalie C. Parker
  • Beyond the Glittering World (Torrey House Press, 2025), with Kinsale Drake and Shannon Stacie Denetsosie

References

  1. 1 2 "Little Badger, Darcie". SF Encyclopedia. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  2. 1 2 3 4 Salas, Maria (August 16, 2022). "Aggie Author Blends Science Background With Passion For Writing". Texas A&M Stories. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  3. ↑ Little Badger, Darcie (December 15, 2014). "Nkásht íí". Strange Horizons. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  4. ↑ Garza, J. (October 14, 2025). "Lipan Apache Tribe: Darcie Little Badger Book Wins 2025 Lodestar Award". The Lipan Apache Tribe Community Page. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  5. 1 2 Brown, Alex (December 9, 2020). "Best Young Adult Science Fiction, Fantasy, and Horror of 2020". Reactor. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  6. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 Solomon, Dan (December 13, 2021). "Darcie Little Badger's Engrossing New Novel Blends Lipan Apache Folklore and Oceanography". Texas Monthly. Retrieved December 16, 2023.
  7. ↑ Adler, Dahlia (November 3, 2025). "Happy Native American Heritage Month 2025!". LGBTQ Reads. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  8. ↑ Little Badger, Darcie; Jae, Johnnie; LaPensee, Elizabeth; Roanhorse, Rebecca (January 30, 2017). "Decolonizing Science Fiction And Imagining Futures: An Indigenous Futurisms Roundtable". Strange Horizons. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  9. ↑ Heartfield, Kate (December 2, 2016). "Decolonizing the future". Article Magazine – via Medium.
  10. ↑ Middleton, Selena (May 23, 2019). Green Cosmic Dreams: Utopia and Ecological Exile in Women's Exoplanetary Science Fiction (PhD thesis). McMaster University.
  11. ↑ "Lipan Apache Tribe Contact Council". The Lipan Apache Tribe Community Page. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  12. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 Gutterman, Annabel (October 29, 2021). "Darcie Little Badger Turns Our Darkest Realities Into Hopeful Fantasies". Time. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
  13. ↑ Daugherty, Elisabeth H. (December 28, 2021). "Darcie Little Badger '10 Weaves Lipan Apache Storytelling into Novels". Princeton Alumni Weekly.
  14. ↑ Ryan, Darcie E. (December 2016). Investigating the Biology of Toxin-Producing Karenia Species: A Transcriptomics Approach (Doctoral thesis). Texas A & M University.
  15. ↑ "Dissertation Completion in 2015 Ford Foundation Fellowships Scholar Award List". Ford Foundation Fellowship Programs. The National Academies of Science, Engineering, & Medicine. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  16. ↑ "Oceanography Student Award Recipients". Texas A&M College of Geosciences News. Texas A&M University. July 21, 2016. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  17. 1 2 Little Badger, Darcie (July 10, 2017). "Owl vs. the Neighborhood Watch". Strange Horizons. Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  18. 1 2 Little Badger, Darcie (October 2017). "Whalebone Parrot". The Dark Magazine (29). Retrieved July 9, 2020.
  19. ↑ Little Badger, Darcie (December 19, 2016). "Black, Their Regalia". Fantasy Magazine. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  20. ↑ Little Badger, Darcie (February 2017). "The Famine King". Mythic Delirium Books. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
  21. ↑ "IndieBound Bestseller list for 9-2-2020". American Booksellers Association. Retrieved September 6, 2020.
  22. ↑ "Bestseller List for September 2, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for September 9, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for November 4, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for November 11, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 2, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 9, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 23, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 30, 2020". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for January 6, 2021". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for January 13, 2021". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for January 20, 2021". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for January 27, 2021". The American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  23. ↑ "Elatsoe". Kirkus Reviews. May 16, 2020. Retrieved July 10, 2020.
  24. ↑ "YA Book, Elatsoe". The Lipan Apache Tribe. Archived from the original on July 15, 2020.
  25. 1 2 "A Q&A Between Darcie Little Badger and André-Naquian Wheeler". Levine Querido. Archived from the original on July 20, 2021.
  26. ↑ "NPR's Book Concierge 2020". NPR Books. NPR. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  27. ↑ "Best Books of 2020: Young Adult". BookPage. BookPage and ProMotion, Inc. November 10, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  28. ↑ "CPL Best of the Best Books 2020: Teen Fiction". Chicago Public Library. Chicago Public Library Foundation. November 23, 2020. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  29. ↑ "Best Books 2020 Publishers Weekly Young Adult". PW Best Books of 2020. PW. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  30. ↑ "30 Of The Best YA Speculative Fiction Novels Of 2020". Buzzfeed. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  31. ↑ "Shelf Awareness for Readers for Tuesday, November 24, 2020: From My Shelf-Shelf Awareness's Best Children's & Teen Books of 2020". Shelf Awareness for Readers. Shelf Awareness. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  32. ↑ "Best of 2020: Our Favorite YA Books". KIRKUS. Kirkus Media. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  33. ↑ "100 Best Fantasy Books of All Time: Elatsoe by Darcie Little Badger". Time. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  34. ↑ Fadel, Leila; Little Badger, Darcie (November 21, 2021). "A teenage girl finds an ally on her life journey when 'A Snake Falls to Earth'". NPR. Retrieved June 4, 2023.
  35. ↑ "2022 Best Fiction for Young Adults". Young Adult Library Services Association Association. American Library Association. February 4, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
  36. ↑ "Best Books 2021 Publishers Weekly Young Adult". Publishers Weekly. Retrieved October 24, 2021.
  37. ↑ Simeon, Laura (December 12, 2021). "Best of 2021: Our Favorite YA Books". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  38. ↑ "Best of 2021". Tor.com. December 7, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  39. ↑ "Best Books for Teens 2021". New York Public Library. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  40. ↑ "Best Books of 2021". Chicago Public Library. November 22, 2021. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
  41. ↑ "Bestseller List for December 1, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 8, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 15, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 22, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for December 29, 2021" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved December 31, 2021.
    "Bestseller List for January 19, 2022" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved January 21, 2022.
    "Bestseller List for January 26, 2022" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
    "Bestseller List for February 02, 2022" (PDF). American Booksellers Association. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
  42. ↑ Neal, Emmy (April 1, 2024). "Sheine Lende: A Prequel to Elatsoe". School Library Journal. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  43. 1 2 Glyer, Mike (August 17, 2025). "2025 Hugo Awards". File 770. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  44. ↑ "Strangelands, Vol. 1: Love and Chaos by Magdalene Visaggio, Darcie Little Badger". Publishers Weekly. October 30, 2019. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  45. ↑ "Marvel's Voices: Indigenous Voices (2020) #1". Marvel. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  46. ↑ "JIM HENSON'S THE STORYTELLER: SHAPESHIFTERS #2 First Look". BOOM! Studios. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  47. 1 2 "Darcie Little Badger Ryan, Lipan Apache Tribe's Storyteller Laureate". The Lipan Apache Tribe Community Page. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  48. ↑ "McALLEN GRACE BRETHREN CHURCH v. SALAZAR · No. 13-40326". Leagle. August 20, 2014. Archived from the original on July 25, 2019. Retrieved July 24, 2019.
  49. ↑ Smith, Adair Martin (August 8, 2018). "Native American Use of Eagle Feathers Under the Religious Freedom Restoration Act". University of Cincinnati Law Review. 84 (2). ISSN 0009-6881.
  50. ↑ Keim, Adèle Auxier (March 21, 2023). "The Religious Freedom Restoration Act and Indian Law: From Individual Advocacy to Collective Action". The Journal of Appellate Practice and Process. 23 (1): 149–192.
  51. ↑ "Petition Before the Fish and Wildlife Service United States Department of the Interior To End the Criminal Ban on Religious Exercise with Eagle Feathers and to Protect Native American Religious Practices" (PDF). Court House News. May 3, 2018. Archived (PDF) from the original on February 13, 2021. Retrieved May 3, 2018 – via Courthouse News Service.
  52. ↑ Karas, Sam (December 1, 2021). "Celebration, reunion as Lipan Apache tribal council travels to Presidio from McAllen for special ceremony". Big Bend Sentinel. Retrieved December 1, 2021.
  53. ↑ Rosenthal, Annie (November 30, 2021). "Lipan Apache tribal members gather in Presidio to celebrate historic land transfer". Marfa Public Radio. Retrieved November 30, 2021.
  54. ↑ Schaub, Michael (February 22, 2022). "Finalists for 'LA Times' Book Prizes Are Revealed". Kirkus Reviews. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  55. 1 2 "American Library Association announces 2022 Youth Media Award winners". American Library Association. January 24, 2022. Retrieved February 19, 2022.
  56. ↑ "2022 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. April 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  57. ↑ "SFWA Announces the Winners of the 57th Annual Nebula Awards®" (Press release). Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers of America. May 21, 2022. Retrieved May 22, 2022.
  58. ↑ "Announcing the Shortlist for the Inaugural Ursula K. Le Guin Prize for Fiction". Electric Literature. July 28, 2022. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  59. ↑ Asher-Perrin, Emmet (September 17, 2022). "Announcing the Winners of the 2022 Ignyte Awards!". TOR.com. Retrieved September 18, 2022.
  60. ↑ "2021 National Book Awards Longlist for Young People's Literature". National Book Foundation. September 15, 2021. Retrieved October 24, 2021.
  61. ↑ Fischer, Lane Wendell (July 21, 2022). "Whippoorwill Award Honors Books That Portray Rural Life". The Daily Yonder. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
  62. ↑ "2021 Golden Kite Awards". Waking Brain Cells. February 22, 2021. Retrieved February 24, 2021.
  63. ↑ "2021 Locus Awards Winners". Locus. Locus Publications. June 26, 2021. Retrieved July 12, 2021.
  64. ↑ "2021 Hugo Awards". The Hugo Awards. World Science Fiction Society. January 2021. Retrieved April 14, 2021.
  65. ↑ Templeton, Molly (March 15, 2021). "Nebula Awards-Announcing the 2020 Nebula Awards Finalists". Tor.com. Retrieved March 10, 2022.
  66. ↑ "Awards: New England Finalists". Shelf Awareness. July 24, 2020. Retrieved April 22, 2026.
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