Brazilian sci-fi and fantasy literature authors

This is the world of Brazilian science fiction and fantasy—a tradition as vast and diverse as the country itself, yet still largely unknown to English-language readers.

For too long, the global perception of Brazilian speculative fiction has been limited to a few names. But a new generation—and a rediscovered old guard—is changing that. From the foundational works of the 1940s to the Nebula-nominated stories of today, here are the essential authors of Brazilian sci-fi and fantasy you need to know in 2026.

🏛️ The Pioneers: Building the Foundation

Jerônymo Monteiro (1908-1970)

In a certain sense, the first science fiction fan in Brazil . Jerônymo Monteiro was a newspaperman, editor, and writer who essentially kickstarted the genre in his home country. Hooked as a child by H.G. Wells, he began his career writing pulp adventures under the pseudonym “Ronnie Wells” for a wildly popular radio detective series .

But Monteiro’s true legacy lies in his novels and his role as an organizer. In 1965, he founded the first science fiction association in Brazil, the Sociedade Brasileira de Ficção Científica, alongside fellow pioneers like André Carneiro . He also edited the Brazilian version of The Magazine of Fantasy and Science Fiction, creating one of the first venues for domestic speculative writers.

His novels are ripe for rediscovery. Três meses no século 81 (1947) is a time-travel fantasy sparked by a conversation with H.G. Wells himself. Fuga para parte alguma (1961), arguably his best work, is a disaster story influenced by Wells’s “The Empire of the Ants” . And Os visitantes do espaço (1963) imagines an alien invasion from Jupiter’s moon Io, ending not in destruction but in a difficult, negotiated peace . His short fiction collection, Tangentes da realidade (1969), gathers his most important work, including “The Crystal Goblet,” later translated for the landmark anthology Cosmos Latinos .

🧛 The Bestseller: André Vianco and the Vampire Revolution

If any single author can be credited with bringing Brazilian fantasy into the mainstream, it’s André Vianco. Born in São Paulo in 1975, Vianco began his career by self-publishing his debut novel, O Senhor da Chuva, in 1998 . But it was his second book, Os Sete (1999), that would change everything.

The story is pure pulp genius: two divers off the coast of Rio Grande do Sul discover a sunken 16th-century Portuguese carrack. Inside, they find the bodies of seven vampires, preserved in deep slumber for centuries—and accidentally awaken them . Self-published with his own severance pay after being laid off, Os Sete became a word-of-mouth sensation, selling over 50,000 copies . It caught the attention of a major publisher, and Vianco’s career was launched.

Often compared to Stephen King, Vianco has since sold over a million books, building an expansive universe that includes the sequels Sétimo, the trilogy O Turno da Noite, and the graphic novel prequel Vampiros do Rio Douro . His O Vampiro-Rei series (beginning with Bento in 2003) further expanded his mythos, and he has also written children’s books, ghost novels, and even science fiction with Dartana (2016) .

Vianco’s significance goes beyond sales figures. In 2018, he was named, alongside Raphael Draccon and Eduardo Spohr, one of the leading Brazilian fantasy writers of the 21st century . He demonstrated that Brazilian readers were hungry for homegrown speculative fiction—and that a self-published author could build an empire.

🎩 The Steampunk Historian: Nikelen Witter

Imagine a Brazil where steam technology flourished, where airships navigate between the spires of a neo-gothic Porto Alegre, where history and fantasy intertwine. This is the world of Nikelen Witter, a historian and one of Brazil’s most important representatives of the steampunk genre .

Witter brings a unique perspective to speculative fiction: she’s a professor of history at the Federal University of Santa Maria, and her academic research informs her fiction in profound ways . Her debut novel, Territórios Invisíveis (2012), was a finalist for the Prêmio Argos . But her breakthrough came with Guanabara Real e a Alcova da Morte (2017), a three-handed novel written with A.Z. Cordenonsi and Enéias Tavares that won both the Prêmio Le Blanc and the Prêmio AGES .

Her solo masterpiece is Viajantes do Abismo (2019), a steampunk novel that was nominated for the prestigious Jabuti Prize in the Best Entertainment Novel category and won the Prêmio Odisseia for Best Long-Form Science Fiction . The book demonstrates her ability to weave historical depth with fantastical invention, creating worlds that feel both meticulously researched and wildly imaginative.

Witter’s short story collection Dezessete Mortos (2020) won the Prêmio Açorianos, further cementing her reputation as a master of the form . For readers who love alternate history, steampunk, and fiction with real intellectual heft, Nikelen Witter is essential.

🌍 The Global South Voice: Renan Bernardo

Perhaps the most exciting Brazilian voice to emerge on the international stage in recent years is Renan Bernardo. A Nebula and Ignyte Award finalist, Bernardo has achieved something remarkable: he’s broken into the English-language market at the highest level, with stories appearing in Reactor/Tor.com, Clarkesworld, Apex Magazine, Escape Pod, and Daily Science Fiction .

Bernardo’s work occupies the intersection of climate narratives with science, technology, and human relationships . He’s a leading voice in solarpunk, a subgenre focused on sustainable futures, and he brings a distinctly Brazilian perspective to it. “When I write solarpunk, I want to introduce the point of view of the Global South, particularly Brazil,” he explains. “We have a history of being excluded and that means our stories are less seen throughout the world” .

His 2024 collection, Different Kinds of Defiance, gathers his short fiction and showcases his range—from secondary world fantasy to dark science fiction. Stories like “Anticipation of Hollowness” and “To Remember the Poison” explore the dark side of utopia, showing how even well-intentioned projects can become exclusive and colonizing when they fail to consider everyone . His 2025 novella, Disgraced Return of the Kap’s Needle, continues his exploration of dark space opera .

Bernardo also champions the importance of elderly protagonists, pushing back against fiction’s obsession with youth. “The elderly are excluded from society in a lot of different ways, and that is just one of them,” he notes. “I think they have stories to tell and it opens a lot of unexplored possibilities” .

For readers seeking Brazilian speculative fiction in English, Renan Bernardo is the ideal entry point.

✊🏿 The Afrofuturist Visionary: Ale Santos

Afrofuturism in Brazil is not merely an import; it is a vibrant, homegrown movement that draws on the country’s rich African heritage. And its most visible exponent is Ale Santos, cited by the Science Fiction Research Association as the most popular Afrofuturist author of the new generation in Brazil .

Santos is a two-time finalist for the Jabuti Prize and the CCXP Awards, and his work is explicitly political. “It’s an aesthetic that emerges in speculative fiction, imagining technology from a Black perspective,” he explains. “Here in Brazil, we create Afrofuturist narratives that engage with samba, hip-hop, maracatu, and other cultural expressions. It’s about showing that the periphery not only consumes culture but also produces it and transforms it into the future” .

His novel Rastros de Resistência (Traces of Resistance) was a Jabuti finalist in 2020, and O Último Ancestral (The Last Ancestor), published by HarperCollins Brazil, further cemented his reputation . Santos sees his work as a tool for social and political reflection, offering a powerful vision of the African diaspora and its contribution to more diverse and inclusive societies .

Beyond literature, Santos works in games and consulting, investing in intellectual property and professionalizing creative work in marginalized communities . He embodies the connection between art and entrepreneurship, showing how creativity can drive social transformation.

🌉 The Diaspora Voice: Ananda Lima

Brazilian speculative fiction is not confined to Brazil. The diaspora has produced vital voices as well, and none more exciting than Ananda Lima. Born in Brasília and now living in Chicago, Lima is a poet, translator, and fiction writer whose debut collection, Craft: Stories I Wrote for the Devil (2024), has taken the literary world by storm .

The conceit is irresistible: at a Halloween party in 1999, a young Brazilian-American writer sleeps with the devil. She sees him again and again throughout her life, and she writes him stories about beautiful and impossible things . The resulting linked collection is Kafkaesque, surreal, and deeply intimate, exploring Brazilian-American immigrant experiences with equal parts warmth and agitation .

Lima brings the full weight of her poetic training to these stories, which have appeared in The American Poetry Review, Kenyon Review Online, and Gulf Coast . For readers who love the narrative-bending traditions of Cortázar and Bulgakov, Craft is a revelation—proof that Brazilian speculative fiction is flourishing wherever Brazilians make their home.

📚 A Reading Guide

🔮 The Future of Brazilian Speculative Fiction

Brazilian science fiction and fantasy are experiencing a renaissance. The old guard is being rediscovered, the middle generation is reaching new heights, and young voices are breaking through on the global stage. Translation efforts are slowly bringing more work to English-language readers, and the internet has made it possible for Brazilian authors to connect directly with international audiences.

As Renan Bernardo puts it, “There’s a whole world of wonderful stories out there” . And for readers willing to explore, that world is finally opening its doors.

Whether you start with the classic time-travel of Jerônymo Monteiro, the vampire epics of André Vianco, the steampunk histories of Nikelen Witter, the solarpunk visions of Renan Bernardo, the Afrofuturist revolutions of Ale Santos, or the surreal diasporic tales of Ananda Lima, you’re entering a tradition rich with imagination, depth, and urgency.

The future of Brazilian speculative fiction is bright—and it’s waiting for you to discover it.