Santiago Páez Gallegos (Quito, 1958) is an Ecuadorian writer known for his novels, short stories, and science fiction works. In his youth, he traveled through the jungles of the Ecuadorian coastal region, lived in the mangroves of Esmeraldas province, and explored the highlands of the central inter-Andean region. At the age of 19, he wrote his first novel but was dissatisfied with it, leading him to stop writing for about 11 or 12 years. During his time in Madrid studying and caring for his newborn son, Páez found solace in writing science fiction stories during his sleepless nights. This experience reignited his passion for writing, prompting him to focus on fiction and pursue an academic career. After obtaining his doctorate in Madrid, he returned to Quito in 1990. Páez is currently a professor at the Pontifical Catholic University of Ecuador. Among his notable works are novels like “La reina mora” (1997), “Pirata Viejo” (2008), and “Olvido” (2010), as well as short story collections such as “Profundo en la galaxia” (1994) and “Ecuatox” (2013). Páez has received recognition for his writing, including the Joaquín Gallegos Lara Award for his short story collection “Profundo en la Galaxia” (1994) and the Darío Guevara Mayorga Award for his book “El secreto de la ocarina” (2009) and the crime novel “Retratos De Dios” (2016).
Tips for Writers from the Ecuadorian writer Santiago Páez
Awards
- 1994: Joaquín Gallegos Lara Award for the short story collection “Profundo en la Galaxia”
- 2007: Finalist in the Aurelio Espinosa Pólit contest for the novel “Pirata Viejo”
- 2009: Darío Guevara Mayorga Award for the book “El secreto de la ocarina”
- 2016: Darío Guevara Mayorga Award for the crime novel “Retratos De Dios”
Works
Novels
- La reina mora (1997)
- Los archivos de Hilarión (1998)
- Shamanes y reyes (1999)
- Condena madre (2000)
- Crónicas del breve reino (2006)
- El secreto de los yumbos (2008)
- Olvido (2010)
- Puñal (2012)
- Antiguas ceremonias (2015)
- Moradas Provisionales (2018)
- Los Murmurantes (2020)
Short stories
- Profundo en la galaxia (1994)
- Aneurisma (2009)
- Ecuatox (2013)
Non fiction
- Artículo de costumbres José Modesto Espinosa (1988)
- ¡A la voz del carnaval! Análisis semiótico de literatura popular (1992)
- El cuento ecuatoriano de finales del siglo XX (1999).
- Itinerarios (2008)
Literatura infantil y juvenil
- El complot de las mamás (2007)
- El secreto de la ocarina (2008)
- Retratos de Dios. Un caso de Baumann y Ayoví, detectives (2016)