Rafał Kosik

(b. 1971) – a writer and founder of Powergraph Publishers.

He made his debut with the short story ‘Pokoje przechodnie’ (‘Passage Rooms’), published in 2001 in Nowa Fantastyka. In 2003, he published his first novel, Mars. Since then, his name has mainly been connected with a book series for young adults – ‘Felix, Net i Nika’ (Felix, Net and Nika). His novels grapple with current subjects concerning, for example, increasing digitisation or social exclusion, but he describes them in a way that appeals to young readers. Moreover, in Kosik’s work, the world of young people is not separate from the adult world; teenagers’ school and personal problems only reflect problems that come with operating in a grown-up society.

Rafał Kosik’s prose incorporates science-fiction, dystopia, horror and adventure novels with detective ingredients. The combination of these genres is clearest in in the series of novels and short stories about three teenaged friends (Felix, Net and Nika), whose day-to-day life is constantly being interrupted by unexpected events that require analytical and logical thinking and a great deal of invention. His other detective/adventure novel series is ‘Amelia i Kuba’ (Amelia and Kuba), written for children.

Rafał Kosik describes a slightly different reality in his dystopian novels for adults: Mars, Vertical, ‘Kameleon’ (Chameleon) and ‘Różaniec’ (The Rosary). Their protagonists are tossed into a catastrophic version of the future, moving about closed cities (Vertical and The Rosary), trying to combat the system they encounter, which kills all freedom and independence. Their enemy is the system and advanced technology, controlling every step they take. Mars and Chameleon, in turn, explore space travel and utopian societies, over which hangs the spectre of annihilation. A major aspect of these works is the psychological profiles of the protagonists, who are hard to predict, and sometimes surprising.

Rafał Kosik’s ‘Cyberpunk 2077: Bez przypadku’ (Cyberpunk 2077: No Accident) is a dynamic science fiction thriller set in the dark universe of Night City. Despite the technological setting, this book holds a whole spectrum of human emotions tied to the need for love, empathy and intimacy.

Apart from his books, he has published his work in Nowa Fantastyka, Science Fiction and Internet magazines Fahrenheit and Esensja.

Rafał Kosik has received multiple awards, including the Nautilus (for Vertical, 2006), the Little Dong – Children’s Bestseller of the Year 2007 (for ‘Felix, Net i Nika oraz Pułapka Nieśmiertelności’ [Felix, Net and Nika and the Immortality Trap], 2008), the Jerzy Żuławski Literary Award and the Janusz A. Zajdl Literary Award (for Chameleon, 2009 and The Rosary, 2018), the Sfinks Award (for Chameleon, 2009). He has also been nominated for the Henryk Sienkiewicz Award (for ‘Felix, Net i Nika oraz Sekret Czerwonej Hańczy’ [Felix, Net and Nika and the Secret of the Red Hańcza], 2014), and the Lubimyczytac.pl Book of the Year in the ‘children’s literature’ category (for ‘Amelia i Kuba. Złota karta’ [Amelia and Kuba: The Golden Card], 2021). In 2012, he was honoured with a Medal for Service to Polish Fantasy Literature.