Natalia Sherba Ukrainian writer Date of Birth: 16.11.1983 Country: Ukraine

1. Biography of Natalya Shcherba
2. School Years
3. College Years
4. Beginning of Career
5. Awards and Recognition
6. The Hourglass Series

Biography of Natalya Shcherba

Natalya Shcherba is a Ukrainian Russian-speaking writer known for her works in the genres of teenage science fiction and fantasy. She was born on November 16, 1981, in Molodechno, Belarus. Shcherba spent her childhood in Russia before eventually settling in Ivano-Frankivsk, Ukraine.

School Years

From a young age, Shcherba developed a love for reading, particularly enjoying the works of Dumas, Verne, Twain, Waldo, Bulgakov, Efremov, Bulychev, Val'tistov, Nosov, Nestayko, Lindgren, Lagerlöf, Rowling, Pullman, Stroud, and others. She also had a passion for drawing and practiced the martial art of wushu, with her favorite weapons being the dao sword, staff, and combat fan. During her school years, she began writing her first pieces as a joke for her classmates, including a small novel about a geography teacher from another planet.

College Years

After completing school, Shcherba enrolled at the Kyiv State Academy of Light Industry in Ukraine. However, after finishing her fourth year, she decided not to continue her studies.

Beginning of Career

In 2005, Shcherba's first published literary work, a science fiction story titled "At the Bottom," was released. Her first novel, "To Be a Witch," was published in 2008 and received several awards. This was followed by the release of two more books, completing the "To Be a Witch" trilogy: "The Witch's Cross" in 2010 and "Free Witch" in 2011. In 2010, her fantasy novel "The Two-Faced World" was also published.

Awards and Recognition

In the same year, Shcherba received the encouraging award for "Best Young European Science Fiction Writer" at Eurocon-2010. She also won the Grand Prix of the "New Children's Book" competition in the Adventure and Fantasy category with her book "The Hourglass Key."

The Hourglass Series

Shcherba's most popular book series, "The Hourglass" (or "Chasodei" in Ukrainian), was first released in March 2011 with the publication of the first book, "The Hourglass. The Hourglass Key." The second book, "The Hourglass. The Hourglass Heart," was released in October 2011. The third book, "The Hourglass. The Hourglass Tower," was published on February 29, 2012, followed by the fourth book, "The Hourglass. The Hourglass Name," on December 1, 2012. The fifth book in the series, "Chronogram" was released in 2013, and the final part of the series, "The Hourglass Battle," was published in 2014.