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A member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Hall of Fame will be the featured speaker at a national science fiction conference hosted by the University of Kansas next month.

Samuel “Chip” Delany will be both a speaker and the primary subject of the two-day symposium at KU. Delany has been recognized as one of the top science fiction writers in America since the 1960s, authoring award-winning novels “Babel-17,” “The Einstein Intersection,” and the “Return to Neveryon” series, among others.

The symposium, hosted by KU’s J. Wayne & Elsie M. Gunn Center for the Study of Science Fiction will take place Oct. 24-25 at the Hall Center for the Humanities on the Lawrence campus. Delany will be in attendance both days of the symposium, and will participate in multiple panels and discussions.

The symposium is titled: “Stars in Our Pockets: Celebrating Samuel R. Delany.” Delany has been a member of the science fiction hall of fame since 2002. Delany, who grew up in Harlem and was a professor of English for years in New York’s state university system and elsewhere, also has been honored for his work in literary criticism and speculative fiction.

“Delany’s influence is beyond measure,” Phillip Drake, director of KU’s Gunn Center ,said in a press release. “I’m particularly excited that his visit will create opportunities for KU students to interact with him.”

The symposium is open to the general public, but there is a $25 registration fee. Registration information can be found at sfcenter.ku.edu/sturgeon-symposium.