In recognition of her “transformative impact on American literature,” science fiction writer Ursula K. Le Guin will receive the National Book Awards’ 2014 Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters. Author Neil Gaiman will present her with the award at the 65^th National Book Awards Ceremony and Benefit Dinner in New York on November 19.

“Ursula Le Guin has had an extraordinary impact on several generations of readers and, particularly, writers in the United States and around the world,” said Harold Augenbraum, the National Book Foundation’s Executive Director. “She has shown how great writing will obliterate the antiquated—and never really valid—line between popular and literary art. Her influence will be felt for decades to come.”

Le Guin—who has published twenty-two novels, eleven volumes of short stories, seven books of poetry, four collections of essays, thirteen books for children, and five works of translation—will be the twenty-seventh recipient of the award, and joins writers such as E.L. Doctorow, John Ashbery, Joan Didion, and Ray Bradbury. She also received a National Book Award in 1973 for The Farthest Shore, and was a finalist in 1972 for The Tombs of Atuan and in 1985 for Always Coming Home. She lives in Portland, Oregon.

Check out her official website.