Upon its hardcover release by Crown Publishing in early 2014, Weir's initially self-published science fiction novel The Martian rose to number twelve on the New York Times' bestseller list and was also lauded by The Wall Street Journal. The work was subsequently adapted into a 2015, Ridley Scott-directed film starring Matt Damon. After briefly studying computer science at the University of California-Davis, he published his early literary work on his personal website and attracted a large fan base after posting his short story "The Egg."
