Stephen R. Lawhead (born July 7, 1950) is an American writer known for his works of

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction that involves supernatural or Magic (supernatural), magical elements, often including Fictional universe, imaginary places and Legendary creature, creatures. The genre's roots lie in oral traditions, ...

, science fiction, and

historical fiction Historical fiction is a literary genre in which a fictional plot takes place in the Setting (narrative), setting of particular real past events, historical events. Although the term is commonly used as a synonym for historical fiction literatur ...

, particularly Celtic historical fiction. He has written over 28 novels and numerous children's and non-fiction books.

Biography

He was born to Robert Eugene Lawhead and Lois Rowena Bissell Lawhead at Good Samaritan Hospital, Kearney, Nebraska. In 1968, Lawhead graduated from Kearney High School and entered

Kearney State College The University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK) is a campus of the public University of Nebraska system and located in Kearney, Nebraska. It was founded in 1905 as the Nebraska State Normal School at Kearney. History In March 1903 the Nebraska St ...

as an Art major. In 1969, while at Kearney State College, he wrote a weekly humour column for the

college newspaper A student publication is a media outlet such as a newspaper, magazine, television show, or radio station produced by students at an educational institution. These publications typically cover local and school-related news, but they may also repo ...

and was a frequent contributor of poetry and

short stories A short story is a piece of prose fiction. It can typically be read in a single sitting and focuses on a self-contained incident or series of linked incidents, with the intent of evoking a single effect or mood. The short story is one of the old ...

to ''The Shore Anthology'' and ''The Antler''. He paid his way through college largely through playing lead guitar in a college rock band named Mother Rush. Lawhead met Alice Slaikeu in 1971, and married her in 1972. He graduated from Kearney State College in 1973 with BA in Art and then went on to enroll in Northern Baptist Theological Seminary. During this time Lawhead also enrolled in a number of writing courses at nearby Wheaton College. His professional writing career began with five busy years as an editor and staff writer for Campus Life magazine. In 1980, Lawhead became the manager of the successful

Christian rock Christian rock is a form of rock music that features lyrics focusing on matters of Christian faith, often with an emphasis on Jesus in Christianity, Jesus. This music is typically performed by Christians, Christian individuals. The extent to whi ...

act

DeGarmo and Key DeGarmo & Key was a Christian rock band/duo formed in 1977 by Eddie DeGarmo and Dana Key. The group is notable for having the first Christian rock album nominated for a Grammy award and the first American Christian group to have a video entere ...

and formed his own record company, Ariel Records. The demise of Ariel Records in 1981 prompted the beginning of Lawhead's fiction-writing career. In 1981, Lawhead began to author novels, initially fantasy and science fiction, completing his first trilogy, the "Dragon King trilogy". In 1986, he moved to

Oxford Oxford () is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and non-metropolitan district in Oxfordshire, England, of which it is the county town. The city is home to the University of Oxford, the List of oldest universities in continuou ...

England England is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is located on the island of Great Britain, of which it covers about 62%, and List of islands of England, more than 100 smaller adjacent islands. It ...

, to do research for The Pendragon Cycle, a reinterpretation of the legend of

King Arthur According to legends, King Arthur (; ; ; ) was a king of Great Britain, Britain. He is a folk hero and a central figure in the medieval literary tradition known as the Matter of Britain. In Wales, Welsh sources, Arthur is portrayed as a le ...

in a

Celt The Celts ( , see Names of the Celts#Pronunciation, pronunciation for different usages) or Celtic peoples ( ) were a collection of Indo-European languages, Indo-European peoples. "The Celts, an ancient Indo-European people, reached the apoge ...

ic setting combined with elements of

Atlantis Atlantis () is a fictional island mentioned in Plato's works '' Timaeus'' and ''Critias'' as part of an allegory on the hubris of nations. In the story, Atlantis is described as a naval empire that ruled all Western parts of the known world ...

. Heavily rooted in the original Celtic source material which gave rise to the later and more familiar versions of the

Arthurian legend The Matter of Britain (; ; ; ) is the body of medieval literature and legendary material associated with Great Britain and Brittany and the legendary kings and heroes associated with it, particularly King Arthur. The 12th-century writer Geoffr ...

, the series has received critical acclaim for its creative retelling of the Arthur legend and historical credibility. The first book in the series, ''Taliesin'', won the

Evangelical Christian Publishers Association The Evangelical Christian Publishers Association (ECPA) is an international non-profit trade association whose member companies are involved in the publishing and distribution of Christian A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres ...

's Gold Medallion Award for Fiction in 1988. Lawhead's research for The Pendragon Cycle sparked an interest in Celtic history and culture, especially

Celtic Christianity Celtic Christianity is a form of Christianity that was common, or held to be common, across the Celtic languages, Celtic-speaking world during the Early Middle Ages. The term Celtic Church is deprecated by many historians as it implies a unifi ...

, topics which have featured prominently in his work ever since. "The Song of Albion" trilogy prompted a return to England (Lawhead having left in 1987). This was a series of books set between the

Celtic Otherworld In Celtic mythology, the Otherworld is the realm of the Celtic deities, deities and possibly also the dead. In Gaels, Gaelic and Celtic Britons, Brittonic myth it is usually a supernatural realm of everlasting youth, beauty, health, abundance an ...

and present-day

Britain Britain most often refers to: * Great Britain, a large island comprising the countries of England, Scotland and Wales * The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, a sovereign state in Europe comprising Great Britain and the north-eas ...

. In the 1990s, he published ''

Byzantium Byzantium () or Byzantion () was an ancient Greek city in classical antiquity that became known as Constantinople in late antiquity and Istanbul today. The Greek name ''Byzantion'' and its Latinization ''Byzantium'' continued to be used as a n ...

'', a work of pure

, followed by "The Celtic Crusades" trilogy, set at the time of the

Crusades The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and at times directed by the Papacy during the Middle Ages. The most prominent of these were the campaigns to the Holy Land aimed at reclaiming Jerusalem and its surrounding t ...

, and then ''Avalon: The Return of King Arthur'', a stand-alone related to the '' Pendragon Cycle''. In 2003, Lawhead published the novel ''Patrick: Son of Ireland'', a fictionalized account of the early years of

Saint Patrick Saint Patrick (; or ; ) was a fifth-century Romano-British culture, Romano-British Christian missionary and Archbishop of Armagh, bishop in Gaelic Ireland, Ireland. Known as the "Apostle of Ireland", he is the primary patron saint of Irelan ...

. In 2006, he published '' Hood'', the first book in the ''

King Raven Trilogy The King Raven Trilogy is a series of historical novels by American writer Stephen R. Lawhead, based on the Robin Hood legend. Lawhead relocates Robin Hood from Sherwood Forest in Nottingham to Wales, and sets the story in the late eleventh cent ...

'' – a retelling of the

Robin Hood Robin Hood is a legendary noble outlaw, heroic outlaw originally depicted in English folklore and subsequently featured in literature, theatre, and cinema. According to legend, he was a highly skilled archer and swordsman. In some versions o ...

legend, transferred to

Wales Wales ( ) is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It is bordered by the Irish Sea to the north and west, England to the England–Wales border, east, the Bristol Channel to the south, and the Celtic ...

. In 2008, the second book in the trilogy, ''Scarlet'', won a

Christy Award The Christy Awards, established in 1999, are awarded each year to recognize fiction of excellence written from a Christian perspective with matters of faith at its core. Awards are given in nine categories, including romance, suspense, visionary ...

in the category of Visionary Fiction. In 2003, Lawhead received an honorary doctorate from the

University of Nebraska at Kearney The University of Nebraska at Kearney (UNK) is a campus of the public University of Nebraska system and located in Kearney, Nebraska. It was founded in 1905 as the Nebraska State Normal School at Kearney. History In March 1903 the Nebraska S ...

. Lawhead and his wife reside in

, UK. He has two sons, Ross Lawhead, and Drake Lawhead.

Works

Adult fiction

Many of his books are in series following a common theme: Dragon King trilogy: * ''In the Hall of the Dragon King'' (1982) * ''The Warlords of Nin'' (1983) * ''The Sword and the Flame'' (1984) Empyrion Saga: * ''Empyrion I: The Search for Fierra'' (1985) * ''Empyrion II: The Siege of Dome'' (1986) The Pendragon Cycle: :* ''Aurelia'' (prequel; forthcoming January 2025) # ''Taliesin'' (1987) # ''Merlin'' (1988) # ''Arthur'' (1989) # ''Pendragon'' (1994) # ''Grail'' (1997) # ''Avalon'' (1999; AKA ''Avalon: The Return of King Arthur'') Song of Albion: * '' The Paradise War'' (1991) (Illustrated by Rodney Matthews,

Daniel Horne Daniel Horne is an artist whose work has appeared in role-playing games. Early life Daniel R. Horne was born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania in 1960. Works Daniel Horne has produced interior and cover illustrations for role-playing game books since ...

in 1993, Anne Yvonne Gilbert in 1998, and Peter Holt in 2001) * ''The Silver Hand'' (1992) (Illustrated by Anne Yvonne Gilbert in 1998) * ''The Endless Knot'' (1993) (Illustrated by Anne Yvonne Gilbert in 1998) The Celtic Crusades: * ''The Iron Lance'' (1998) * ''The Black Rood'' (2000) * ''The Mystic Rose'' (2001)

: * '' Hood'' (2006) * '' Scarlet'' (2007) * '' Tuck'' (2009) Hero (With Ross Lawhead): * ''City of Dreams'' (2003) * ''Rogue Nation'' (unpublished) * ''World Without End'' (unpublished) Bright Empires: * ''The Skin Map'' (2010) * ''The Bone House'' (2011) * ''The Spirit Well'' (2012) * ''The Shadow Lamp'' (2013) * ''The Fatal Tree'' (2014) Eirlandia: * ''In the Region of the Summer Stars'' (2018) * ''In the Land of the Everliving'' (2019) * ''In the Kingdom of All Tomorrows'' (''2020'') Stand-alone novels: * ''Dream Thief'' (1983) * ''Byzantium'' (1996) * ''Patrick: Son of Ireland'' (2003)

Children's fiction

The Brown Ears Books: * ''Brown Ears: The Adventures of a Lost-and-Found Rabbit'' (1988) * ''Brown Ears at Sea: More Adventures of a Lost-and-Found Rabbit'' (1990) The Howard Books * ''Howard Had A Spaceship'' (1986) * ''Howard Had A Submarine'' (1987) * ''Howard Had A Hot Air Balloon'' (1988) * ''Howard Had A Shrinking Machine'' (1988) The Riverbank Series * ''The Tale of Jeremy Vole'' (1990) * ''The Tale of Timothy Mallard'' (1990) * ''The Tale of Annabelle Hedgehog'' (1990)

Non-fiction

* ''The Ultimate College Student Handbook'' (1989; later published as ''The Total Guide to College Life'') – With Alice Lawhead * ''Rock on Trial: Pop Music and Its Role in Our Lives'' (1989) * ''Rock of This Age: The Real & Imagined Dangers of Rock Music'' (1987) * ''Pilgrim's Guide to the New Age'' (1986) – With Alice Lawhead * ''Judge for Yourself'' (1985) – With Alice Lawhead * ''The Phoenix Factor: Surviving and Growing Through Personal Crisis'' (1985; later published as ''Up from the Ashes'') – With Karl A. Slaikeu * ''Turn Back the Night: A Christian Response to Popular Culture'' (1985) * ''Welcome to the Family: How to Find a Home with Other Believers'' (1982) * ''Rock Reconsidered: A Christian Looks at Contemporary Music'' (1981) * ''After You Graduate: A Guide to Life After High School'' (1978) * ''Decisions! Decisions! Decisions! What to Do When You Can't Make Up Your Mind'' (1978)

Books contributed to

Lawhead has also contributed essays or chapters to several books. His essay "J.R.R. Tolkien: Master of Middle-earth", which describes the impact

J. R. R. Tolkien John Ronald Reuel Tolkien (, 3 January 1892 – 2 September 1973) was an English writer and philologist. He was the author of the high fantasy works ''The Hobbit'' and ''The Lord of the Rings''. From 1925 to 1945, Tolkien was the Rawlinson ...

's writings had on him, is featured in the following titles: * ''More Than Words: Contemporary Writers on the Works That Shaped Them'' (2002) (previously published as ''Reality and the Vision'' (1990) and ''The Classics We've Read, The Difference They've Made'' (1993)) – Compiled by Philip Yancey, edited by James C. Schaap * ''Tolkien: A Celebration'' (1999) – Edited by Joseph Pearce Lawhead has contributed to one fictional compilation, writing a chapter in the serial mystery novel ''Carnage at Christhaven'' (1989 – ed. William Griffin).

References

External links

Stephen Lawhead's official website

*

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lawhead, Stephen R. 1950 births Living people 20th-century American male writers 20th-century American non-fiction writers 20th-century American novelists 20th-century evangelicals 21st-century American male writers 21st-century American non-fiction writers 21st-century American novelists 21st-century evangelicals American Evangelical writers American expatriates in the United Kingdom American fantasy writers American historical novelists American male non-fiction writers American male novelists American science fiction writers Writers from Nebraska Writers of historical fiction set in the Middle Ages Writers of modern Arthurian fiction People from Kearney, Nebraska University of Nebraska at Kearney alumni