Stephen R Lawhead

Stephen R Lawhead (b. July 2, 1950) is a bestselling American writer known for his works of fantasy, science fiction, and more recently, historical fiction. He has written over 22 novels and numerous children's books.

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 and entered Kearney State College as an Art major. In 1969, while at Kearney State College, he wrote a weekly humor column for the college newspaper and was a frequent contributor of poetry and short stories to The Shore Anthology and The Antler. Lawhead met Alice Slaikeu in 1971 and married her in 1972. He graduated from Kearney State College in 1973 with B.A. in Art and then went on to enroll in Northern Baptist Theological Seminary for the winter semester of 1975. In 2003, Stephen received an honorary doctorate from the University of Nebraska in Kearney. In 1976, Lawhead became an editorial assistant for Campus Life Magazine.

Beginning in 1981, Stephen R Lawhead began to author novels, initially fantasy and science fiction. Most of these had a slant towards the Christian beliefs he holds. He moved to Oxford, England in 1986 to do research for The Pendragon Cycle, a reinterpretation of the legend of King Arthur in a Celtic setting combined with elements of Atlantis. Following this work he became more interested in Celtic history and culture, especially Celtic Christianity. The Song of Albion Trilogy prompted a return to England, having left in 1987. This was a series of books set between the Celtic Otherworld and present-day Britain. In 1996 he published Byzantium, a work of pure historical fiction. Since then his work has moved more towards the historical, with The Celtic Crusades set at the time of the Crusades and Patrick which follows the historical life of Saint Patrick. His current project is the 'King Raven' trilogy - an authentic retelling of the Robin Hood legend.

Stephen R Lawhead's family also seem to have a talent for writing. Alice Slaikeu Lawhead co-wrote the Pilgrims Guide to the New Age and has written several works of non-fiction. His eldest son Ross Lawhead is co-author of the Hero! series. Stephen and Alice have one other son Drake Lawhead, to whom Stephen dedicated The Warlords of Nin, the second book in the Dragon King Trilogy.

Selected Bibliography

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:

• Taliesin (1987)
• Merlin (1988)
• Arthur (1989)
• Pendragon (1994)
• Grail (1997)

The Song of Albion:

• The Paradise War (1991)
• The Silver Hand (1992)
• The Endless Knot (1993)

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