Steven Erikson

Set in the Malazan world, Erikson has commenced a prequel trilogy, The Kharkanas Trilogy, seven novellas, and a short story. He is currently working on a four-part sequel series, The Tales of Witness, the first book of which, titled The God is Not Willing, was published in 2021, followed by the second installment, No Life Forsaken, released in October 2025. His foray into science fiction has produced a comedic trilogy, the Willful Child Trilogy, a spoof on Star Trek and other tropes common in the genre, and a First Contact novel titled Rejoice, a Knife To the Heart, published in 2018.

Steven Erikson studied at University of Iowa. The recorded working language is English. The field of work recorded is archaeology, anthropology and literary activity. Works named in the authority record are Malazan Book of the Fallen, Forge of Darkness, Blood Follows, The Lees of Laughter's End, Crack'd Pot Trail and The Healthy Dead.

• Name — Steven Erikson • Pen Name — Steven Erikson • Birth Name — Steve Rune Lundin • Born — 7 October 1959 • Birthplace — Toronto, Ontario, Canada • Occupation — Author • Language — English • Period — 1991–present • Genres — Epic Fantasy, Science Fiction, Coming of Age • Notable Works — * Malazan Book of the Fallen • The Kharkanas Trilogy • The Tales of Witness • The Tales of Bauchelain and Korbal Broach • Willful Child • Children — 1 • Years Active — 1991–present

Steven Rune Lundin was born in Toronto, Ontario, and grew up in Winnipeg, Manitoba. He subsequently lived in the UK with his wife and son, but has since returned to Canada. He is an anthropologist and archaeologist by training and is a graduate of the Iowa Writers' Workshop. For his thesis at the Iowa Writers' Workshop, Erikson wrote a "story cycle" of short stories titled A Ruin of Feathers about an archaeologist in Central America. Subsequently, he received a grant to finish the work which was published by TSAR, a small Canadian publishing house. For his next work he co-won the Anvil Press International 3-Day Novel Contest for which he signed away the rights, a mistake he attributes to inexperience. Erikson's third book was also published by TSAR, and consisted of a novella and short stories titled Revolvo and other Canadian Tales. Later, upon moving to England, he sold what he refers to as his "first real novel" to Hodder and Stoughton — This River Awakens — written when he still lived in Winnipeg. Before assuming the pseudonym Erikson (as an homage to his mother's maiden name), he published his first four books, out of print As of 2007, under his real name. In addition to writing, he paints using oil paints.

Erikson has stated that apart from examining the "human condition", all his literary work share "compassion" as a theme, or main driving force. Furthermore, when envisioning the Malazan world, both he and his collaborator Ian Cameron Esslemont agreed to create societies and cultures that never knew sexism and gender based hierarchies of power. Other themes include social inequality, egalitarianism, death, life, history, and historical accuracy.

Erikson has stated explicitly that he enjoys playing with and overturning the conventions of fantasy, presenting characters that violate the stereotypes associated with their roles. They embody the multidimensional characteristics found in human beings, making them more realistic and giving the story more depth, which is why his books are anything but predictable. He deliberately began Gardens of the Moon mid-plot rather than beginning with a more conventional narrative. The writer's style of writing includes complex plots with masses of characters. In addition, he has been praised for his willingness to kill central characters when it enhances the plot.

In the same interview, Erikson reflected on how writers engage with emotional truth even when writing about unfamiliar experiences. He argued that grief, anguish, and vulnerability are universal emotional states—"Grief just is," he wrote, and the authenticity of those emotions does not depend on their source. As a writer, he explained, one must mine past experiences, like the death of a beloved pet, and transpose those emotions into new fictional contexts. Erikson emphasized the imaginative vulnerability this requires: “This act of becoming someone else... is an act of immense vulnerability. Emotions rarely trickle into a consciousness—they flood in... and one can drown in them.” For Erikson, the process of fiction writing involves stepping outside the self, fully occupying the experience of others, and channeling empathy in service of storytelling.

Steven Erikson was recorded at birth as Steve Rune Lundin. He also worked under the name Steven Erikson. The authorities additionally record the heading Steve Lundin. His recorded language was English.

Works recorded as notable number 8: Malazan Book of the Fallen, Forge of Darkness, Blood Follows, The Lees of Laughter's End, Crack'd Pot Trail, The Healthy Dead, The Wurms of Blearmouth and This River Awakens.

Steven Erikson is recorded as anthropologist, writer and archaeologist.

The first novel of the Malazan Book of the Fallen series, Gardens of the Moon (1999), was well received. It was short-listed for a World Fantasy Award. It has also earned Erikson the reputation as one of the best authors in the fantasy genre, and was described as "An astounding début". The novel was acclaimed for its "combination of originality and intelligent, strong and exciting storytelling". The second book in the series, Deadhouse Gates (2000), was voted one of the ten best fantasy novels of 2000 by SF Site. Fellow author Glen Cook has called the series a masterwork of the imagination that may be the high water mark of the epic fantasy genre. In his treatise written for The New York Review of Science Fiction, fellow author Stephen R. Donaldson has also praised Erikson for his approach to the fantasy genre, the subversion of classical tropes, the complex characterizations, the social commentary — pointing explicitly to parallels between the fictional Letheras economy and the US economy — and has referred to him as "an extraordinary writer", comparing him to the likes of Joseph Conrad, Henry James, William Faulkner, and Fyodor Dostoevsky.

Erikson credits pen and paper Role-Playing games, specifically AD&D and GURPS, as being the biggest influence in his writing career, and even calls it the fundament of the Malazan Empire, which his Malazan Book of the Fallen series is based on. Stephen R. Donaldson's The Chronicles of Thomas Covenant and Glen Cook's The Black Company, both ushering post-Tolkien style of writing, are some of the works that have influenced his storytelling. He also credits the works of Robert E. Howard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Homer, Arthur C. Clarke, Roger Zelazny, John Gardner, Gustav Hasford, Mark Helprin and Robin Hobb as influences on the Malazan works.