Tracy Hickman | |
---|---|
Born | Tracy Raye Hickman November 26, 1955 Salt Lake City, Utah, U.S. |
Occupation | Novelist, game designer |
Period | 1984–present |
Genre | Fantasy fiction |
Spouse | |
Children | 4 |
Website | |
trhickman |
Tracy Raye Hickman (born November 26, 1955) [1] is an American fantasy author and designer of games and virtual reality (VR) experiences. He co-authored the original Dragonlance novels with Margaret Weis as well as numerous other books. He also designed and created role playing game material while working for TSR and has cowritten novels with his wife, Laura Hickman. He is the author or co-author of over 60 books. [2]
Tracy Hickman was born and raised in Salt Lake City, Utah. [1] His parents instilled in him a love of reading; he recalls visiting the local bookmobile with them. Hickman took a particular interest in the science fiction genre. [3] He graduated from Provo High School in 1974. [4] His major interests were drama, music, and Air Force JROTC. [5]
In 1975, Hickman began two years of service as a missionary for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints (LDS Church). [6] He served in Hawaii for six months while awaiting visa approval for travel to Indonesia, [7] where he served in Surabaya, Djakarta, and the mountain city of Bandung until 1977. [5]
Within four months of his return to the United States, [2] Hickman married his high school sweetheart, Laura Curtis. [1] [5] [6] Laura first introduced him to Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) shortly after they were married. She gave him the game that year for his birthday. Speaking on his discovery of D&D, Hickman said, "I spent part of my student loan money to buy game materials. It turned out to be the best career investment any of that money was ever used for." [8] Laura was also the inspiration for Tracy's character Lauralanthalasa (Laurana) Kanan. [1]
Hickman attended Brigham Young University. [9] In an interview, he stated that he "nearly failed [his] creative writing course" in college. [3]
Hickman had many jobs before joining TSR, Inc. (the publisher of Dungeons & Dragons) in 1982, including working as a supermarket stocker, a movie projectionist, a theater manager, a glass worker, a television assistant director, and a drill press operator in a genealogy center. [5]
Together, Tracy and Laura wrote the original versions of the adventure modules Rahasia and Pharaoh , publishing them privately. [1] Pharaoh was originally published by DayStar West Media in 1980. [10] : 15 In 1981, Tracy entered into a business arrangement to produce an arcade immersion game, [5] but his associate disappeared, leaving the Hickmans with $30,000 in debt. [1] Tracy approached TSR with the modules Rahasia and Pharaoh, "literally so that I could buy shoes for my children". [1] [11] TSR bought the modules, and wanted to hire Tracy as well. Tracy recalls, "They said it would be easier to publish my adventures if I was part of the company. So, we made the move from Utah to Wisconsin. It was a terrifying experience. We had no money. My parents begged us not to venture into such foreign territory to pursue such a bizarre career. My father wrote that there was a secure job as a fry cook in Flagstaff (where my parents were living), and he pleaded with me to come take it." [1]
When Tracy and Laura Hickman came to TSR, they brought Pharaoh with them. It was published as the first part of TSR's Desert of Desolation series (1982–1983). [10] : 15 Ravenloft (1983) was also written by Tracy and Laura Hickman. [10] : 15 Hickman also wrote two supplements for TSR's Gangbusters role-playing game. [10] : 12 Tracy and Laura Hickman's contributions to the D&D module portfolio are credited with initiating a fundamental shift in the RPG module design sensibilities, away from pure dungeon crawl and towards more "cerebral" adventures centered on intriguing plots. [12] : 54, 335
As he was traveling from Utah to Wisconsin to join TSR, Hickman thought of the idea for a setting in which dragons would be fearsome once again. At TSR he found other creators who were interested in his project, which was dubbed "Project Overlord". [10] : 16 Harold Johnson was the first to join the project and brought it to upper management, and talked Hickman into expanding further upon his idea of only a trilogy of three adventures. [10] : 16 Soon after, TSR management announced its intention to develop Hickman's series of dragon-based role-playing adventures. [1] Hickman's proposal resulted in the Dragonlance Chronicles , which led to his association with Margaret Weis. [1] Jean Black, the managing editor of TSR's book department, assigned Hickman and Weis to write first the novel Dragons of Autumn Twilight and then continue with the rest of the Dragonlance Chronicles series. [10] : 16 This was the first project TSR had undertaken that would include adult novels as well as games, calendars, and other spin-off products. [1] It was also Hickman's first novel writing experience. [3] The original Dragonlance team was formed under Hickman's leadership. [1] [13] The project began with a novel and three game modules. It eventually expanded a trilogy of books (written by Weis and Hickman) and 15 companion modules. [6] After completing the Dragonlance Chronicles, Hickman and Weis next wrote the Dragonlance Legends trilogy, which was published in 1986. [10] : 16 Dragonlance eventually expanded to include dozens of books, many written by other authors. [14] By 1987, the Dragonlance project had sold two million books and half a million adventure modules. [1] It garnered "a large and engaged fan base". [15] Hickman and Weis developed a system of co-writing in which Weis is the writer and Hickman is the "storyteller and world builder" for the project. [16] The last Dragonlance books to be published were released in 2007. [14]
In March 2019, Hickman and Weis were contracted by Wizards of the Coast, the new publisher of Dungeons and Dragons, to write another installment of the Dragonlance series. A new trilogy of books was planned to be published by Random House. Wizards of the Coast reportedly approved the first manuscript in the beginning of 2020, [17] and Hickman and Weis had also finished the draft for the sequel. Wizards of the Coast then put a stop to the project, and Hickman and Weis responded by suing the publisher for breach of contract [18] on October 16, 2020, [14] requesting $10 million in compensation. [19] The authors later dropped the lawsuit in December 2020 [20] and announced that Del Rey Books would publish the new Dragonlance trilogy, with a publication date to be announced. [21] Hickman and Weis see the new trilogy as "the capstone to their life's work". [14] In December 2021, it was announced that the first novel of the new series, Dragonlance: Dragons of Deceit, is scheduled for release on August 9, 2022. [22]
Hickman left TSR in 1987. [9] He has published more than 30 novels with Margaret Weis. [6] Together they wrote the Darksword trilogy and The Death Gate Cycle , [23] and collaborated on the Rose of the Prophet series (1988-1989). [10] : 351 Weis and Hickman later returned to TSR to write more new fiction, although TSR turned their intended trilogy into a single novel, Dragons of Summer Flame , published in 1995. [10] : 29
Tracy and Laura Hickman have been publishing game designs together for over 30 years, [2] including the popular and innovative Dungeons & Dragons Ravenloft module in 1983. The Hickmans originally developed Ravenloft as a way to entertain their friends every Halloween. [24] Says Hickman of the original module, and its 1986 sequel, Ravenloft II: The House on Gryphon Hill , "I still believe the original Ravenloft modules were perhaps the best that ever had my name on them." [6] Ravenloft was revived with the release of the Hickmans' Curse of Strahd module in 2016. [24]
For the Starshield Project, Hickman and Weis produced the Del Rey Books-published novels Sentinels (later retitled Mantle of Kendis-Dai) and Nightsword. Hickman also wrote a story set in the Starshield universe for Dragon #250 called "Dedrak's Quest". Of his and Weis's fictional setting, he said, "Starshield is a universe where a society of dragons can confront blaster-armed spacemen or wizards wielding magic staves with computer targeting", and that the Starshield Project "grew out of [his] desire to share the creation process with all [their] fans." [6] According to Hickman, Starshield's ultimate purpose, and his biggest dream, was to finance a permanent colony on the planet Mars by 2010. Readers were able to freely download both the first novel in the series and the Starshield roleplaying game from Hickman's website. [6]
In the late 1990s, Larry Elmore asked Weis and Hickman to write novels for his fantasy world of Loerem, and they agreed to produce the Sovereign Stone trilogy. [10] : 351 With encouragement from Peter Adkison, Wizards of the Coast published a new trilogy of Dragonlance novels by Weis and Hickman called War of Souls , beginning with Dragons of a Fallen Sun (2000). [10] : 283
In 1999, Pyramid magazine named Tracy Hickman one of The Millennium's Most Influential Persons, "at least in the realm of adventure gaming". [25] The magazine stated that Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis were "basically responsible for the entire gaming fiction genre". [25] Hickman was inducted into the Origins Hall of Fame in 2002, [2] recognized in part for "one game line turned literary sensation: Dragonlance ". [26] Tracy and Laura Hickman wrote the adventure Out in the Black (2006) for the Serenity Role Playing Game for Margaret Weis Productions. [10] : 353
In 2009, Hickman released XDM: X-Treme Dungeon Mastery , a guide for DMs based on his years of experience in the trade. Written with his son Curtis Hickman and illustrated by online comic artist Howard Tayler, the book calls itself "the cure for the common game". [27] The Hickmans have hosted "Killer Breakfasts", popular role-playing game experiences, at Gen Con conventions in various locations. [8] [28]
In spring 1996, Hickman's first two solo novels, Requiem of Stars and The Immortals , were published. [6] [11] The Immortals is a science fiction novel about "AIDS concentration camps in Utah". Of the novel, Hickman said: "I was absolutely driven to write that book. I was able to say many things that I felt strongly about and still do. It is perhaps my finest work." [6] Tracy and Laura Hickman published their first joint novel, Mystic Warrior, in 2004. [11]
Hickman then released two new fantasy series: the four-book Dragonships of Vindras series (co-written with his longtime writing partner Margaret Weis), [29] and the three-book Annals of Drakis series (co-written with his wife, Laura). [30]
In 2010, Tracy and Laura Hickman launched a direct-to-internet serialized fantasy series, "Dragon's Bard", [31] which merged serial publishing techniques (such as those employed with Charles Dickens' A Tale of Two Cities ) with modern internet distribution. [32] Eventide, the first book in the Tales of the Dragon's Bard series, was subsequently published by Shadow Mountain Publishing in 2012. [33] Hickman has said that Eventide was his favorite project to work on. [3]
While primarily known for his work in epic fantasy, Hickman once wrote a Batman novel for DC Comics titled Wayne of Gotham (June 2012). The book explores the characters of Bruce Wayne's parents. [34]
Tracy and Laura Hickman produced their DragonHearth podcast until about December 2010. [35] Hickman founded the Parsec Awards alongside Mur Lafferty and Michael Mennenga in 2006. [36]
Hickman wrote the screenplay for, produced, and edited the first science-fiction film shot completely in space, Apogee of Fear . [37] In August 2008, it was announced that Hickman would travel to the International Space Station, where his digitized DNA and samples of his writing would be stored in a capsule as part of "Operation Immortality", sponsored by NCSoft. Game developer Richard Garriott gathered information from people around the world (contributed through a website) to store in the capsule. On the topic of the project, Hickman said, "I have lived my entire life dreaming of space. 'Operation Immortality' is essentially a celebration of that same adventuring spirit and an offering of hope for the future. I am deeply honored to participate." [38]
On March 15, 2013, [39] Hickman joined Richard Garriott's team as lead story designer for Shroud of the Avatar: Forsaken Virtues . [40] Shroud of the Avatar [41] is the "spiritual successor" to Garriott's previous work in the fantasy role-playing genre, the Ultima series of video games. [42]
On March 16, 2016, Hickman announced that he had become the Director of Story Development at The Void, [43] a virtual reality gaming experience franchise, working with his son Curtis in designing interactive adventures. [44]
Hickman married Laura Curtis in 1977, and together they have four children. [5] In addition to the books he has co-written with his wife, Hickman has collaborated with her on ideas for his works since the beginning of his career. The two have worked closely together on numerous projects. [3] Tracy and Laura Hickman have appeared together at multiple conferences and conventions, including the Writing and Illustrating for Young Readers conference. [2]
On his website Hickman states that he is a devout member of the LDS Church. [45] He has stated that he likes writing in the fantasy genre because it "is about ethical and moral choices—the questions of good and evil" and because it reflects "the story of all of us on our journey through mortality and our seeking to return home to Christ". [3] Hickman has said that his faith often inspires his work. [16] As of 1998, the family resides in St. George, Utah. [6]
Ravenloft is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons roleplaying game. It is an alternate time-space existence known as a pocket dimension or demiplane, called the Demiplane of Dread, which consists of a collection of land pieces called "domains", brought together by a mysterious force known only as the Dark Powers. Each domain is tailored to and mystically ruled by a being called a Darklord who is forever trapped and surrounded by magical mists surrounding the domain. Strahd von Zarovich, a vampire in the original AD&DRavenloft I6 module released in 1983, became the first Darklord, both ruler and prisoner of his own personal domain of Barovia. The story of how Count von Zarovich became Darklord of Barovia was detailed in the 1993 novel I, Strahd: The Memoirs of a Vampire. As originally established in the Ravenloft: Realm of Terror boxed set known as "the Black Box" released in 1990, the Ravenloft campaign setting was located in the Ethereal Plane. As a physical manifestation of that plane, lands, monsters and even people were created out of the mysterious mists, and the realm acted as a prison where one could enter or be transported, but means of escape were few. Other Ravenloft Domains and Darklords were eventually added in various AD&D 2nd edition products establishing a core continent attached around Barovia which could be traveled to by others if their respective lords allowed entering or leaving their borders; while some Domains remained isolated in the mists and were referred to as Islands.
Dragonlance is a shared universe created by Laura and Tracy Hickman, and expanded by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis under the direction of TSR, Inc. into a series of fantasy novels. The Hickmans conceived Dragonlance while driving in their car on the way to TSR for a job interview. Tracy Hickman met his future writing partner Margaret Weis at TSR, and they gathered a group of associates to play the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game. The adventures during that game inspired a series of gaming modules, a series of novels, licensed products such as board games, and lead miniature figures.
Margaret Edith Weis is an American fantasy and science fiction author of dozens of novels and short stories. At TSR, Inc., she teamed with Tracy Hickman to create the Dragonlance role-playing game (RPG) world. She is founding CEO and owner of Sovereign Press, Inc and Margaret Weis Productions, licensing several popular television and movie franchises to make RPG series in addition to their own.
Kender are a type of fantasy race first developed for the Dragonlance campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role playing game published by TSR, Inc. in 1984. The first kender character was created by Harold Johnson as a player character in a series of role-playing adventures co-authored by Tracy Hickman and Margaret Weis. Weis and Hickman's Dragonlance shared world novels introduced the kender to readers and players alike, largely through the character Tasslehoff Burrfoot, who became one of the main protagonists in the series.
Ravenloft is an adventure module for the Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) fantasy role-playing game. The American game publishing company TSR, Inc. released it as a standalone adventure booklet in 1983 for use with the first edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons game. It was written by Tracy and Laura Hickman, and includes art by Clyde Caldwell with maps by David Sutherland III. The plot of Ravenloft focuses on the villain Strahd von Zarovich, a vampire who pines for his lost love. Various story elements, including Strahd's motivation and the locations of magical weapons, are randomly determined by drawing cards. The player characters attempt to defeat Strahd and, if successful, the adventure ends.
Lord Soth, the Knight of the Black Rose, is a fictional character appearing in the fantasy realms of Dragonlance and later Ravenloft. He is depicted as a death knight and fallen Knight of Solamnia from the world of Krynn.
Goldmoon is a fictional character from the Dragonlance fantasy series of novels and role playing games, originally published by TSR, Inc. and later by Wizards of the Coast.
Count Strahd von Zarovich is a fictional character originally appearing as the feature villain in the highly popular Advanced Dungeons and Dragons adventure module I6: Ravenloft. Later, this character and his world would be explored in follow-up modules, novels, and the Ravenloft campaign setting. Within this setting, Strahd is the first and best-known of Ravenloft's darklords. He is a powerful ancient vampire. He is also a master necromancer, a skilled warrior, and the unquestioned ruler of the domain of Barovia.
Riverwind is a fictional character appearing in the Dragonlance series of Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game supplements and novels, created by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman and published by TSR.
Dragons of Autumn Twilight is a 1984 fantasy novel by American writers Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, based on a series of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) game modules. It was the first Dragonlance novel, and first in the Chronicles trilogy, which, along with the Dragonlance Legends trilogy, are generally regarded as the core novels of the Dragonlance world. Dragons of Autumn Twilight details the meeting of the Companions and the early days of The War of the Lance. The novel corresponds with the first two Dragonlance game modules, Dragons of Despair and Dragons of Flame, but with a different ending. It introduces many of the characters that are the subject of later novels and short stories.
Laura Curtis Hickman is an American fantasy author, best known for her works in game design and fantasy novels cowritten with her husband, Tracy Hickman.
The DL series is a series of adventures and some supplementary material for the Advanced Dungeons & Dragons role playing game. These modules along with the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy of novels, which follow one possible adventure series through the modules, were the first published items that established the Dragonlance fictional universe. The original DL series was released from 1984 to 1986, with the final two modules added to it in 1988. In the 1990s these roleplaying adventures from the original series were collected and revised for 2nd Edition AD&D as the three DLC Dragonlance Classics modules. There were also versions of the module series released in 1999, 2000 and 2006.
Dragons of Despair is the first in a series of 16 Dragonlance adventures published by TSR, Inc. (TSR) between 1984 and 1988. It is the start of the first major story arc in the Dragonlance series of Dungeons & Dragons (D&D) role-playing game modules, a series of ready-to-play adventures for use by Dungeon Masters in the game. This series provides a game version of the original Dragonlance storyline later told in the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy of novels. This module corresponds to the events told in the first half of the novel Dragons of Autumn Twilight by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman. Its module code is DL1, which is used to designate it as the first part of the Dragonlance adventure series.
Dungeons & Dragons novels are works of fantasy fiction that are based upon campaign settings released for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.
The Dragonlance Chronicles is a trilogy of fantasy novels written by Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman, which take place in the Dragonlance setting. This series is the first set of Dragonlance novels, and is followed by the Dragonlance Legends series.
Bruce Nesmith is a game designer who has worked primarily on role-playing games. He was Creative Director at TSR, working on a variety of games including Dungeons & Dragons, and is a senior game designer at Bethesda Game Studios, where he has worked on AAA titles such as Fallout 3, Fallout 4 and Elder Scrolls IV: Oblivion, and was lead designer on Elder Scrolls V: Skyrim.
This is a complete list of works by American science fiction and fantasy author Margaret Weis.
This is complete list of works by American science fiction and fantasy novelist Tracy Hickman.