Stephen Aryan was born in Iran in 1977 and raised in Whitley Bay, on the north east coast of the UK. He has been reading fantasy since a very young age. It started with books by David Eddings, Tolkien, C.S Lewis, Terry Brooks, Ursula le Guin, Margaret Weis and Tracy Hickman and later David Gemmell, who had a huge influence on his work.
After graduating university in 1999 he started working in marketing. Around this time he also started submitting his first fantasy novel to agents.
In 2013, he submitted his latest novel, Battlemage, to Juliet Mushens. It took Stephen a long time and many struggles to get this far. You can read the full story on a two part blog he wrote called How I Found an Agent Part 1, and How I Found an Agent Part 2.
In 2014, Battlemage, was snatched up by Orbit books and subsequently published in 2015. It went on to be published in France, Germany and Russia and was a finalist for the David Gemmell Morningstar Award for best debut fantasy novel. Battlemage went on to win the inaugural Hellfest Inferno Award in France after a public vote. The sequels, Bloodmage, and Chaosmage were both published in 2016, completing the Age of Darkness trilogy.
In 2017 he published Mageborn, the first in a new trilogy, the Age of Dread, with Orbit books. This followed on from his first trilogy, with the return of fan-favourite characters and many new faces. The sequels, Magefall and Magebane were published in 2018 and 2019 respectively, wrapping up his second trilogy.
In 2018 he also published Of Gods and Men with Orbit, a digital and audio novella which served as a prequel to Battlemage.
In 2020 Stephen was picked up for a new duology by Angry Robot Books. The story is set in a brand new world. The first novel, The Coward, was published in June 2021 and it received a Starred Review from Publishers Weekly. The sequel, The Warrior, was published in August 2022.
In 2022, Angry Robot signed The Judas Blossom, the first instalment in a Persian inspired fantasy trilogy, from Stephen. The first book will be published on 11th July 2023. The Judas Blossom has been described as an “imaginative and sprawling reimagining of the Mongol Empire’s invasion of Persia” following the lives of four characters at the centre of the war. It is an examination of Persian culture, family and war in a stunning, immersive world.
Stephen lives in the West Midlands with his partner and two cats. When he’s not writing novels or podcasting, he can be found drinking real ale, reading books or watching TV.
Stephen is represented by Juliet Mushens of the Mushens Entertainment agency.
You can find him on Twitter, Blue Sky, Instagram.
Writing Advice
I’m often asked about how to get published, how to get an agent and so on. I’ve written it all down into an ebook called – Good and Bad Advice About Writing and Getting Traditionally Published.
This is aimed at fiction writers and those looking to be traditionally published. The rules are different for non-fiction (which I touch on briefly in the book) and I have little experience with self-publishing, so I can’t really talk about that. I briefly explain some of the alternatives to traditional but not in any great detail.
It has a lot of information about good advice to listen to and bad advice you should completely ignore. I debunk a lot of the myths around writing a novel, debunk the rules people claim are necessary for success, information about writing a novel, finding an agent and then submitting to a literary agent.
Writing a cover/ query letter is difficult and painful (and I still don’t like doing it), so I’ve also included my original letter for Battlemage (which then got me an agent) together with the back and forth correspondence from my agent. She explains what she liked about it and so on. Hopefully it will help you to write your own cover/ query letter.
I also pull the curtain back a little on traditional publishing and explain the typical stages a book will go through from when you sent it to your agent to when it lands on a shelf in a bookshop.
There is information in there about lessons I’ve learned about being published, information about finding your style and other practical help for writers who are struggling.
There’s a lot of good information in there, plus some topics I don’t see people often writing or talking about. Hopefully it will help you if you’re trying to get published or find an agent. Good luck!
YouTube
In 2020 I started a YouTube channel for writers. If you are looking for writing advice about writing a novel, getting published (self published or traditionally), finding an agent as well as more specific topics to do with writing science fiction and fantasy, then it’s the channel for you.
As well as doing videos offering advice I also have regular interviews with other SFF writers who share their experiences and tell their stories about how they got publication. The interviews include Nicholas Eames, Steve McHugh, Peter McLean, Anna Stephens, Ben Galley, RJ Barker, Bradley Beaulieu, Jonathan French, Justin Lee Anderson, Angus Watson, Stephen Deas, Barry Nugent, Mike Shackle, Andrew Stewart, Tim Pratt, Jeremy Szal and Sammy H.K Smith.
Subscribe to the YouTube channel here
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