Lisa Smedman
Encyclopedia
Lisa Smedman is a newspaper editor and a science fiction
and fantasy
novelist. Her most well-known work is Extinction
, a novel set in the Forgotten Realms
universe.
in anthropology
from the University of British Columbia
and a journalism diploma from Langara College
in Vancouver. After her first job as a typesetter for a local publisher, Smedman has spent her entire career working as a reporter and editor at Vancouver
-area weekly newspapers. She has worked at the Richmond Review, the Langley Times, and Sounder magazine. Currently, she is an editor at the Vancouver Courier
, where she writes local history articles.
Smedman lives in Ladner, British Columbia
, a Vancouver suburb. She has bookshelves filled with novels and books on science, history, forensics, religion, and mythology, as well as a vast collection of gaming
boxes. Smedman has a young son whom she raises with her partner; the two women married in July 2004.
and soon became a Dungeon Master
.
By 1987, Smedman had become convention spokesperson for the 15th year of V-Con, the annual convention of the B.C. Science Fiction Association, that attracted about six hundred people.
In the late 1980s, Smedman began to write for Dragon
magazine, which led to her writing her first gaming adventure for TSR, Inc.
—the creators of Dungeons & Dragons
—in 1993. After Dragon's Crown was released, Smedman wrote ten more adventures for TSR in the next three years.
Smedman's first novel, The Lucifer Deck, was set in the Roc Books
Shadowrun
universe and published in 1997. She used her own childhood experiences with homosexuality to fashion a child protagonist who, after changing into a magical creature and being rejected by her family, finds herself homeless on the streets. Although Smedman says that her family is supportive and loving, "I have known people who came out as gay in their teens and were utterly rejected by their families. Because I'm also gay, it's easy for me to imagine what they must have felt."
Eight more books followed The Lucifer Deck. Extinction, set in Wizards Of The Coast
's Forgotten Realms
universe, made the New York Times bestseller list in 2004.
In 2004, Smedman's tenth novel appeared; it was her first entirely independent work. The Apparition Trail is an alternate-history fantasy which posits an 1884 Western Canada where the power imbalance between the First Nations
and European settlers exists in a universe with magic and alternate physics.
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
and fantasy
Fantasy
Fantasy is a genre of fiction that commonly uses magic and other supernatural phenomena as a primary element of plot, theme, or setting. Many works within the genre take place in imaginary worlds where magic is common...
novelist. Her most well-known work is Extinction
Extinction (novel)
Extinction is a fantasy novel by Lisa Smedman. It is the fourth book of the Forgotten Realms series, War of the Spider Queen hexalogy. Like other books in the series, it is based on characters from the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game....
, a novel set in the Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
universe.
Background
Smedman was born c.1959 and raised in North Vancouver, BC, Canada; a suburb of Vancouver. She earned a BABachelor of Arts
A Bachelor of Arts , from the Latin artium baccalaureus, is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate course or program in either the liberal arts, the sciences, or both...
in anthropology
Anthropology
Anthropology is the study of humanity. It has origins in the humanities, the natural sciences, and the social sciences. The term "anthropology" is from the Greek anthrōpos , "man", understood to mean mankind or humanity, and -logia , "discourse" or "study", and was first used in 1501 by German...
from the University of British Columbia
University of British Columbia
The University of British Columbia is a public research university. UBC’s two main campuses are situated in Vancouver and in Kelowna in the Okanagan Valley...
and a journalism diploma from Langara College
Langara College
Langara College is a public degree-granting college in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada which serves approximately 20,000 students annually through its university, career, and continuing studies programs...
in Vancouver. After her first job as a typesetter for a local publisher, Smedman has spent her entire career working as a reporter and editor at Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
-area weekly newspapers. She has worked at the Richmond Review, the Langley Times, and Sounder magazine. Currently, she is an editor at the Vancouver Courier
Vancouver Courier
The Vancouver Courier is a Canadian semiweekly local newspaper published in Vancouver, British Columbia by Postmedia Network Inc. Currently, it is Canada's largest distributed community newspaper, with a weekly distribtuion of 265,000...
, where she writes local history articles.
Smedman lives in Ladner, British Columbia
Ladner, British Columbia
Ladner was created as a fishing village on the banks of the Fraser River. It is a part of the Municipality of Delta, British Columbia, Canada, and a suburb of Vancouver....
, a Vancouver suburb. She has bookshelves filled with novels and books on science, history, forensics, religion, and mythology, as well as a vast collection of gaming
Role-playing game
A role-playing game is a game in which players assume the roles of characters in a fictional setting. Players take responsibility for acting out these roles within a narrative, either through literal acting, or through a process of structured decision-making or character development...
boxes. Smedman has a young son whom she raises with her partner; the two women married in July 2004.
Writing
Smedman is one of the most prolific authors of science fiction and fantasy gaming tie-in novels in Canada. She began writing her own stapled-together stories in elementary school. In 1981, she discovered Dungeons & DragonsDungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
and soon became a Dungeon Master
Dungeon Master
In the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game, the Dungeon Master is the game organizer and participant in charge of creating the details and challenges of a given adventure, while maintaining a realistic continuity of events...
.
By 1987, Smedman had become convention spokesperson for the 15th year of V-Con, the annual convention of the B.C. Science Fiction Association, that attracted about six hundred people.
In the late 1980s, Smedman began to write for Dragon
Dragon (magazine)
Dragon is one of the two official magazines for source material for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game and associated products, the other being Dungeon. TSR, Inc. originally launched the monthly printed magazine in 1976 to succeed the company's earlier publication, The Strategic Review. The...
magazine, which led to her writing her first gaming adventure for TSR, Inc.
TSR, Inc.
Blume and Gygax, the remaining owners, incorporated a new company called TSR Hobbies, Inc., with Blume and his father, Melvin Blume, owning the larger share. The former assets of the partnership were transferred to TSR Hobbies, Inc....
—the creators of Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons
Dungeons & Dragons is a fantasy role-playing game originally designed by Gary Gygax and Dave Arneson, and first published in 1974 by Tactical Studies Rules, Inc. . The game has been published by Wizards of the Coast since 1997...
—in 1993. After Dragon's Crown was released, Smedman wrote ten more adventures for TSR in the next three years.
Smedman's first novel, The Lucifer Deck, was set in the Roc Books
Roc Books
Roc Books is a fantasy imprint of Penguin Group, as part of their New American Library. The imprint was launched in April 1990 after Penguin Chairman, Peter Mayer, asked John Silbersack, the editor in chief of New American Library's science fiction program, to launch a new imprint that would draw...
Shadowrun
Shadowrun
Shadowrun is a role-playing game set in a near-future fictional universe in which cybernetics, magic and fantasy creatures co-exist. It combines genres of cyberpunk, urban fantasy and crime, with occasional elements of conspiracy fiction, horror, and detective fiction.The original game has spawned...
universe and published in 1997. She used her own childhood experiences with homosexuality to fashion a child protagonist who, after changing into a magical creature and being rejected by her family, finds herself homeless on the streets. Although Smedman says that her family is supportive and loving, "I have known people who came out as gay in their teens and were utterly rejected by their families. Because I'm also gay, it's easy for me to imagine what they must have felt."
Eight more books followed The Lucifer Deck. Extinction, set in Wizards Of The Coast
Wizards of the Coast
Wizards of the Coast is an American publisher of games, primarily based on fantasy and science fiction themes, and formerly an operator of retail stores for games...
's Forgotten Realms
Forgotten Realms
The Forgotten Realms is a campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game. Commonly referred to by players and game designers alike as "The Realms", it was created by game designer Ed Greenwood around 1967 as a setting for his childhood stories...
universe, made the New York Times bestseller list in 2004.
In 2004, Smedman's tenth novel appeared; it was her first entirely independent work. The Apparition Trail is an alternate-history fantasy which posits an 1884 Western Canada where the power imbalance between the First Nations
First Nations
First Nations is a term that collectively refers to various Aboriginal peoples in Canada who are neither Inuit nor Métis. There are currently over 630 recognised First Nations governments or bands spread across Canada, roughly half of which are in the provinces of Ontario and British Columbia. The...
and European settlers exists in a universe with magic and alternate physics.
Forgotten Realms
- Heirs of Prophecy 2002
- Venom's Taste (House of Serpents, book one) 2004
- Viper's Kiss (House of Serpents, book two) 2005
- Vanity's Brood (House of Serpents, book three) March 2006
- House of Serpents: A Forgotten Realms Omnibus (This omnibus collects all three volumes of the House of Serpents trilogy: Venom's Taste, Venom's Kiss, and Vanity's Brood.)
- ExtinctionExtinction (novel)Extinction is a fantasy novel by Lisa Smedman. It is the fourth book of the Forgotten Realms series, War of the Spider Queen hexalogy. Like other books in the series, it is based on characters from the Dungeons & Dragons fantasy role-playing game....
(War of the Spider QueenWar of the Spider QueenWar of the Spider Queen is a New York Times best-selling series of novels set in the Forgotten Realms universe published by Wizards of the Coast. The series contains six books focused on the drow and their principal deity Lolth. Each of the six novels in the series is written by a different author...
, book four) January 2004 - Sacrifice of the Widow (The Lady PenitentThe Lady PenitentThe Lady Penitent is a series of novels by Lisa Smedman, set in the Forgotten Realms campaign setting.-Plot summary:The Lady Penitent takes place after the events of War of the Spider Queen. Several fairly large realm-changing events take place during this series, ranging from the use of Elven High...
, book one) March 2007 - Storm of the Dead (The Lady Penitent, book two) out August 2007
- Ascendency of the Last (The Lady Penitent, book three) June 2008
Shadowrun
- The Lucifer Deck
- Blood Sport
- Psychotrope
- The Forever Drug
- Tails You Lose
Other books
- The Apparation Trail 2004
- Creature Catchers March 2007
- From Boneshakers to Choppers: The Rip-Roaring History of the Motorcycle
- Star Wars - The Kathol Outback (Part II of the DarkStryder Campaign, in collaboration with Doyle, Strayton, Russo, Sudlow) - West End Games