Matthew Woodring Stover (born 1962) is an American

fantasy Fantasy is a genre of speculative fiction involving Magic (supernatural), magical elements, typically set in a fictional universe and sometimes inspired by mythology and folklore. Its roots are in oral traditions, which then became fantasy ...

and science fiction novelist. He is most well known for his four ''

Star Wars ''Star Wars'' is an American epic film, epic space opera multimedia franchise created by George Lucas, which began with the Star Wars (film), eponymous 1977 film and quickly became a worldwide popular culture, pop-culture Cultural impact of S ...

'' novels, including the

novelization A novelization (or novelisation) is a derivative novel that adapts the story of a work created for another medium, such as a film, TV series, stage play, comic book or video game. Film novelizations were particularly popular before the advent of ...

of '' Star Wars: Episode III – Revenge of the Sith''. He has also written several fantasy novels, including '' Iron Dawn'' and '' Jericho Moon''. He has written four science-fiction/fantasy hybrid stories featuring a hero named Caine: '' Heroes Die'', '' Blade of Tyshalle'', and '' Caine Black Knife'', with the most recent, '' Caine's Law'', released April 4, 2012.

Biography

Stover attended Danville High School in

Danville, Illinois Danville is a city in and the county seat of Vermilion County, Illinois. As of the 2010 census, its population was 33,027. As of 2019, the population was an estimated 30,479. History The area that is now Danville was once home to the Miami, K ...

, and graduated in 1979. He then graduated in 1983 from

Drake University Drake University is a private university in Des Moines, Iowa. It offers undergraduate and graduate programs, including professional programs in business, law, and pharmacy. Drake's law school is among the 25 oldest in the United States. Hi ...

, and settled in

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = Country , subdivision_name ...

for many years, before relocating to

St. Petersburg, Florida St. Petersburg is a city in Pinellas County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the population was 258,308, making it the fifth-most populous city in Florida and the second-largest city in the Tampa Bay Area, after Tampa. It is the ...

. He is an avid

martial artist Martial arts are codified systems and traditions of combat practiced for a number of reasons such as self-defense; military and law enforcement applications; competition; physical, mental, and spiritual development; entertainment; and the preserv ...

and a student of the Degerberg Blend, a

Jeet Kune Do Jeet Kune Do is a primarily wing chun kung fu inspired eclectic martial arts philosophy heavily influenced and adapted by the Taoist personal life philosophy and experiences of martial artist Bruce Lee. Overview and philosophy Jeet Kune ...

concept that mixes approximately twenty-five different fighting arts from around the world. This combat style influences the way Stover writes his fight scenes, for which he has won considerable acclaim. He is also the founder and self-described "international grandmaster" of a parodic self-defense system he calls Huàn Dao ("Way of the Hedgehog"), which he has described as "self-defense for people too lazy to train and too smart to fight." He says the system was inspired by a passage from the ancient Greek soldier-poet Archilochus: "The fox is swift and clever and knows many tricks, yet still he is taken by the hounds. The hedgehog is slow and dull, and knows only one trick -- but it is a very good trick." He sometimes refers to Huan Dao as "Fatmattjitsu." His non-''Star Wars'' novels have garnered a smaller but loyal audience, primarily for the ''Acts of Caine'' cycle. As for future ''

'' novels, Stover has said that he would be interested in writing the final adventure of the heroic trio of

Luke Skywalker Luke Skywalker is a fictional character and the protagonist of the original film trilogy of the ''Star Wars'' franchise created by George Lucas. Portrayed by Mark Hamill, Luke first appeared in ''Star Wars'' (1977), and he returned in ''The ...

Han Solo Han Solo is a fictional character in the '' Star Wars'' franchise created by George Lucas. The character first appeared in the 1977 film '' Star Wars'' portrayed by Harrison Ford, who reprised his role in ''The Empire Strikes Back'' (1980) an ...

and

Princess Leia Princess Leia Organa is a fictional character and one of the main protagonists in the ''Star Wars'' franchise, portrayed in films by Carrie Fisher. Introduced in the Star Wars (film), original ''Star Wars'' film in 1977, Leia is princess of th ...

Works

Barra the Pict

* '' Iron Dawn'' (May 1997) , (April 1998) * '' Jericho Moon'' (April 1998) , (Sept. 1999) * ''Heart of Bronze'' (1998 SFBC omnibus ''Iron Dawn'' and ''Jericho Moon'') In January 2011, fsand.com released

e-book An ebook (short for electronic book), also known as an e-book or eBook, is a book publication made available in digital form, consisting of text, images, or both, readable on the flat-panel display of computers or other electronic devices. Alt ...

versions of both novels. The e-books were slightly revised by Stover to restore some material cut by the original publisher.

The Acts of Caine

* '' Heroes Die'' (''Act of Violence'') (1997) * '' Blade of Tyshalle'' (''Act of War'') (2001) * '' Caine Black Knife'' (''Act of Atonement, Book One'') (2008) * ''Caine's Law'' (''Act of Atonement, Book Two'') (April 3, 2012)

Star Wars

* ''

Traitor Treason is the crime of attacking a state authority to which one owes allegiance. This typically includes acts such as participating in a war against one's native country, attempting to overthrow its government, spying on its military, its diplo ...

(The

New Jedi Order ''Star Wars: The New Jedi Order'' (or ''New Jedi Order'' or ''NJO'') is a series of 19 science fiction novels, published from 1999 to 2003, set in the Star Wars in other media, ''Star Wars'' Expanded Universe. The series revolves around the Yu ...

)'' (2002) * ''

Shatterpoint Mace Windu is a fictional character in the ''Star Wars'' franchise. Windu was portrayed by Samuel L. Jackson in the prequel trilogy. Jackson reprised the role in the 2008 animated film '' Star Wars: The Clone Wars'' and with voice only in the 20 ...

(A Clone Wars Novel)'' (2003) * '' Star Wars Episode III: Revenge of the Sith'' (2005) * '' Star Wars on Trial: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Debate the Most Popular Science Fiction Films of All Time'' (2006) * '' Luke Skywalker and the Shadows of Mindor'' (December 2008) * ''Star Wars on Trial: The Force Awakens Edition: Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Debate the Most Popular Science Fiction Films of All Time'' (2015)

Other

* ''

God of War A war god in mythology associated with war, combat, or bloodshed. They occur commonly in both monotheistic and polytheistic religions. Unlike most gods and goddesses in polytheistic religions, monotheistic deities have traditionally been po ...

'', Stover and

Robert E. Vardeman Robert Edward Vardeman (sometimes called Vardebob) (born 1947) is an American science fiction fan and writer. Career Robert E. Vardeman was born in Mineral Wells, Texas, but is a longtime resident of Albuquerque, New Mexico. He graduated from ...

(May 2010) – continued by Vardeman alone, 2011 * ''Test of Metal: A

Planeswalker The Rules of Magic: The Gathering govern the play of the card game ''Magic: The Gathering''. The original rules were developed by the game's creator, Richard Garfield, and accompanied the first version of the game in 1993. The rules of Magic have ...

Novel'' (''

Magic: The Gathering ''Magic: The Gathering'' (colloquially known as ''Magic'' or ''MTG'') is a tabletop and digital collectable card game created by Richard Garfield. Released in 1993 by Wizards of the Coast (now a subsidiary of Hasbro), ''Magic'' was the first ...

'') (October 2010)

Unpublished

* '' The Real Flash Gordon'' (2001)

Short stories

* "Precursor" from ''Legends: Tales from the Eternal Archive'' (1999) * "Br'er Robert" (2001) * "Equipment" from the ''Star Wars Short Story Collection'' (2003) * "In the Sorrows" (2005, ''The Acts of Caine'') * "The Persian, the Coon, and Bullets" from the anthology ''Catopolis'' (2008) * "South Side Whipsaw: A Brock Steele Adventure" from ''Conquering Science Fiction'' (2009) * "The Tenebrous Way" (2011) from ''

Star Wars Insider ''Star Wars Insider'' is the official ''Star Wars'' magazine. It began in 1987 as the official magazine of ''The Lucasfilm Fan Club'', and was renamed in 1994 to coincide with the release of '' Star Wars: TIE Fighter''. Its contents include st ...

'' #130 * Suvudu Cage Match 2012 ** "Round 1: Caine versus Paksenarrion" (2012) ** "Round 2: Caine versus Zaphod Beeblebrox" (2012) ** "So, Conan and Elric Walk Into a Bar" (2012)Stover, Matthew
"So, Conan and Elric Walk Into a Bar"
April 27, 2012. * "A Friend in Thark" from ''A Princess of Mars (The Annotated Edition) and New Tales of the Red Planet'' (2012)

Screenplays

* ''Terminal Kill'' (2011, 2012) * ''Her Demise'' (2011) * ''Knights of the Revenant'' (2012)

References

External links

*
Matthew Stover's OverWorld: Chronicles of Ankhana"Matthew Stover's OverWorld"
at

Kickstarter Kickstarter is an American public benefit corporation based in Brooklyn, New York, that maintains a global crowdfunding platform focused on creativity. The company's stated mission is to "help bring creative projects to life". As of July 2021, ...

Interviews

Interview with Matthew Stover
by Gabe Chouinard, October 15, 2001
Interview with Matthew Stover
December 9, 2008
Interview with Matthew Stover
by EU Cantina, January 4, 2009
Video Interview with Matthew Stover
on YouTube for Expanded Books, October 26, 2008 {{DEFAULTSORT:Stover, Matthew Living people 20th-century American novelists 21st-century American novelists American fantasy writers American male novelists American science fiction writers 1962 births Writers from Chicago Place of birth missing (living people) American male short story writers 20th-century American short story writers 21st-century American short story writers Drake University alumni 20th-century American male writers 21st-century American male writers Novelists from Illinois