Lars Pearson (born 1973, in

Iowa Iowa () is a state in the Midwestern region of the United States, bordered by the Mississippi River to the east and the Missouri River and Big Sioux River to the west. It is bordered by six states: Wisconsin to the northeast, Illinois to the ...

) is an American writer, high school teacher, editor, and journalist. He is the owner/publisher of

Mad Norwegian Press Mad Norwegian Press is an American publisher of science-fiction guides and novels. The company has worked with authors such as Harlan Ellison, Peter David, Diana Gabaldon, Tanya Huff, Emma Bull, Elizabeth Bear, Mary Robinette Kowal, Seanan McGu ...

, a publishing company specializing in reference guides to television shows including ''

Buffy the Vampire Slayer ''Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' is an American supernatural fiction, supernatural drama television series created by writer and director Joss Whedon. It is based on the Buffy the Vampire Slayer (film), 1992 film of the same name, also written by W ...

'', ''

Angel In various theistic religious traditions an angel is a supernatural spiritual being who serves God. Abrahamic religions often depict angels as benevolent celestial intermediaries between God (or Heaven) and humanity. Other roles include ...

'' and ''

Doctor Who ''Doctor Who'' is a British science fiction television series broadcast by the BBC since 1963. The series depicts the adventures of a Time Lord called the Doctor, an extraterrestrial being who appears to be human. The Doctor explores the u ...

'', plus the ''

Faction Paradox ''Faction Paradox'' is a series of novels, audio stories, short story anthologies, and comics set in and around a "War in Heaven", a history-spanning conflict between godlike "Great Houses" and their mysterious enemy. The series is named after a ...

'' range of novels and comic books. He is also co-author, with

Lance Parkin Lance Parkin is a British author. He is best known for writing fiction and reference books for television series, in particular '' Doctor Who'' (and spin-offs including the Virgin New Adventures and Faction Paradox) and as a storyliner on ''Emmerd ...

, of "Ahistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe," which puts every

-related story onto a single timeline from the beginning of the universe to its end.

Education

Pearson attended

Coe College Coe College is a private liberal arts college in Cedar Rapids, Iowa. It was founded in 1851 and is historically affiliated with the Presbyterian Church (USA). The college is a member of the Associated Colleges of the Midwest and the Associat ...

studying writing at their Writing Center. He was part of the 1995 graduating class.

Career

Pearson's writing career started as an editor for a newspaper then moved to magazines. He attained a position with

Wizard Entertainment Wizard Entertainment Inc., formerly known as GoEnergy and Wizard World, is a producer of multi-genre fan conventions across North America. The company started as the holding company for Strato Malmas' interests in the energy business. Gareb Shamu ...

as the price guide editor for the magazine '' Wizard: The Comics Magazine'', a magazine about comic books. He later worked for

collectables A collectable (collectible or collector's item) is any object regarded as being of value or interest to a collector. Collectable items are not necessarily monetarily valuable or uncommon. There are numerous types of collectables and terms t ...

magazines including ''

ToyFare ''ToyFare'' was a monthly magazine published by Wizard Entertainment that focused on collectible action figures, busts, statues, and maquettes. It previewed new and upcoming lines and figures each month, as well as providing a price guide for ...

'' about collectible action figures and ''

InQuest Gamer ''InQuest Gamer'' was a monthly magazine for game reviews and news that was published from 1995 to 2007. Originally, the magazine was named ''InQuest'' and focused solely on collectible card games (CCGs); ''InQuest'', along with its competitor ''Sc ...

'', a magazine devoted to

collectible card games A collectible card game (CCG), also called a trading card game (TCG) among other names, is a type of card game that mixes strategic deck building elements with features of trading cards, introduced with ''Magic: The Gathering'' in 1993. Genera ...

. While working at ''ToyFare'', he was interviewed by U.S. News & World Report for his expertise in collectables. Pearson later moved into writing guide books for television shows. He wrote ''Redeemed: The Unauthorized Guide to Angel'', a guide book about the television series Angel. He has also written guides for the cartoon series

Transformers ''Transformers'' is a media franchise produced by American toy company Hasbro and Japanese toy company Takara Tomy. It primarily follows the Autobots and the Decepticons, two alien robot factions at war that can transform into other forms, suc ...

and

G.I. Joe ''G.I. Joe'' is an American media franchise and a line of action figures owned and produced by the toy company Hasbro. The initial product offering represented four of the branches of the U.S. armed forces with the Action Soldier ( U.S. Army), Ac ...

. Pearson's guides have been used by other authors as in the case when author Robert G. Weiner used the G.I. Joe guide and

guide to help write ''Marvel graphic novels and related publications: an annotated guide to comics''. Many of the books Pearson writes are unauthorized, meaning they are not approved by the companies that produce the shows and cannot include their pictures.

Mad Norwegian Press

Pearson started his own publishing business, Mad Norwegian Press in 2001. The main focus of the business are guide books to science fiction. It also produces novels from freelance writers such as

Harlan Ellison Harlan Jay Ellison (May 27, 1934 – June 28, 2018) was an American writer, known for his prolific and influential work in New Wave speculative fiction and for his outspoken, combative personality. Robert Bloch, the author of '' Psycho'' ...

, Steve Lyons and

Peter David Peter Allen David (born September 23, 1956), often abbreviated PAD, is an American writer of comic books, novels, television, films and video games.Buxton, Marc (March 29, 2014)"From 'Future Imperfect' to '2099': Peter David's Greatest Hits" Co ...

. In order to keep expenses low, the company only employs two people, Pearson and his wife. In 2002, Mad Norwegian started producing the book series ''Faction Paradox'', about a group of time travelers. Pearson acts as editor for the series.

Doctor Who

Pearson became a fan of Doctor Who when he saw it broadcast on Iowa's public television station

IPTV Internet Protocol television (IPTV) is the delivery of television content over Internet Protocol (IP) networks. This is in contrast to delivery through traditional terrestrial, satellite, and cable television formats. Unlike downloaded media, ...

. His fondness of the show led him to write his first book, ''I, Who: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels''. He uses the books to provide insight into the TV series as well as facts. Pearson has written 12 books on the television series Doctor Who and is considered an expert on the show. The Des Moines Science Fiction Society has labeled him "one of the foremost experts on 'Doctor Who' in North America." Pearson's expertise on Doctor Who makes him sought out by fans of the show and science fiction conventions and he has hosted Doctor Who pledge drives on public television. Pearson is often a featured speaker at Doctor Who festivals and appears at many major science fiction conventions. * 2001 – The Twelfth Regeneration of

Gallifrey One Gallifrey One is an annual North American science fiction convention focusing primarily on the British television series '' Doctor Who'' and its spin-offs, ''Torchwood'', '' K-9'' and ''The Sarah Jane Adventures'', with an additional emphasis on ...

(Van Nuys, CA) * 2001 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2003 –

: Episode XIV – The Faction Paradox (Van Nuys, CA) * 2003 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2004 –

's Fifteen Minutes of Fame (Van Nuys, CA) * 2004 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2005 – The Sixteen Swashbucklers of

(Van Nuys, CA) * 2005 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2007 – The Eighteenth Amendment of

(Los Angeles, CA) * 2007 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2008 –

's Nineteenth Symphony: Opus 2008 (Los Angeles, CA) * 2008 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2008 —

DemiCon DemiCon is an annual volunteer-run science fiction, fantasy, and gaming convention held in Des Moines, Iowa, in late April/early May. The convention was first held in 1990. DemiCon's host organization is thDes Moines Science Fiction and Fantasy ...

19 (Des Moines, IA) * 2009 —

Dragon*Con Dragon Con (previously Dragon*Con and sometimes DragonCon) is a North American List of multigenre conventions, multigenre convention, founded in 1987, which takes place annually over the Labor Day weekend in Atlanta, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia ...

(Atlanta, GA) * 2010 – Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL) * 2011 —

(Atlanta, GA) * 2012 —

23 (Des Moines, IA) * 2012 — TimeGate (Atlanta, GA) * 2012 —

(Atlanta, GA) * 2012 — Gaylaxicon (Minneapolis, MN) * 2012 — Chicago TARDIS (Chicago, IL)

Awards

Pearson's book ''About Time 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 7 to 11) (2nd Edition)'' was on the longlist for the BSFA award for non-fiction in 2009. ''Chicks Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the Women Who Love It'', a book in which Pearson served as publisher, won a 2011 Hugo Award for Best Related Work. "Chicks Dig Comics: A Celebration of Comic Books by the Women Who Love Them" and "Chicks Unravel Time: Women Journey Through Every Season of Doctor Who" have both been nominated for a 2013 Hugo Award for Best Related Work.

Personal life

Pearson is a resident of

Des Moines, Iowa Des Moines () is the capital and the most populous city in the U.S. state of Iowa. It is also the county seat of Polk County. A small part of the city extends into Warren County. It was incorporated on September 22, 1851, as Fort Des Moines, ...

and is married to Christa Dickson. Dickson helps develop and maintain Iowa Public Televisions's websites and also helps run Mad Norwegian Press. She graduated from Coe College in 2001.

Publications

*''I, Who: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels'', 1999 *''I, Who 2: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels and Audios'', 2001 *''Prime Targets: The Unauthorized Story Guide to Transformers, Beast Wars & Beast Machines'', 2001 *''Now You Know: The Unauthorized Guide to GI Joe TV & Comics'', 2002 *''I, Who 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels and Audios'', 2003 *''Dusted: The Unauthorized Guide to Buffy the Vampire Slayer'' (with

Lawrence Miles Lawrence Miles (born 15 March 1972 in Middlesex) is a science fiction author known for his work on original ''Doctor Who'' novels (for both the Virgin New Adventures and BBC Books series) and the subsequent spin-off Faction Paradox. He is also ...

and Christa Dickson) 2003 *''AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe'' (written by

with additional material by Pearson), 2006 *''Redeemed: The Unauthorized Guide to Angel'' (with Christa Dickson), 2006 *''AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe'' econd Edition(written by

with additional material by Pearson), 2007 *''About Time 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 7 to 11) (2nd Edition)'' (written by Tat Wood, Lawrence Miles, Lars Pearson (Editor)), 2009 *''About Time 6: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 22 to 26, the TV Movie)'' (written by Tat Wood with additional material by Pearson), 2007 *''Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to X-Files, Millennium and The Lone Gunmen'' (written by

Robert Shearman Robert Charles Shearman, sometimes credited as Rob Shearman, is an English television, radio, stage play and short story writer. He is known for his World Fantasy Award-winning short stories, as well as his work for ''Doctor Who'', and his asso ...

, with additional material by Pearson), 2009 *''AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe'' hird Edition(co-written with

), 2012

Other books

*''Faction Paradox: The Book of the War'' (contributing author, uncredited), 2002

References

External links

Mad Norwegian Press
{{DEFAULTSORT:Pearson, Lars 1973 births Living people Writers from Iowa Coe College alumni