Margaret Weis facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Margaret Weis
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Margaret Weis at the Lucca Comics & Games convention in 2007
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| Born | March 16, 1948 Independence, Missouri, U.S. |
| Occupation | Novelist |
| Education | University of Missouri (BA) |
| Period | 1984–present |
| Genre | Fantasy, science fiction |
| Spouse |
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| Children | 2 |
Margaret Weis, born on March 16, 1948, is a famous American writer. She has written many exciting fantasy and science fiction books. She is best known for helping create the Dragonlance world. This world started as a role-playing game (RPG) and grew into a popular series of novels.
Weis also started her own companies, Sovereign Press, Inc and Margaret Weis Productions. These companies create RPGs based on popular TV shows and movies. In 1999, Pyramid magazine called her one of The Millennium's Most Influential Persons. They said she helped create the whole genre of gaming fiction. In 2002, she was honored in the Origins Hall of Fame for her work on Dragonlance.
Contents
Early Life and Education
Margaret Weis grew up in Independence, Missouri. She found her love for fantasy books while studying at the University of Missouri (MU). She read Tolkien's books in 1966 and could not put them down. She felt that no other fantasy books were as good as Tolkien's.
She earned a degree in creative writing and literature in 1970. Her mother helped her get a job as a proofreader at a small publishing company. This job taught her a lot about the book industry. It was a great start for her writing career.
Writing Career Begins
Weis started by writing books for younger readers. She wrote high-quality, well-researched books that librarians liked. From 1972 to 1983, she worked for Herald Publishing House. She became an advertising director and later a director of their trade division.
Her first book was a biography about the outlaws Frank and Jesse James. She also wrote children's books about computers, robots, and the history of Thanksgiving. She even wrote an adventure book for adults who were learning to read.
Creating Dragonlance
In 1983, Weis applied for a job at TSR, Inc., a company that made games. They hired her as a book editor. At TSR, she met Tracy Hickman. Together, they started working on a project that would become Dragonlance.
They planned a novel and game modules for Dragonlance. They became so involved that they decided to write the first novel themselves. The first book, Dragons of Autumn Twilight, was released in 1984. It sold very well, and soon Dragonlance became a huge success. It grew into a trilogy of novels called the Dragonlance Chronicles.
Weis and Hickman continued to write more Dragonlance books and game materials. They wrote the Dragonlance Legends trilogy in 1986. They worked very hard, writing for hours every evening and weekend. Their success allowed them to leave TSR in 1986 and become full-time writers.
Becoming an Entrepreneur
After leaving TSR, Weis and Hickman kept writing together. They wanted their fantasy worlds to feel real, like Tolkien's. They wrote the Darksword trilogy (1986–87) and the seven-book Deathgate Cycle (1988–94).
Margaret Weis worked hard, writing for five hours every morning. She loved living in her fictional worlds. When a book was finished, she often felt sad to leave the characters behind. She enjoyed attending fantasy and science fiction conventions around the world.
She also wrote the space opera Star of the Guardians novels, which are her favorite. In the late 1990s, she and Hickman wrote the Sovereign Stone novel trilogy. From 2003 to 2005, Weis wrote the Dragonvarld trilogy on her own.
In 1999, Pyramid magazine recognized Weis as a very influential person in adventure gaming. In 2002, she was added to the Origins Hall of Fame for her impact on Dragonlance.
Her Own Publishing Companies
Besides writing, Margaret Weis also owned and led two publishing companies. She started Sovereign Press, Inc to publish the Sovereign Stone role-playing game. Later, in 2004, she founded Margaret Weis Productions. This company published RPGs based on popular shows like Serenity and Battlestar Galactica.
Returning to Dragonlance
Weis and Hickman returned to the Dragonlance world in 1995 with Dragons of Summer Flame. Margaret Weis then wrote a solo novel, The Soulforge, about her favorite character, the wizard Raistlin.
Wizards of the Coast published a new Dragonlance trilogy by Weis and Hickman called War of Souls, starting in 2000. In 2002, Wizards of the Coast allowed Sovereign Press to create Dragonlance role-playing game materials. Weis and her team wrote the Dragonlance Campaign Setting in 2003.
Between 2004 and 2008, Weis wrote a solo novel trilogy called The Dark Disciple. She also co-authored The Lost Chronicles trilogy with Hickman, starting in 2006. After many years, they decided to write about the main heroes of Dragonlance again.
In 2020, there was a legal discussion about a new Dragonlance novel trilogy. However, by December 2020, the issue was resolved. A new trilogy was confirmed to be in development. The first novel in this new series, Dragonlance: Dragons of Deceit, was released on August 2, 2022.
Personal Life
Margaret Weis married after college and had two children. The demands of being a professional writer sometimes made these relationships difficult. She later divorced.
In 1983, she moved to Lake Geneva, Wisconsin, to work for TSR. She enjoyed reading classic authors like Charles Dickens and Jane Austen. She also liked to cook for relaxation and collected cookbooks.
In 1993, Margaret Weis faced health challenges. She successfully underwent treatment while staying busy writing her novel The Seventh Gate. In 1996, she married writer and game designer Don Perrin, but they later divorced.
See also
In Spanish: Margaret Weis para niños
