Robert Jordan Biography

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Authors and Artists for Young Adults on Robert Jordan

Writing under several pseudonyms, James Oliver Rigney, Jr. is a prolific author of genre fiction. As Robert Jordan, he is the author of the popular fantasy series "The Wheel of Time," which he began in 1990 with his novel The Eye of the World. Using the Jordan pseudonym, he has also written a number of highly praised sword and sorcery novels that feature the heroic protagonist Conan the Barbarian, a muscle-bound free agent who roams a fantastic kingdom full of strange creatures and evildoers outfitted with magical powers in search of wealth and adventure. Originally created in the 1930s by Texas author Robert E. Howard (1906-1936), Conan is confronted with a number of seemingly impossible tasks in Jordan's continuation of this action-packed he-man saga.

Included among Jordan's "Conan" novels are Conan the Invincible, Conan the Triumphant, and Conan the Unconquered, all of which feature a bevy of beautiful women, wicked foes, and a series of obstacles, and all of which this champion of good against evil, well skilled in all forms of battle, overcomes with ease. In Conan the Destroyer, based on the motion picture of the same title that starred bodybuilder Arnold Schwarzenegger in one of his early acting roles, Conan teams up with the princess Jehnna to search for treasure. Unknown to the pair, Jehnna's aunt, the sorceress, plans to sacrifice the young woman upon her return, and Conan must foil the intended evil. Praising Jordan's style as "straightforward" and "uncomplicated," Frances Friedman wrote in Voice of Youth Advocates that Conan the Destroyer "is a pleasant, fast moving" adventure. Dragons and Amazons enter the mythical mix of characters in Conan the Magnificent, while the superhero saga is partially collected in The Conan Chronicles, which includes Conan the Invincible, Conan the Defender, and Conan the Unconquered.

"Wheel of Time"

Jordan is probably most well known for his second series of books. The "Wheel of Time" fantasy series follows a classic struggle between good and evil set in a long-ago land of brutality and sorcery. The series opens with The Eye of the World, followed by such titles as The Great Hunt and The Dragon Reborn, which continue the high fantasy saga. In the first book readers are introduced to a fantasy kingdom and its history through the adventures of three young men. Rand al'Thorn, Matrim, and Perrin find their uneventful lives in their rural farming village disrupted after a stranger named Moiraine and her well-armed bodyguard stop in the local inn for the night. After dark, the three young locals are attacked for seemingly no reason by evil beast-men, servants of the Dark One, a powerful witch believed to have been eliminated. Moiraine, a witch herself, explains to Rand, Matrim, and Perrin that they have been singled out for death by the returning Dark One, and convinces them to accompany her to a place of sanctuary. On their journey they confront a series of events that cause the friends to realize that no sanctuary will shield them from evil; they will have to travel to the kingdom of the Dark One and confront the growing force of evil directly. Praising The Eye of the World in her review for Voice of Youth Advocates as containing "well-drawn, believable characters; an intelligent plot; and something significant to say about the range of good and evil and the effects of fear and obsession on the human character," Laura Staley added that Jordan "weaves his many strands into a memorable, highly enjoyable tale."

In an online interview, Jordan stated that the character of Rand is meant to be a messiah figure, incorporating "some elements" from the story of Jesus Christ, though he is not a true manifestation of Jesus. Rather, Rand can be seen as "an archetype such as [King] Arthur." Jordan also mentioned that although he does not incorporate any of his personal traits into his characters, "there is a touch of my wife in all of the major female characters, however, and a good many of the secondary female characters."

The Great Hunt features Rand, who has tapped into the power of the One Source, the "Eye of the World," in an effort to battle the Dark One, hailed as a witch ("dragon") in his own right. Now called the Dragon Reborn as one of the few males allowed to wield magic in his world, Rand grudgingly comes to terms with his new role as defender of good against evil, and helps his friends in the bargain. Continuing books in the series, including The Dragon Reborn and The Shadow Rising, follow Rand al'Thorn on his quest to obtain the sword Callandor, which may help him keep the Dark One from regaining power. Helped by a group of female magicians and childhood friends Matrim and Perrin, the powerful young wizard continues on his trek toward the home of the Dark One, despite the threat of ancient prophecies of madness befalling any male who uses magic to fight the forces of evil. Against this heroic journey, Jordan paints a vibrant world filled with hundreds of unique characters, local wars, mythology, betrayals, and deep loyalties. While noting that "in each successive volume [the author] introduces more new elements than he resolves," a Publishers Weekly reviewer praised the "sheer force" of the author's inventiveness for retaining fan appeal.

Characters Make the Story

Though his novels feature plenty of action, Jordan believes that the key to a good story is in the characters. He remarked in an online interview that "action is alway secondary. The main part of the story is the relationships between people. Those relationships sometimes lead to god-awful troubles, battles, . . . but it's the relationships that are the important things." Jordan added that he begins each book with a general idea of how the plot will develop, though certain aspects of the plot can change during the writing process: "Some parts are very close to what I intended in the beginning, some parts vary to a great degree. It all depends on how I feel things should weave together at the particular moment I'm writing them." The author acknowledged that he takes time to revise his work before publication, but "I always have to set myself a cut-off point. Otherwise I will keep rewriting and rewriting, and the period between the books will stretch out to . . . five or six years."

The "Wheel of Time" saga continues in The Fires of Heaven, Lord of Chaos, A Crown of Swords, and The Path of Daggers, as Rand proceeds on his journey to the lair of the Dark One before that power of evil breaks his chains and is released into the world. Some critics have opined that the numerous twists and turns of the plot, the legions of characters, and the sheer bulk of the series--each volume is upwards of five hundred pages in length--made later books impenetrable by new or novice readers. (When asked how he manages to keep the complex story together in his mind, Jordan replied that it's "nothing that any genius couldn't do.") Others, however, continued to find praise for the voluminous work. For example, Roland Green noted in Booklist that The Fires of Heaven "upholds the very high standards" of the series, "with battle scenes, comic interludes, and character development all reaching perhaps the highest point in a work that has lacked for none of these." As the series continued to wind its way toward a conclusion, a Publishers Weekly reviewer noted that Jordan's "narrative employs elements of realism rare in high fantasy," while Sally Estes commented in her Booklist review of series installment number seven, A Crown of Swords, that "Throughout the saga, the characters, . . . the world, and the source of powers have remained remarkably rich and consistent."

The "Wheel of Time" books enjoy a large and enthusiastic following, with dozens of sites on the Internet devoted to the series. Jordan has stated that he plans to write at least three more volumes; he doesn't feel he could finish the story in fewer than that. Though Jordan wouldn't mind seeing his books adapted for film (if they were done well), he believes that the complexity of the works would make it difficult, if not impossible, to adapt them successfully to the typical two-hour feature-length format.

In addition to spinning his intricate "Wheel of Time" books and "Conan" adventures, Jordan has employed several additional pseudonyms to produced other writings, including novels within the "Fallon" series and several journalistic pieces for national publications.

When asked what he does to keep busy away from his work on the "Wheel of Time" books, Jordan replied, "I occasionally find time to go fishing. . . . I find time to read a little bit. . . . And I don't really have a great deal of time for anything else. When I'm doing anything else, I feel I should be writing." He jokingly added, "It's a sickness."