Background

Richard Gordon, born as Richard Alexander Steuart Gordon, came to the world on May 18, 1947, in Banff, Aberdeenshire, Scotland. He was the eldest son of a Scottish laird. Gordon spent his childhood and youth in Buckie and Perthshire, Scotland. He had a brother named David.

Education

Richard Gordon studied history at Newcastle University.

Career

Richard Gordon started his career as a market researcher. After serving in that capacity for some time, he left the post and dedicated himself to writing.

His debut science fiction story, ‘A Light in the Sky’, was published in New Worlds magazine under the name Richard A. Gordon. Some of his early works also appeared in such periodicals as Science Fantasy and Vision of Tomorrow. ‘The Bikers’ was issued at the beginning of the next decade through the name Alex Stuart. Four further novels, including a couple of sequels to ‘The Bikers’, was published under the pseudonym Alex R. Stuart.

The pen name Stuart Gordon was mentioned for the first time on the 1972 novel ‘Time Story’. The following ‘Watchers’ trilogy had the same author.

At the end of the 1980s, Richard Gordon became fascinated by myths and occultism which pushed him to produce several works on the paranormal. Scottish-born, he also wrote some illustrated guides of the northern part of his home country.

Then, Gordon relocated to London where he tried his hand as a teacher of English as a foreign language. He taught for a while in Poland, and by 2003 came to China. In a couple of years, the writer joined the staff of Shanghai High School International Division where he served till the end of his days.

Achievements

• Richard Gordon was an accomplished science fiction writer whose inventive stories were praised both by critics and readers.
  
  He authored such popular series as the Watchers and the Eyes trilogy.

Works

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  • The Book of Curses: True Tales of Voodoo, Hoodoo and Hex

    (From the curse of Tutankhamun`s tomb to the Hawaiian deat...)

    1994
  • Round Moray, Badenoch, and Strathspey: Walks and History

    (Extensively cross-referenced, this is a tour for all who ...)

    1999
  • One-Eye

    (One-eyed was the mutant baby whose incredible mental powe...)

    1973
  • Smile on the void: The mythhistory of Ralph M'Botu Kitaj

    (The 'biography' of a messiah created by Richard Alexander...)

    1981
  • Time Story

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1972
  • Two-Eyes

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1974
  • Three-Eyes

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1975
  • Suaine and the Crow God

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1975
  • Fire in the Abyss

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1983
  • Archon: The First Book of the Watchers

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1987
  • The Hidden World

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1988
  • The Mask

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1989
  • The Paranormal: An Illustrated Encyclopedia

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1992
  • The Encyclopedia of Myths and Legends

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Stuar...)

    1993
  • The Bikers

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Alex ...)

    1971
  • The Outlaws

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Alex ...)

    1972
  • The Bike from Hell

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Alex ...)

    1973
  • The Devil's Rider

    (A book written by Richard Gordon under the pen name Alex ...)

    1973
  • Round Inverness, the Black Isle and Nairn: Walks and history 1998

Views

Quotations: "The label 'science fiction' is used to cover many different approaches to storytelling most of which have little to do with 'science' as such, save in a romantic, generalized way. The thrust of my own work has typically been occult or mythic in its main concern, and can be defined as science fiction only insofar as it has been characterized (I hope) by that 'sense of wonder' which romantically typifies the genre as a whole."

Membership

• British Science Fiction Association , United States

Personality

Richard Gordon changed his pen name several times throughout his career of a writer. Beginning as Richard A. Gordon, he then was asked to take a pseudonym in order to elude the disambiguation with Gordon Ostlere. Gordon adopted the name Alex Stuart. Later, the writer added the letter ‘R’ to the middle of the name because of the complaints from another fiction author, Violet Vivian Stuart. Finally, Richard Gordon published his books under the name Stuart Gordon. The number of his last works were signed by his own name.

Connections

Brother:

David Gordon