Allen James Stroud (born 1976/1977) is a researcher and university lecturer at Coventry University. He is currently leading the Creative Futures project, a funded research partnership between Coventry University and the Defence Science and Technology Laboratory (DSTL). Previously, he was Course Leader for the BA Media (Hons) Top Up and BA (Hons) Media and Communications. Before that, he was the course leader for Film and Television Production and the Creative Writing for Publication degrees at Bucks New University. Up until the end of 2019, he was the editor of the British Fantasy Society Journal. He also composes instrumental music; however, Stroud is best known for his sci-fi fantasy novels and video game writing. He was the 2017 2018, 2021 and 2023 chair of Fantasycon, the annual convention of the British Fantasy Society, which hosts the British Fantasy Awards.
From June 2019 until June 2025, Allen Stroud was Chair of the British Science Fiction Association, he succeeded Donna Bond and was followed in the role by Stewart Hotston. He was the guest of honour at Novacon 53.
Early life and education Stroud was born in Winchester and grew up in Andover, Hampshire. Stroud graduated with a Bachelor of Arts (BA) in Theatre and Television Studies from the University of Winchester in 1999 and then a Master of Research (MRes) in Creative Writing from the University of Bedfordshire in 2005. He also pursued a Postgraduate Diploma and Certificate at Buckinghamshire New University. Stroud later returned to Winchester, completing a Ph.D. in 2017 titled An Investigation and Application of Writing Structures and World Development Techniques in Science Fiction and Fantasy.
Video games Stroud first became known for his video game writing with his work on world-building and novelisation of Video games such as Elite: Dangerous. For Elite: Dangerous, he wrote six guidebooks that inform the fictional narrative within the game and also serve to help other writers with the novelisation of their stories within the game's world. He also became a founding and continuing host of Lave Radio, a free podcast related to Elite: Dangerous that started in February 2013. His novelisation of the Elite: Dangerous game world began after he completed a successful Kickstarter campaign for the novel, Elite: Lave Revolution. Stroud is now working on a team which is developing a role-playing game set in the Elite: Dangerous game world.
Stroud's next video game world-building and novelisation work occurred with the development of Chaos Reborn. For Chaos Reborn, he worked collaboratively with the game's designer, Julian Gollop, to devise history and lore for the game world.
In 2017, Stroud worked with Gollop and Jonas Kyratzes to develop the dystopian world in the game Phoenix Point. Many of Stroud's short stories for Phoenix Point have been made available to readers for free. YearVideo gameDeveloper2014Elite: DangerousFrontier Developments2015Chaos RebornSnapshot Games2019Phoenix PointSnapshot Games2020Baldur's Gate IIILarian Studios
Books and stories
Stroud has written for a variety of different short story anthologies. In 2016, his story "The Last Tank Commander" appeared in Crises and Conflicts from Newcon Press. Baen Books Editor David Afshariad selected this for the 2017 edition of The Year's Best Military & Adventure SF.
Stroud's story "Reader" appears in Alice Macklin's 2017 anthology Read This First.
In 2018, Stroud's story "Dancers" was included in 2001: An Odyssey in Words published by Newcon Press. This is an anthology published to commemorate the 100th birthday of the late Arthur C. Clarke and features work by Neil Gaiman, China Miéville, Peter Hamilton, Stephen Baxter (author), Alastair Reynolds and Pat Cadigan amongst others.
In 2020, Grimbold Books published Forgotten Sidekicks which features Stroud's short story, "Saving Simon" - a spiritual successor to John Wagner's 1981 short story "Sinful Simon".
YearBookSeriesGenreISBN-10 ASINPublisher2011A Bag of Bedtime TalesN/AVariousN/AB006PS20WWHWS Press2012The Sword of WisimirThe Wisimir Tales (Book 1) Fantasy1533198853B00AO614NWHWS Press2012The Dragon of WisimirThe Wisimir Tales (Book 2)Fantasy1535033967B00AO6IW0KHWS Press2013The Lord of WisimirThe Wisimir Tales (Book 3)Fantasy1535045388B00FIOIK2IHWS Press2015Elite: Lave RevolutionScience fiction1910987131B010GGFAWKHWS Press2016Dreams of ChaosThe Death of Gods Trilogy (Book 1)Fantasy1910987085B01GY41FS6HWS Press2016Chaos Reborn: The Loremaster's GuideN/AFantasy1910987123N/AHWS Press2016ToryTimes: A Collection of Tragic PoemsN/APoetryN/AB01CAS0IS8HWS Press2017The Forever ManN/AFantasy1910987123B07577M5NTLuna Press2020FearlessThe Fractal Series Book 1Science fiction 1787585423Flame Tree Press2022ResilientThe Fractal Series Book 2Science fiction 1787587150Flame Tree Press2023EuropaThe Fractal Series Episodes 1Science fiction 1787588240Flame Tree Press2023CeresThe Fractal Series Episodes 2Science fiction 1787588257Flame Tree Press2023Lagrange PointThe Fractal Series Episodes 3Science fiction 1787588264Flame Tree Press2023TerraThe Fractal Series Episodes 4Science fiction 1787588271Flame Tree Press2024LunaThe Fractal Series Episodes 5Science fiction 1787588288Flame Tree Press2024JezeroThe Fractal Series Episodes 6Science fiction 1787588295Flame Tree Press2024VigilanceThe Fractal Series 3Science fiction 1787589384Flame Tree Press
References
External links