# Piers Anthony
**Piers Anthony** is the pen name of Piers Anthony Dillingham Jacob (born 6 August 1934), a bestselling American author of science fiction and fantasy best known for the long-running [Xanth series](https://www.edgepedia.org/xanth) of pun-filled fantasy novels.
| Key fact | Detail |
|---|---|
| Full name and birth | Piers Anthony Dillingham Jacob, born 6 August 1934 in Oxford, England; immigrated to the United States in 1940[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934) |
| Output | More than one hundred books published since 1967, beginning with the science fiction novel *Chthon*[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934) |
| Breakthrough | *A Spell for Chameleon* (1977), first Xanth novel and winner of a British Fantasy Award[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934) |
| Major series | Xanth, Incarnations of Immortality, Bio of a Space Tyrant, Geodyssey, Apprentice Adept, Cluster, Battle Circle, Tarot, and Mode[2](https://hipiers.net/) • [1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934) |
| Current activity | *Xanth 50: Limbo* scheduled for publication on 5 January 2027, with Xanth 53 in progress[2](https://hipiers.net/) |
| Screen adaptation | A *Split Infinity* TV series based on the Apprentice Adept novels is in development[2](https://hipiers.net/) |
## Life and career
Anthony was born in Oxford, England, and spent his first years there under the care of grandparents and a nanny while his Quaker parents worked with the British Friends Service Committee during the [Spanish Civil War](https://www.edgepedia.org/spanish-civil-war). His family moved to Spain when he was five and to the United States the following year; he became a naturalized US citizen in 1958. He served in the US Army from 1957 to 1959, worked as a technical writer at Electronic Communications, Inc. in [St. Petersburg, Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/st-petersburg-florida), from 1959 to 1962, and taught English at Admiral Farragut Academy from 1965 to 1966 before becoming a freelance writer[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934). He married Carol Marble in 1956 and earned a B.A. at Goddard College the same year, adding a teaching certificate from the [University of South Florida](https://www.edgepedia.org/university-of-south-florida) in 1964[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934).
His first novel, *Chthon* (1967), was science fiction; his second, *Sos the Rope* (1968), was a post-apocalyptic fantasy, and he continued to move between the two modes throughout his career[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2019/08/06/the-golden-age-of-science-fiction-piers-anthony/). Early recognition included a 1966 [Nebula Award](https://www.edgepedia.org/nebula-award) nomination for his short story "The Message" and a science fiction award for *Sos the Rope* in 1967[4](https://www.encyclopedia.com/children/academic-and-educational-journals/anthony-piers-1934) • [1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934). In 1980 he received the Phoenix Award[3](https://www.blackgate.com/2019/08/06/the-golden-age-of-science-fiction-piers-anthony/).
## The Xanth series
Xanth, the land of magic that anchors his most popular series, takes its name from a list in Anthony's "Names" book; he had used it in a short story that never sold, then adopted it for his magic land, dropping the terminal e[5](https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9780313078194_A23628082/preview-9780313078194_A23628082.pdf). The first novel, *A Spell for Chameleon* (1977), follows young Bink, who must prove he has a magical gift or be exiled from Xanth to the nonmagical world of Mundania[6](https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED264581.pdf). The book won a British Fantasy Award[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934).
The series broke the informal convention that fantasy trilogies should end after three books, continuing past five and past ten[7](https://electronicsandbooks.com/edt/manual/Old%20Pulp%20Magazines/%21%20new/Realms%20of%20Fantasy%20-%20December%201994.pdf). Titles such as *Ogre, Ogre* (1982), *Castle Roogna* (1979), and *The Color of Her Panties* (1992) display the pun-based humor that became the series' trademark[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934). Anthony has said that despite the humor, each Xanth novel carries a different underlying story about characters with feelings[8](https://culturedvultures.com/piers-anthony-discusses-writing/). The franchise extended into gaming: Legend [Entertainment](https://www.edgepedia.org/entertainment) worked closely with Anthony on the game *Companions of Xanth*, released alongside the novel *Demons Don't Dream*[7](https://electronicsandbooks.com/edt/manual/Old%20Pulp%20Magazines/%21%20new/Realms%20of%20Fantasy%20-%20December%201994.pdf).
The series remains active. According to his official website, several finished Xanth novels await publication, *Xanth 50: Limbo* is scheduled for 5 January 2027, and Anthony is writing Xanth 53[2](https://hipiers.net/).
## Other series and standalone work
Anthony's catalog spans many sequences. *Incarnations of Immortality* (1983–1990) treats abstractions such as life, death, good, and evil in fictional form; its first volume, *On a Pale Horse* (1983), is often cited as among his best work[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934). The Apprentice Adept sequence, beginning with *Split Infinity* (1980), *Blue Adept* (1981), and *Juxtaposition* (1982), presents science fiction and fantasy aspects of the same distant world, divided by a "curtain" separating a generic fantasyland from an inhospitable technological planet, with the imaginary element protonite serving as a power source on one plane and the source of magic on the other[9](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/anthony_piers).
His other series include Battle Circle (*Sos the Rope*, *Var the Stick*, *Neq the Sword*), the Cluster novels, the Tarot trilogy, Bio of a Space Tyrant (six books set in the [Solar System](https://www.edgepedia.org/solar-system)), the Mode novels, the Geodyssey historical science fiction sequence beginning with *Isle of Woman* (1993), and the children's fantasy series written with Robert E. Margroff beginning with *Dragon's Gold*[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934). He has also written historical fiction (*Tatham Mound*, 1991), short story collections (*Anthonology*, 1985), and autobiographies (*Bio of an Ogre*, 1988; *How Precious Was That While*, 2001)[1](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934).
His publishing history includes one notable dispute. *But What of Earth?* (1976) was issued by Laser Books with Robert Coulson billed as co-author after, according to the Science Fiction Encyclopedia, editor Roger Elwood instructed Coulson to perform a substantial rewrite while Anthony had expected no more than routine copyediting and sole credit; Anthony published a corrected edition with [Tor Books](https://www.edgepedia.org/tor-books) in 1989[9](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/anthony_piers).
## Productivity and working methods
Anthony's output has been unusually high even within a prolific field. In a 1983 interview he described turning in 480,000 words of manuscripts to his publisher in a single year, writing three drafts on a manual typewriter at roughly thirty words a minute when working well[10](https://fanac.org/fanzines/SF_Review/SF_Review749.pdf). He has also acquired a reputation as a "difficult" author who has fought with publishers, some of whom he accused of blacklisting him and his work[10](https://fanac.org/fanzines/SF_Review/SF_Review749.pdf).
## Reception
Critical assessment of Anthony's work has long been split. The science fiction scholar and critic John Clute, co-editor of standard reference works in the field, wrote that Anthony's fantasy work "constantly enthralls with its scope and frustrates through the pun-ridden, excessive facility of its telling"[4](https://www.encyclopedia.com/children/academic-and-educational-journals/anthony-piers-1934). Reviewers have noted the same duality: Publishers Weekly described his 28th Xanth novel, *Cube Route*, as driven by "panty puns and intermittently droll word-play"[11](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/piers-anthony.html), and Kirkus criticized the introductions to the story collection *Anthonology* as "whining"[12](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/piers-anthony/anthonology/). [Penguin Random House](https://www.edgepedia.org/penguin-random-house), his publisher, bills him as one of the world's most popular fantasy authors and a twenty-one-time New York Times bestseller[13](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/718/piers-anthony/).
## References
1. [Anthony, Piers 1934–, Encyclopedia.com](https://www.encyclopedia.com/arts/educational-magazines/anthony-piers-1934)
2. [Hi Piers – The Official Website of Piers Anthony and Xanth](https://hipiers.net/)
3. [The Golden Age of Science Fiction: Piers Anthony, Black Gate](https://www.blackgate.com/2019/08/06/the-golden-age-of-science-fiction-piers-anthony/)
4. [Anthony, Piers 1934–, Encyclopedia.com (children's literature)](https://www.encyclopedia.com/children/academic-and-educational-journals/anthony-piers-1934)
5. [Bio of an Ogre preview, pageplace.de](https://api.pageplace.de/preview/DT0400.9780313078194_A23628082/preview-9780313078194_A23628082.pdf)
6. [Fantasy bibliography entry on A Spell for Chameleon, ERIC full text](https://files.eric.ed.gov/fulltext/ED264581.pdf)
7. [Realms of Fantasy, December 1994](https://electronicsandbooks.com/edt/manual/Old%20Pulp%20Magazines/%21%20new/Realms%20of%20Fantasy%20-%20December%201994.pdf)
8. [INTERVIEW: Piers Anthony Discusses His Incredible Writing Career, Cultured Vultures](https://culturedvultures.com/piers-anthony-discusses-writing/)
9. [SFE: Anthony, Piers, The Encyclopedia of Science Fiction](https://sf-encyclopedia.com/entry/anthony_piers)
10. [Science Fiction Review 49, Geis, November 1983](https://fanac.org/fanzines/SF_Review/SF_Review749.pdf)
11. [Books by Piers Anthony, Publishers Weekly](https://www.publishersweekly.com/pw/authorpage/piers-anthony.html)
12. [Anthonology, Kirkus Reviews](https://www.kirkusreviews.com/book-reviews/piers-anthony/anthonology/)
13. [Piers Anthony, Penguin Random House](https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/authors/718/piers-anthony/)
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*Topic: Encyclopedia › Arts and culture › Literature and written works › Writers and literary biographies › Fiction writers: novelists and genre › Science fiction, fantasy, and horror writers › Fantasy writers*
*Initially written Sep 17, 2026 · Reviewed: Oct 25, 2026 · Edited: Oct 15, 2026; Oct 25, 2026 · Last review: Oct 25, 2026*
*Copyright 2026 EdgeChat AI, a subsidiary of Biostate AI.*
License: Edgepedia Community License 1.0, https://www.edgepedia.org/edgepedia/license