Lars Pearson (born 1973, in
Iowa) is an American writer, high school teacher, editor, and journalist. He is the owner/publisher of
Mad Norwegian Press, a publishing company specializing in reference guides to television shows including Buffy the Vampire Slayer, Angel and Doctor Who, plus the Faction Paradox range of novels and comic books.[1] He is also co-author, with
Lance Parkin, of "Ahistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe," which puts every
Doctor Who-related story onto a single timeline from the beginning of the universe to its end.
Education
Pearson attended
Coe College studying writing at their Writing Center.[2] He was part of the 1995 graduating class.[3]
Pearson later moved into writing guide books for television shows. He wrote Redeemed: The Unauthorized Guide to Angel, a guide book about the television series Angel. He has also written guides for the cartoon series
Transformers and
G.I. Joe.[5]
Pearson's guides have been used by other authors as in the case when author Robert G. Weiner used the G.I. Joe guide and
Transformers guide to help write Marvel graphic novels and related publications: an annotated guide to comics.[7]
Many of the books Pearson writes are unauthorized, meaning they are not approved by the companies that produce the shows and cannot include their pictures.[8]
Pearson started his own publishing business, Mad Norwegian Press in 2001.[8] The main focus of the business are guide books to science fiction.[9] It also produces novels from freelance writers such as
Harlan Ellison,
Steve Lyons and
Peter David[citation needed]. In order to keep expenses low, the company only employs two people, Pearson and his wife.[8]
In 2002, Mad Norwegian started producing the book series Faction Paradox, about a group of time travelers.[10] Pearson acts as editor for the series.[1]
Doctor Who
Pearson became a fan of Doctor Who when he saw it broadcast on Iowa's public television station
IPTV. His fondness of the show led him to write his first book, I, Who: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels. He uses the books to provide insight into the TV series as well as facts.[8]
Pearson has written 12 books on the television series Doctor Who and is considered an expert on the show.[5] The
Des Moines Science Fiction Society has labeled him "one of the foremost experts on 'Doctor Who' in North America."[11]
Pearson's expertise on Doctor Who makes him sought out by fans of the show and science fiction conventions and he has hosted Doctor Who pledge drives on public television.[12] Pearson is often a featured speaker at Doctor Who festivals and appears at many major science fiction conventions.[13]
2001 – The Twelfth Regeneration of
Gallifrey One (Van Nuys, CA)
Pearson's book About Time 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 7 to 11) (2nd Edition) was on the longlist for the BSFA award for non-fiction in 2009.[14]Chicks Dig Time Lords: A Celebration of Doctor Who by the Women Who Love It, a book in which Pearson served as publisher, won a 2011 Hugo Award for Best Related Work. "Chicks Dig Comics: A Celebration of Comic Books by the Women Who Love Them" and "Chicks Unravel Time: Women Journey Through Every Season of Doctor Who" have both been nominated for a 2013 Hugo Award for Best Related Work.
Personal life
Pearson is a resident of
Des Moines, Iowa and is married to Christa Dickson.[2] Dickson helps develop and maintain Iowa Public Televisions's websites and also helps run Mad Norwegian Press.[8][15] She graduated from Coe College in 2001.[15]
Publications
I, Who: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels, 1999
ISBN0-9673746-0-X
I, Who 2: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels and Audios, 2001
ISBN1-57032-900-1
Prime Targets: The Unauthorized Story Guide to Transformers, Beast Wars & Beast Machines, 2001
ISBN1-57032-901-X
Now You Know: The Unauthorized Guide to GI Joe TV & Comics, 2002
ISBN1-57032-902-8
I, Who 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who Novels and Audios, 2003
ISBN0-9725959-1-0
AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe [Second Edition] (written by
Lance Parkin with additional material by Pearson), 2007
ISBN0-9759446-6-5
About Time 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 7 to 11) (2nd Edition) (written by
Tat Wood, Lawrence Miles, Lars Pearson (Editor)), 2009
ISBN978-0-9759446-7-7
About Time 6: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 22 to 26, the TV Movie) (written by
Tat Wood with additional material by Pearson), 2007
ISBN0-9759446-5-7
Wanting to Believe: A Critical Guide to X-Files, Millennium and The Lone Gunmen (written by
Robert Shearman, with additional material by Pearson), 2009
ISBN978-0-9759446-9-1
AHistory: An Unauthorized History of the Doctor Who Universe [Third Edition] (co-written with
Lance Parkin), 2012
ISBN978-1935234111
Other books
Faction Paradox: The Book of the War (contributing author, uncredited), 2002
ISBN1-57032-905-2
^
ab"Class News"(PDF). Coe College Spring 2009 newsletter, class of 1995.
Coe College. 2009. Archived from
the original(PDF) on March 12, 2012. Retrieved September 11, 2010.
^
DemiCon (May 2, 2008).
"DemiCon 19"(PDF). DemiCon. Des Moines Science Fiction Society. Retrieved September 11, 2010.
^
Lambert, Mark (February 10, 2010).
"IPTV Festival this year". Universal Network of Iowan Time Lords (UNIT) (Mailing list). Archived from
the original on December 17, 2012. Retrieved September 13, 2010.
^
Scott, Donna (January 8, 2010).
"BSFA Awards 2009 – Nominations". MATRIX Online. The British Science Fiction Association. Archived from
the original on February 21, 2010. Retrieved September 13, 2010.
^
ab"Class News"(PDF). Coe College Spring 2009 newsletter, class of 2001.
Coe College. 2009. Archived from
the original(PDF) on March 12, 2012. Retrieved September 11, 2010.