Rick Riordan
Rick Riordan
Author • Editor • Translatorb. 5 Jun 1964 · From United States- Books
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About
An American author born June 5, 1964, in San Antonio, Texas, Rick Riordan writes mythology-based fiction for young readers. Before his publishing career, he taught English and history at public and private middle schools in San Antonio and the San Francisco Bay Area for fifteen years.
While teaching, he wrote the adult Tres Navarre mystery series, which won the top three national mystery awards: the Edgar, the Anthony, and the Shamus.
Percy Jackson originated as a bedtime story Riordan invented for his son Haley, who had been diagnosed with ADHD and dyslexia; drawing on the Greek mythology he taught, Riordan made the hero a demigod who shares those traits, so that learning differences became marks of heroism rather than deficits.
That story became The Lightning Thief and grew into the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series. Riordan is best known for series rooted in Greek, Roman, Egyptian, and Norse mythology, and his books have been translated into dozens of languages and sold tens of millions of copies.
In 2016 he launched the Rick Riordan Presents imprint, which publishes mythology- and folklore-based middle-grade fiction by new, emerging, and under-represented authors who draw on their own heritage. He co-created and serves as an executive producer on the Percy Jackson and the Olympians television adaptation, which premiered on Disney+ in 2023.
He lives in Boston with his wife, Becky, who is also an executive producer on the series.
Top genres
Fantasy Mythology Adventure Middle Grade Children's Books
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Featured works
Start here4.3
The Lightning Thief
Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians #1
4.2
The Sea of Monsters
Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians #2
4.3
The Titan's Curse
Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians #3
4.5
The Last Olympian
Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians #5
4.3
The Battle of the Labyrinth
Rick Riordan
Percy Jackson and the Olympians #4Series
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Frequently asked questions
Rick Riordan taught English and history at public and private middle schools in San Antonio and the San Francisco Bay Area for fifteen years. His classroom experience teaching Greek mythology directly shaped his fiction. He left teaching after selling the Percy Jackson series, when keeping up with two books a year became incompatible with full-time teaching.
Percy Jackson began as a bedtime story Rick Riordan made up for his son Haley after running out of Greek myths to tell him. Riordan, a longtime middle-school mythology teacher, invented a modern demigod's adventures to keep his son engaged. The story became The Lightning Thief and launched the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series.
Rick Riordan gave Percy Jackson ADHD and dyslexia because his son Haley was diagnosed with both at age seven. In the story, those traits are signs of being a demigod, framing learning differences as a mark of heroism rather than a flaw. Riordan used the character to reassure his son that such differences don't mean anything is wrong with him.
Rick Riordan's adult Tres Navarre detective series won the top three national mystery awards: the Edgar, the Anthony, and the Shamus. He earned these before turning to children's fiction, while still teaching full-time. The Widower's Two-Step won the Edgar Award for Best Paperback Original, and Big Red Tequila won both the Anthony and the Shamus.
Rick Riordan Presents is a Disney-Hyperion imprint Riordan launched in 2016 to publish mythology- and folklore-based middle-grade fiction by new, emerging, and under-represented authors. The books are written by other authors drawing on their own cultural heritage, not by Riordan, who acts as a curator rather than the writer. It has published works rooted in Hindu, Mayan, Korean, Cuban, and African mythologies, among others.
Rick Riordan is a co-creator and executive producer of the Percy Jackson and the Olympians series on Disney+, which premiered December 19, 2023. He co-wrote the pilot with Jon Steinberg and was closely involved after being publicly critical of the earlier film adaptations. His wife, Becky Riordan, also serves as an executive producer on the show.
Rick Riordan's son Haley wrote a short story, "The Son of Magic," included in The Demigod Diaries (2012). He wrote it at age sixteen. Haley is also the son whose ADHD and dyslexia diagnosis inspired the character of Percy Jackson.
Rick Riordan lives in Boston, Massachusetts, with his wife, Becky. The family moved there from San Antonio, Texas, in 2013. He and Becky have two sons, Haley and Patrick.
Rick Riordan is no longer active on Twitter/X or Instagram, and his official site warns that accounts claiming to be him are not legitimate. Official news instead comes through his website rickriordan.com and the Read Riordan hub at readriordan.com. The @rickriordan Instagram account is no longer maintained by him.