| Juraj Červenák | |
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Juraj Červenák |
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| Born | June 16, 1974 Žiar nad Hronom, Slovakia |
| Pen name | Thorleif Larssen |
| Occupation | Novelist, Short story writer, Film critic |
| Genres | Historical fantasy, Sword and Sorcery, Westerns, Horror |
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[1] http://www.cervenak.sk]] |
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Juraj Červenák (born June 16, 1974[3]) is a Slovak author best known for his short story and novel, which mix elements of sword and sorcery with historical fantasy and Slavic mythology.
He has published (under the pseudonym Thorleif Larssen) several novels featuring Robert E. Howard's classic character Conan the Barbarian, as well as (under his own name) the Warlock[4] trilogy, a set of historical fantasy novels following the adventures of the Slavic warlock Rogan in the historical setting of the 8th century Principality of Nitra and neighbouring lands.
Červenák's short stories range from themes similar to those used in his novels to westerns and horrors and can be found in various (mostly Czech) anthologies, Slovak science fiction/fantasy magazine Fantázia and Czech magazines Ikarie and Pevnost. Most of Červenák's books were published in Czech translation prior to publication of their original Slovak versions (as of September 2007 none of the novels have been published in Slovak).
Červenák is currently working on a new trilogy, based on Bylinas; the first novel, Bohatier: Oceľové žezlo (Bogatyr: The Iron Sceptre) was published in 2006, with two sequels scheduled for publication in 2007.
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Juraj Červenák was born on June 16, 1974 in Žiar nad Hronom, Slovakia, but spent most of his life in the town of Banská Štiavnica. After graduating from secondary school he went through a series of odd jobs, finally settling in a position at the town's cultural centre, where his duties included managing the local cinema.[5] He ultimately made writing (as a novelist, short story writer and film critic for various magazines) his full-time career in 2005.[6]
Červenák's early works, published under the pseudonym 'Thorleif Larssen', were moderately successful with readers but largely dismissed by critics as derivative of his literary influences (most notably Howard) and lacking in inventiveness and sophistication.[7]
After Tollrander, Červenák went on a nearly four-year writing and publishing hiatus, from which he emerged in 1998 with a short story called "Mŕtvi striebro nepotrebujú" (Dead Men Need No Silver), published in the Fantázia magazine.[8]
The short story introduced a new protagonist, Rogan the Warlock, along with his wolf-demon companion, Goryvlad, in an original world of high fantasy based on Slavic history and mythology. The readers' response was favourable and more short stories followed. "Krvavý oheň, biely oheň" (Blood Fire, White Fire), published a year later, received the O najlepšiu fantasy (Best Fantasy) Award.
Červenák returned to writing novels with 2000's Conan nelítostný (Conan The Relentless) (writing as Thorleif Larssen once again) and collected two more prestigious awards, Istron for "Z posvátné vody zrozená" (Born Of The Sacred Water) in 2002[9] and Raketa for "Hrdlorez" (Cutthroat) in 2003.[10]
2003 saw the publication of the first in the Warlock series of novels, Černokněžník – Vládce vlků (Warlock – The Master of Wolves). It was the first book to be published under Červenák's own name and marked his embrace of historical fantasy, as it brought Rogan into the historical setting of Central Europe at the turn of the 8th century. The novel earned positive reviews[11][12] and was followed by two sequels (2004, 2005) and a short story collection (2006).
Červenák is currently working on a new trilogy based on Bylinas; the first novel, Bohatier: Oceľové žezlo (Bogatyr: The Iron Sceptre), describing the exploits of the legendary hero Ilya Muromets was published in 2006, with two sequels scheduled for publication in 2007.[13]
The titles listed in brackets are as literally translated to English; titles of any actual future translations would most probably differ.