806 ratings | 549 reviews | avg rating:4.95

Philip’s Year In Books

Philip’s 2025 Year in Books

Take a look at Philip’s Year in Books, including some fun facts about their reading.

Go to Philip’s 2025 Year in Books

Philip Athans’s Followers (245)

Philip’s Bookshelves

to-read (553)
currently-reading (7)
read (828)
the-100-book-challenge (41)

Philip’s Friends (470)

Stephen

8,965 books | 2,957 friends

Jeff Mach

47 books | 1,756 friends

Jeffrey Keeten

4,810 books | 5,038 friends

Michael Tedin

923 books | 39 friends

Tina (Fantastic Book Review)

4,460 books | 5,202 friends

Kevin Xu

7,454 books | 4,637 friends

Kenneth Simpson

588 books | 113 friends

Johnny

1,771 books | 79 friends

More friends…

Philip Athans

Goodreads Author

Born

in Rochester, NY, The United States

Website

http://fantasyhandbook.wordpress.com/

Twitter

PhilAthans

Genre

Science Fiction & Fantasy, Horror, Literature & Fiction

Influences

Harlan Ellison, Robert E. Howard, Edgar Rice Burroughs, Iain M. Banks, ...more

Member Since

January 2010

URL

https://www.goodreads.com/philathans

edit data

I 100% support AUTHORS AGAINST BOOK BANS
https://www.authorsagainstbookbans.com

I give every book 5 stars in protest against the concept of star ratings in general and the ever-unfolding algorithm dystopia!

Philip Athans, an anti-AI, anti-book bans liberal, is the founding partner of Athans & Associates Creative Consulting (www.athansassociates.com), and the New York Times best-selling author of Annihilation and more than a dozen other fantasy and horror books including The Best of Fantasy Authors Handbook Vol. I 2009-2013, The Guide to Writing Fantasy & Science Fiction, and Writing Monsters. Born in Rochester, New York he grew up in suburban Chicago, where he published the literary magazine Alternative Fiction & Poetry. His blog, Fantasy Auth ...more

774 posts
Philip Athans's Blog

BOOKS FOR FANTASY AUTHORS XLIX: STEERING THE CRAFT, PART 10

From time to time I’ll recommend—not review, mind you, but recommend, and yes, there is a difference—books that I think authors should have on their shelves. Some may be new and still in print, some may be difficult to find, but all will be, at least in my humble opinion, essential texts for any author, so worth looking for.

We read Steering the Craft by Ursula K. Le Guin for our September grou

Combine Editions
Philip Athans’s books

Average rating: 3.88 · 19,000 ratings · 711 reviews · 55 distinct works • Similar authors

	Annihilation (Forgotten Realms: War of the Spider Queen, #5) 4.11 avg rating — 8,163 ratings — published 2004 — 25 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	A Reader's Guide to R.A. Salvatore's The Legend of Drizzt 4.45 avg rating — 1,599 ratings — published 2008 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Baldur's Gate (Forgotten Realms: Baldur's Gate, #1) 2.73 avg rating — 1,336 ratings — published 1998 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Guide to Writing Fantasy and Science Fiction: 6 Steps to Writing and Publishing Your Bestseller! by Philip Athans (Goodreads Author), R.A. Salvatore 3.89 avg rating — 732 ratings — published 2010 — 8 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Realms of the Dragons (Forgotten Realms: Anthologies, #9) by Philip Athans (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Jess Lebow (Contributor), R.A. Salvatore (Contributor) 3.80 avg rating — 549 ratings — published 2004 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Realms of Mystery (Forgotten Realms: Anthologies, #6) by Philip Athans (Goodreads Author) (Editor), Mary H. Herbert (Contributor), Stan Brown (Contributor) 3.63 avg rating — 535 ratings — published 1998 — 2 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Realms of the Elves (Forgotten Realms: Anthologies, #11) 3.84 avg rating — 474 ratings — published 2006 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Baldur's Gate II: Shadows of Amn (Forgotten Realms: Baldur's Gate, #2) 2.71 avg rating — 611 ratings — published 2000 — 5 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Writing Monsters: How to Craft Believably Terrifying Creatures to Enhance Your Horror, Fantasy, and Science Fiction by Philip Athans (Goodreads Author), The H.P. Lovecraft Historical Society (Foreword) 3.97 avg rating — 390 ratings — published 2014 — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Realms of the Deep (Forgotten Realms: Anthologies, #7) 3.49 avg rating — 320 ratings — published 1999 — 3 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by Philip Athans…

Series by Philip Athans

Dungeons & Dragons (1 book)
by

Philip Athans (Goodreads Author)

4.11 avg rating — 8,163 ratings

Forgotten Realms: Baldur's Gate (3 books)
by

Philip Athans (Goodreads Author)

2.78 avg rating — 2,420 ratings

Forgotten Realms: Watercourse (3 books)
by

Philip Athans (Goodreads Author)

3.54 avg rating — 645 ratings

The Fathomless Abyss (5 books)
by

Philip Athans (Goodreads Author)

3.58 avg rating — 19 ratings

Philip is Currently Reading

Philip Athans is currently reading

Monsters

by Barry Windsor-Smith

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

11 jan. 2026 20:23

Philip Athans is currently reading

Unutterable Horror: A History of Supernatural Fiction

by S.T. Joshi

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

01 jan. 2026 18:03

Philip Athans is currently reading

The Kar-Chee Reign / Rocannon's World

by Avram Davidson (Goodreads Author)

bookshelves: currently-reading

Rate this book

Clear rating

1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

30 déc. 2025 17:23

rss
Philip’s Recent Updates

Philip Athans made a comment in the group Fantasy Author's Handbook — January 2026 Group Read: Unutterable Horror topic " Interesting question here: "…how do you establish an atmosphere of medieval superstition in a nation that did not have a Middle Ages?" ...more "
4 hours, 37 min ago
Philip Athans is on page 147 of 776 of Unutterable Horror Unutterable Horror: A History of Supernatural Fiction by S.T. Joshi progress:	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
4 hours, 39 min ago · like · see status
Philip Athans is on page 137 of 776 of Unutterable Horror Unutterable Horror: A History of Supernatural Fiction by S.T. Joshi progress:	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
17 hours, 55 min ago · like · see status
Philip Athans voted on a poll in the group Beyond Reality Preliminary Poll April 2026 SciFi BOTM He voted for: Halcyon Years Halcyon Years ...more
19 jan. 2026 18:00 · like · take the poll
Philip Athans rated a book it was amazing A Collection of Essays by George Orwell by George Orwell	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
A mixed bag of essays that include some greats, and some of his literary criticism. I preferred the former, but will provide more context in a video to follow soon… A COLLECTION OF ESSAYS BY GEORGE ORWELL—The 100-Book Challenge, Episode 39 My thoughts ...more
15 jan. 2026 23:30 · like · see review
Philip Athans is currently reading Monsters by Barry Windsor-Smith	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
11 jan. 2026 20:23 · like
Philip Athans rated a book it was amazing I Will Judge You by Your Bookshelf by Grant Snider (Goodreads Author)	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
This is EXACTLY the book I needed after a dark, dark winter of simultaneously reading HR Giger, The Noonday Demon, and J.G. Ballard's Crash. This book is the greatest antidepressant ever. Every writer of any writing should immediately get this book, r ...more
11 jan. 2026 19:49 · like · see review
Philip Athans made a comment in the group Fantasy Author's Handbook — FAH: The Blog topic " If you’re just starting out, or have been using it for a little while and have gone down some of this gigantic app’s various rabbit holes, please allo ...more "
06 jan. 2026 20:41
01 jan. 2026 21:37 · 1 like · like · view books
Philip Athans is currently reading Unutterable Horror: A History of Supernatural Fiction by S.T. Joshi	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
01 jan. 2026 18:03 · 1 like · like

More of Philip's books…

Quotes by Philip Athans (?)

“Upon the one thing every writer absolutely must have, and that is intellectual curiosity.”
― Phillip Athans, R.A. Salvatore's War of the Spider Queen, Volume II: Extinction, Annihilation, Resurrection

tags: adivce, curiosity, intellect, writers, writing-advice

5 likes

“Stupid foes were easy to defeat and angry foes even easier. Mix the two together, though, and you’re in for a fight.”
― Philip Athans, Annihilation

2 likes

“A religion without followers is just a weird guy with strange ideas.”
― Philip Athans, How to Start Your Own Religion: Form a Church, Gain Followers, Become Tax-Exempt, and Sway the Minds of Millions in Five Easy Steps

2 likes

See all Philip Athans's quotes »

Topics Mentioning This Author

topics	posts	views	last activity
The Riyria Revela...: Fantasy Writers Helping Victims of Hurricane Sandy	2	18	12 jan. 2013 16:27
Fantasy Book Club: Triumph Over Tragedy - an anthology to benefit the victims of Hurricane Sandy	2	22	12 jan. 2013 16:29
The Sword and Laser: Fantasy Writers Helping Victims of Hurricane Sandy	1	32	12 jan. 2013 16:54
The Riyria Revela...: New Release: Triumph Over Tragedy to Benefit Hurricane Sandy Victims	3	26	13 jan. 2013 17:08
Retro Chapter Chi...: Stay Bookish: Everything & Anything Bookish or Historical 2024	20	15	04 sept. 2024 16:04

More…

Philip’s Quotes

“You only go around once, but if you play your cards right, once is enough.”
― Frank Sinatra

49 likes

“A room without books is like a body without a soul.”
― Marcus Tullius Cicero

tags: attributed-no-source, books, simile, soul

135545 likes

Philip’s Friend Comments

Comments (showing 1-4) post a comment »

date

newest »

message 4: by Philip

07 oct. 2011 17:27

Elaina wrote: "Thanks for accepting my friend request! As an aspiring fantasy author, I try to learn from other fantasy authors and their writings =]"

ME TOO!

reply | flag

message 3: by Elaina

15 juil. 2011 17:19

Thanks for accepting my friend request! As an aspiring fantasy author, I try to learn from other fantasy authors and their writings =]

reply | flag

message 2: by Philip

03 mar. 2011 02:51

Kevin wrote: "Hey I just got The Collected Stories of Drizzt, can't wait to read it, not as much as the third book in Neverwind Trilogy, Icewind, hope it is going to be good."

ENJOY!

reply | flag

message 1: by Kevin

03 mar. 2011 01:48

Hey I just got The Collected Stories of Drizzt, can't wait to read it, not as much as the third book in Neverwind Trilogy, Icewind, hope it is going to be good.

reply | flag

Philip Athans’s Followers (245)

Philip Athans

Goodreads Author

rssPhilip’s Recent Updates

Topics Mentioning This Author

rss
Philip’s Recent Updates