James Axler Books In Order

Publication Order of Deathlands Books

Publication Order of Earthblood Books

Publication Order of Outlanders Books

Publication Order of Anthologies

The name James Axler is a house name belonging to Gold Eagle publishing. Lawrence James was the first author to use the name James Axler in 1986 when he co-authored the novel titled Pilgrimage of Hell with Christopher Lowder (named Jack Adrain). This was the first title under the series Deathlands. Several authors later used the name when writing for the different titles under the series Deathlands, Outlanders and Earth Blood. Numerous authors working with the Gold Eagle publications have used the pen name James Axler. Some of the authors who have not been discussed in this biography include Allan Philipson, Nick Pollota, Andy boot, Terry Collins, Mel Odom, Victor Milan, Rik Hoskin, Douglas Wojtowicz, chuck Rogers and Travis Morgan. Some have written just one novel in the series, while others have written several. However, in examining the biography of James Axler, this article will look into the lives of two prolific authors who wrote most books using the name. They include Lawrence James and Mark Ellis.

Lawrence James

Lawrence James was born in Britain in 1942. He developed an interest in writing from an early age and in 1972, started off as a freelance author. For quite a while, he wrote short science fiction stories, which were published in Britain and the United States. James managed to publish his first full-length novel in 1974 titled Earth Lies Sleeping. This was a start of a long journey as a novelist using different names.Some of the names Lawrence James used to publish his stories include Mick Norman, James McPhee, Jonathan May, James Darke, and the most popular James Axler.

Using the name James Axler, Lawrence wrote over 32 books in the successful series Deathlands and three titles under the series Earth Blood. James died in February 2000. Lawrence had one wife and three children.

Mark Ellis

Mark Ellis has written the most titles using the name James Axler. He is an American science fiction author and comic scripter. He started his career as a journalist before moving on to become a copywriter. Mark began his freelance writing career in 1986 with several comic publications. He went on to establish millennium publications in collaboration with his wife. This company engaged in several comics project but it eventually closed down after three years of operation.It was then that Mark Ellis joined Harlequins Enterprises, an imprint of Gold Eagle, and begun working on the series Outlanders from 1996. Mark Ellis has from then authored over 50 titles using the name James Axler, all under the series Outlanders.Mark Ellis has a one wife called Mellisa who assists also a writer and they assist each other in the writing projects they are undertaking. The two have one daughter.

Deathlands series

Deathlands series comprise of over 120 novels written by a variety of authors, all using the pen name James Axler. Christopher Lowder and Lawrence James authored the first novel for Deathlands series, Pilgrimage to Hell. They used the pen names Jack Adrian and James Axler respectively. The novel presents life in the post apocalyptic world. This is after nuclear bombs destroy the powers of United States. The remains of the United States are what the authors refer to as “Deathlands”.The main characters in the series, including Ryan, Kristy, John , and Dean, try to use their skills and the information that have on the destroyed world of the 20th century to survive against the enemy forces led by Cort Strasser.

The series also features mutants who have super human powers after the effects of the nuclear attack and serves as villains in the story.Some of the novels in the series are direct continuation from the previous release, while other presents a different angle to the story. For example, the second novel in the series, published in 1986 titled The Red Holocust continues the story developed in the first novel. From 1986, Lawrence James wrote all the novels of the series until 1998 when his health failed him. Mark Ellis wrote the next novel in the series after the death of Lawrence James before several other authors continued on the series.In 2003, Deathlands was adapted into a low budget film with the title Deathlands: Homeward Bound. The movie was shown on TV and featured most of the main characters of the series including Ryan, Krysty, John Barrymore, and Jak Lauren.

The Earth Blood series

This was among the early novels written by Lawrence James using the pen name James Axler. The series included only three novels namely Earth Blood, published in 1993, Deep Trek, published in 1994 and Aurora Quest published in 1994. The three novels were intented to develop a new string of series after the success of the first title. Lawrence wrote these titles when he was still engaged with the Deathlands series. The success of Deathlands series made him to stop working on this series and concentrate on Deathlands novels.

The Outlanders Series

The Outlanders series includes over 70 novels, most of them written by mark Ellis, but all under the pen name James Axler. The Outlanders has almost the same story line as Deathlands, but involves different characters, events, and settings. The story is about a destroyed earth, roughly one century after the time of Deathlands. A team of explorers operating from a hidden military base called Cerberus Redoubt makes up the outlanders’ team. They include Brigid Baptiste Kane, Domi, and Grant.The first novel in the series was Exile To Hell, published in 1997. The novel presents a the world after the nuclear Holocaust. The Outlanders have little information about the history of the world, while the barons suppress the truth about the earth and humanity. This mystery is gradually revealed in subsequent novels and the author makes a conscious attempt of defining the setting of the events vividly.
The pseudo author James Axler is one with many faces and achievements. The two series; Death lands and Outlanders continue to be published and it is expected many more authors will use the name in their works. The stories started by Christopher Lowder, Lawrence James and Mark Ellis develop a new angle with every new novel of the series.

2 Responses to “James Axler”

1. Michael Tullis: 3 years ago

   yes I loved this series so much, that at the age of 34 yrs. old this series opened a window and, it was what made want to learn how to read and I thought myself how to and happed with my writing too, So Thank You So Very Much. the last book I was able to buy was back in 2005 I think the series Book # 125 I was wondering if the DEATHLAND’S series was going to start a gain

   Reply
2. Michael Tullis: 3 years ago

   yes I loved this series so much, that at the age of 34 yrs. old this series opened a window and, it was what made want to learn how to read and I thought myself how to and happed with my writing too, So Thank You So Very Much. the last book I was able to buy was back in 2005 I think the series Book # 125 I was wondering if the DEATHLAND’S series was going to start back up and if so How can I get the ones I’ve missed out on Thanks a gain Michael Tullis

   Reply