If you’ve ever ridden a dragon’s back through the fiery skies of Krynn, debated the morality of Raistlin Majere’s choices, or tried to keep track of how many times the Companions of the Lance have saved the world, you have Margaret Weis to thank. Or to blame depending on how emotionally wrecked you were by Dragons of Winter Night. Either way, Margaret Weis is one of the towering figures of fantasy literature and Dungeons & Dragons history, and it’s about time we gave her the epic blog post she deserves.

So, sharpen your quills and unroll your ancient scrolls we’re diving deep into the life and legacy of the woman who helped bring the Dragonlance universe to life.

From Missouri to Krynn: The Early Years

Margaret Weis was born on March 16, 1948, in Independence, Missouri. A city known for its historical significance, but after Weis got through with it, Independence could also proudly claim the origin of one of fantasy literature’s great minds. From a young age, she was a voracious reader, consuming fantasy and science fiction like a nerdy black hole. One of her favorite books? The Lord of the Rings. (Naturally. It’s like the fantasy gateway drug.)

She went on to study at the University of Missouri, where she earned a degree in Creative Writing and Literature in 1970. That’s right Weis didn’t stumble into storytelling by accident. She majored in the thing most English majors are told not to pursue if they like eating regular meals.

Publishing, Paperbacks, and Plot Twists

After college, Weis worked in publishing editing and producing children’s books and educational materials. (Fun fact: she even worked on books about animals and space before tackling dragons and dark elves.) But it wasn’t long before she began writing fiction of her own.

One of her first books was The Endless Quest: Return to Brookmere, a “choose your own adventure” style book that let readers explore a D&D world through branching narratives. It wasn’t yet a bestseller, but it was a hint of the fantasy fire she was about to unleash.

Her work on Endless Quest brought her to the attention of TSR (Tactical Studies Rules, the original publishers of Dungeons & Dragons), who had big plans for a new line of novels set in a custom built world a world that would soon be known as Dragonlance.

Enter: Dragonlance

Now we’re talking.

In the early 1980s, TSR was cooking up something ambitious: a series of adventure modules and novels that would intertwine and support each other, enriching both the game and its lore. At the heart of this plan was the Dragonlance saga.

Weis was hired as an editor, but when TSR was developing the storyline for Dragonlance, they needed someone to co write the novels. That someone turned out to be her. And her partner in creative crime? Tracy Hickman.

Together, Weis and Hickman wrote Dragons of Autumn Twilight (1984), the first novel in the Dragonlance Chronicles trilogy. It became a massive hit, not just among table top players but across the fantasy world. Gamers and readers were hooked by the tales of Tanis Half Elven, Sturm Brightblade, Goldmoon, and, of course, Raistlin Majere the physically frail, morally gray, terrifyingly powerful mage who quickly became everyone’s favourite angsty sorcerer.

Yes, Chronicles was a game changer. It wasn’t just a tie in product; it was a legitimate fantasy epic that could stand on its own. And it proved that Dungeons & Dragons wasn’t just for dice goblins it was for readers, too.

The Secret Sauce: Weis + Hickman

Weis and Hickman weren’t just co authors they were a powerhouse creative team. They wrote like jazz musicians, riffing off each other’s ideas, building worlds, deepening characters, and asking the important questions like: “What if dragons came back and the world wasn’t ready for them?” or “What if a wizard could become a god and maybe shouldn’t?”

After Chronicles, they followed up with Legends, a trilogy that dove deeper into the tragic tale of Raistlin and his twin brother Caramon. If Chronicles was the sweeping epic, Legends was the character study and many fans consider it the finest Dragonlance work to date.

The Weis Hickman dynamic was the kind of creative magic D&D campaigns dream of. She brought rich character depth and narrative cohesion, while Hickman was known for world building and plotting. Together, they wrote over 30 novels in the Dragonlance universe, selling more than 25 million copies worldwide.

That’s right 25 million. That’s more than most authors dream of. Heck, that’s more than the population of Australia. (Insert obligatory kangaroo joke here.)

Beyond the Lance: Star of the Guardians and More

While Weis is best known for Dragonlance, her talents extend far beyond the continent of Ansalon.

In the 1990s, she struck out with her own science fiction series, Star of the Guardians. Think of it as Star Wars meets Dune with just enough political intrigue to make George R. R. Martin sit up and pay attention. It was a galaxy spanning space opera that proved Weis could handle more than fantasy. She was fluent in laser beams and longswords.

Weis also collaborated with her daughter Lizz and son David on various projects, including the Dragonvarld trilogy and the Mag Force 7 series. That’s right, folks she turned writing into a family business. Somewhere, the Brontë sisters are nodding in respect.

Game Designer and Entrepreneur

Weis wasn’t content just being an author. In 1998, she co founded Sovereign Press, which later became Margaret Weis Productions (MWP). Under her leadership, the company published table top RPGs for popular licenses like Serenity, Battlestar Galactica, Leverage, and Supernatural. You name it, she probably turned it into an RPG.

Her most notable table top success, outside of D&D, was the Cortex System a flexible, narrative focused ruleset that emphasized character over crunch. It was used in all the licensed RPGs from MWP and gained a cult following. (The good kind of cult, not the “summon an elder god” kind.)

Weis proved that she wasn’t just a writer playing in someone else’s sandbox. She built sandboxes. And then she sold them to other nerds. Capitalism, baby.

The Legal Dragon War of 2020

Ah yes, even mighty bards face courtroom quests.

In 2020, Weis and Hickman filed a lawsuit against Wizards of the Coast (WotC), alleging that the company had breached a contract for a new Dragonlance trilogy. Fans were distraught after all, the Dragonlance novels were set to return! Lawsuits and fantasy dreams rarely mix well.

But fear not: the saga had a happy ending. The lawsuit was voluntarily dismissed, and Dragons of Deceit, the first book in the new Destina Rosethorn trilogy, was released in 2022, followed by Dragons of Fate in 2023. The third book, Dragons of Eternity, is set to complete the trilogy and usher in a new era for Krynn.

Let this be a lesson: never underestimate a writer who made a career out of defeating dragons. Even corporate ones.

Legacy: The Dragonlady Herself

Margaret Weis’s legacy is undeniable. She helped shape how D&D told stories not just through modules, but through emotionally rich, character driven narratives that captivated readers around the world.

Without Weis, there’s no Dragonlance. Without Dragonlance, there’s no proof that D&D fiction could be a commercial and literary force. And without that, the entire RPG landscape might have evolved very differently. Imagine a world where Raistlin never said, “I have seen what power does and I want it.” Chilling.

She’s won awards, earned praise from fans and peers alike, and she’s still out there, writing, publishing, and one imagines grinning knowingly whenever someone says, “I rolled a wizard with a tragic backstory.”

Final Thoughts: Long Live the Queen of Krynn

Margaret Weis has carved out a career that’s part myth, part miracle, and all inspiration. She took her love of fantasy, married it with her skill as a storyteller, and transformed it into a legacy that spans generations.

She’s the co author of one of the most beloved fantasy series in history, a game designer, an entrepreneur, and a tireless champion for the art of collaborative storytelling. And let’s not forget she made us all cry at least once because of a wizard in red robes. That alone is worth a place in the Hall of Heroes.

So next time you roll initiative, light a torch, or step into a shadowy tavern looking for adventure, raise a mug of dwarven ale to Margaret Weis because without her, the world of Dungeons & Dragons would be just a little less magical.