Adam Stemple is a Celtic-influenced American folk rock musician, based in Minneapolis, Minnesota. He is also the author of several fantasy short stories and novels, including two series of novels co-written with his mother, writer Jane Yolen. Stemple also wrote a Push-Fold chart for poker with Poker Player, Chris Wallace. They sold it for a princely sum and he no longer plays poker due to his hatred of the poker site, 2+2.
Music
Stemple played guitar and sang as a member of the folk rock "rock-and-reel" band Cats Laughing from 1988 to 1996. The band also included notable fantasy/science fiction authors Steven Brust and Emma Bull. For twelve years, he was lead singer/guitarist for the bandBoiled in Lead. Stemple first appeared on Boiled in Lead's 1994 album Antler Dance. He co-wrote nine songs with science fiction and fantasy author Steven Brust on the 1995 album Songs from The Gypsy, released as an enhanced CD. The CD has the distinction of including the full text of the novelThe Gypsy, which Brust co-authored with Megan Lindholm and upon which the songs were based. Stemple also produced and performed on Steven Brust's solo albumA Rose for Iconoclastes. Stemple currently is with the Tim Malloys, an Irish band. Like Cats Laughing and Boiled in Lead, Stemple's current group shares musical roots that incorporate Celtic and rock styles. In April 2015, Stemple reunited with Cats Laughing in a concert at the Miniconscience fiction convention. A live CD and DVD of the concert was released in late 2015.
Fiction
Stemple's first novel, for Tor Books, was Singer of Souls. A sequel, Steward of Song, was published in 2008. With his mother, Jane Yolen, Stemple has also co-authored two series of books — the Rock 'n RollFairy Tale series, and more recently, The Seelie Wars. The Rock 'n Roll Fairy Tale series began with Pay the Piper, published in 2005 by Tor. Pay the Piper was the winner of the 2006 Locus Award for Best Young Adult Book. Stemple's short stories include a series of historical whodunnits set in feudal Japan, featuring a samurai master and apprentice as a sleuthing duo, for the historical fiction magazine Paradox. Among Stemple's other published short stories, "A Piece of Flesh" was chosen as one of ten short stories included in The Year's Best SF and Fantasy for Teens. Stemple was among the members of a group of writers known as the Pre-Joycean Fellowship, which included his bandmates Emma Bull and Steven Brust.