Stan Dirdeny
Although the introductory text already offers a few basic facts about me, this page — where you now find yourself — reveals a little more. Here I wish to explain why I chose to write under a pseudonym.
For years I have been performing and presenting my work across Slovenia, and one question keeps returning: Why a foreign name? What would be wrong with using your real one?
The answer is simple — nothing at all. Yet I deliberately chose a pseudonym, believing it might spark curiosity among a wider audience, perhaps even beyond my homeland. Through this name, I hope to carry a part of Slovenia to places where it is still little known. That is why I write as ‘Stan Dirdeny’.
Still, no name can make a book succeed on its own. A story truly thrives — whether at home or abroad — only when readers eagerly await the author’s next adventure. That passion is what drives me forward: to create worlds that remain alive long after the final page is turned.
How my journey began, you’ll find a few lines below — or better yet, I would be glad to answer your questions in person. So, let us start at the beginning.
How it all began?
I was born on 25 October 1979 in Maribor. My childhood was defined by play — adventures that slowly became the essence of my imagination. Growing up in a time before computers and digital media became part of daily life, I constantly sought worlds where I truly belonged — worlds often hidden between the covers of books.
My parents, both lovers of literature, filled my early years with timeless tales by great storytellers. Later, I began exploring those books on my own, discovering the quiet magic within their pages.
During my school years, the books I read mostly followed the curriculum, yet I soon found the authors who remain close to my heart: Mark Twain and Jules Verne. Twain’s stories awakened in me a longing for adventure, which I lived out through imagination — during scouting trips, camps, and travels. Verne’s works, such as Journey to the Centre of the Earth, The Castle of the Carpathians, and The Mysterious Island, left a lasting mark — especially the figure of engineer Cyrus Smith, a symbol of knowledge and ingenuity. From that point on, I was determined to become an engineer myself.
After primary school, I continued my education at the Technical School of Chemistry. During this time, I delved even deeper into the world of fantasy, dreaming of adventures of my own.
In 2007, I completed my studies at the Faculty of Technology, specialising in ecological engineering, and earned the title of engineer. Yet despite reaching that goal, I felt a void — because one passion still refused to let go: the world of fantasy. Even during my studies, I never stopped reading. The Lord of the Rings and the Harry Potter series captured my imagination, the latter in particular awakening a powerful desire to create worlds of my own.
For years I wondered how to begin. I tried countless times, but most drafts ended up discarded — my self-criticism was relentless. For a while, I turned my focus to another passion: computer graphics and programming. After three years of study, I graduated as an Engineer of Media Production and was honoured as the Best Student of the Decade, having completed every exam with the highest grades. That recognition gave me the confidence I needed to return to writing.
In February 2013, I began my first book, Spiritus Dei. Progress was slow at first, but day by day the story took shape. By June 2014, it was complete. After editing in September, I set it aside — only to be overtaken by a new idea. That was the birth of my first series, Vagabonds. This time, the process moved faster; I already understood the rhythm of writing. Over time, the project grew into a rich collection of fantasy stories exceeding 1,200 pages.
By the end of 2015, I finally decided to present my work to publishers. Following the example of my literary idol Mark Twain, I created a pseudonym under which to publish my books. By rearranging the letters of my surname and combining them with my old scout nickname, Indy, I formed the anagram ‘Stan Dirdeny’ — the name that has since become my creative identity.
