Dimitri Olivier Balcaen (born 24 February 1989 in Bruges) is a Belgian novelist and screenwriter. He is also the founder of ReadMore Publishers.
In 2018, Balcaen made his debut with his two-part youth series “Zusters van het Atoom”. On the advice of Dirk Bracke, he decided to launch a third novel that same year, based on an older manuscript. "Peter & Pan" combined the well-known childhood story of Peter Pan with Greek mythology.
Driven by this, he worked on several manuscripts and scenarios behind the scenes, including the two feature films "Komeet" and "Transport XX". In 2020, the first part in a seven-part series called "Grimoire" was finally published. These stories were specifically aimed at young people who struggle with psychosocial problems such as autism, eating disorders, anxiety disorders and depression.
Thanks to the popularity of "Peter & Pan", Balcaen was able to set up his own publishing company in 2021 with a crowdfunding campaign. He launched this publishing house in February 2022 and was accompanied by new releases such as the second part in the "Grimoire" series and a reworking of his very first manuscript "Apotheosis". Later that same year, the final piece in the "Peter & Pan" trilogy, "Peter & Haak", was released on FACTS. In consultation with the Writers' Collective, the short story collection "Het Kruispunt der Verloren Zielen" was launched at the same fair, for which Balcaen wrote the opening story "Ren voor je Leven" and provided the layout.
At the beginning of 2023, Balcaen launched his latest series, "de Sterrenwacht". In October of that year, ReadMore publishers released new editions in both Dutch and English of the "Peter & Pan" trilogy and "Grimoire" following the international publications of these series. In addition, the third volume of the "Grimoire" series and a new short story collection called " Wake: de laatste uren van het jaar" were released around the same time.
2024 also turned out to be a successful year for Dimitri, with the release of, among others, the second part in the Observatory "De Ridders van Orion" and "Here be dragons".
The following books have been published in English as well:
- Peter & Pan trilogy
- Grimoire 1,2 and 3
- The Observatory (De Sterrenwacht) 1
Soon “Here be Dragons” and “The Observatory” part 2 will be released in English.
