Rick Riordan Turns Down Honor From Texas Lawmakers Due to Transgender Bathroom Bill

Rick Riordan, author of the best-selling Percy Jackson and the Olympians fantasy series has turned down an invitation to the state capitol building which would honor him as a Texas author because of Senate Bill 6, the transgender bathroom bill.

In a tweet, Riordan said, "If they want to honor me, they could stop this nonsense."

Fans had mixed feelings. Some were in support by tweeting, "An Olympian-sized statement by one of my favorite authors. Good for you, Rick!," while others were not supportive of his decision, tweeting, "Wowsers. Why can't gifted people be activists without offending their fan base? No more of ur books 4 my kids."

Born and raised in San Antonio, Texas, Riordan started writing as a young adult. He wrote short stories, unsuccessfully submitted a few of those stories for publication, and edited his high school newspaper. But he didn't take writing seriously until after he graduated from college and was teaching in San Francisco. While Riordan and his family (wife Becky and sons Haley and Patrick) enjoyed living in California, he was nostalgic for Texas. On an impulse, Riordan decided to try his hand at a mystery novel, which he set in his hometown of San Antonio. Featuring a private-eye/English Ph.D. named Tres Navarre, Big Red Tequila was published to rave reviews in 1997. Today, Riordan'sTres Navarre series has won the top three awards for the mystery genre- the Edgar, the Anthony, and the Shamus.