Van Shamrai is the pen name of Maksym Sterpul Shamrai, a science fiction and dystopian novelist. He was born and raised in Mykolaiv, Ukraine, into a family deeply connected to education, science, and the arts. His mother, Liudmyla, is a primary school teacher; his father, Volodymyr, is a professor of physics and mathematics, as well as a musician (guitar, piano, and accordion) and a poet; and his grandmother, Raisa, worked for decades as a mathematics and geometry teacher in the same city. This environment shaped his artistic sensitivity, intellectual curiosity, and early interest in understanding the world from multiple perspectives.

From an early age, he showed a strong inclination toward the creation of imaginary worlds: drawing comics, inventing characters, and writing short stories as a way of giving narrative structure to his imagination. These early creative exercises laid the foundation for a lifelong relationship with writing that would later evolve into a deeper exploration of human nature, culture, and the future.

He studied at the National University of Culture and Arts of Kyiv, based in Mykolaiv, where he pursued a degree in Culture and Arts, specializing in Culturology. In 2006, he earned the qualification of culturologist and pedagogue, graduating with honors and academic distinction. In 2009, he completed his doctoral studies at the National Academy of Culture and Arts Management of Kyiv, specializing in Theory and History of Culture. His doctoral thesis, Cultural Anthropocentrism as a Phenomenon (A Socio-Philosophical Analysis), examined the concept of cultural anthropocentrism and its role in modern philosophical anthropology and the philosophy of culture, an approach that would decisively influence his literary vision.

Since 2011, he has lived in Spain, where he continues to develop his literary work. Sions of the Last Hope marks his debut as a novelist. Originally conceived in the early 2010s under the title The Last Crew, the novel matured over many years, incorporating multiple temporal, experiential, and reflective layers of the author’s life. The result is a dystopian science fiction work that blends classic adventure, corporate intrigue, and conspiracies with a profound reflection on power, inequality, memory, and identity.

Van Shamrai’s narrative style is marked by visual, dynamic, and reflective writing, seeking to immerse the reader in the story with the intensity of a cinematic experience, without abandoning deep philosophical inquiry. Influenced by authors such as Stanisław Lem, Isaac Asimov, and Arthur C. Clarke, as well as by the tradition of classic adventure novels, he crafts stories with a distinct voice, free from conventional formulas.

His work is aimed at curious and discerning readers interested in science fiction, dystopian societies, and fundamental questions about the future of humanity. For the author, writing is both an act of creation and of knowledge: a way of giving voice to stories that seek to exist, and of inviting readers to reflect on the world we build… and the one we leave behind.