About the Author

My introduction to fantasy was considerably less conventional. As a freshman in high school, I played water polo. The seniors on the team informed me that if I wanted to hang out with them on weekends, I first had to read some strange book called The Hobbit. So I read it.

That began a fifty-year love affair with science fiction, fantasy, and Dungeons & Dragons. After all, that's what we did on weekends. We explored imaginary worlds, fought imaginary monsters, and occasionally made decisions that were probably even worse than the ones Ralph makes. 

Decades later, during a difficult period in my life, I found myself spending a lot of time pacing around my kitchen, thinking about the hundreds of books I'd read and the countless characters and adventures I'd enjoyed. Then, quite unexpectedly, a scene appeared in my  head. There was Ralph, riding  a horse named Joe down the side of a hill. I could see the people, the wagons, and a hydra. The scene kept growing, with characters and details appearing almost faster than I could sort them out. 

Somewhere along the way, I decided the story needed a beautiful, formidable woman who could hold her own against just about anything. That's how Mei-Lin arrived. I hadn't set out to write a fantasy series. I certainly hadn't planned to create an entire world. But once Ralph, Joe, and Mei-Lin showed up, they apparently had no intention of leaving. And Ralph & Company was born.

These books are my attempt to capture everything I've loved about science fiction and fantasy for more than fifty years: mystery, danger, friendship, humor, and ordinary people trying to do extraordinary things, usually with consequences nobody anticipated. I hope you enjoy spending time with Ralph and his companions as much as I've enjoyed bringing them to life.And if something goes terribly wrong, don't blame me.That's Ralph's department.