Terry Bisson is the author of several science fiction novels and short stories, including the critically acclaimed Talking Man and Fire on the Mountain novels and the Hugo and Nebula award-winning short story "Bears Discover Fire." Critics often compliment Bisson on his well-written prose, dry wit, and unique imagination. According to a Publishers Weekly reviewer, Bisson "is one of science fiction's most promising short story practitioners." In addition to writing science fiction, Bisson has also written young adult biographies on anti-slavery leader Nat Turner and death row activist Mumia Abu-Jamal, and has collaborated with other authors--including funnymen Tom and Ray Magliozzi, known for their popular Car Talk series on National Public Radio--to produce both fiction and nonfiction works.

Bisson was born in Kentucky in 1942 and grew up in Owensboro. He was an avid reader of comic books, particularly the notorious "EC" series, which "had rotting corpses that walked...