Thursday:
Marshall Ryan Maresca

I am a fantasy & science fiction writer, as well as a playwright, living in Austin, Texas. I grew up in upstate New York, just outside of Syracuse, where I spent a fair amount of my time reading Asimov, Heinlein, Tolkein, Eddings, playing a significant amount of role-playing games, and watching Star Trek far more times than could possibly be healthy. Fantasy and science-fiction sank into my blood. I was also addicted to being on stage, and developed a deep, life-long passion for theatre.

I went to Penn State for college, getting a degree in Film and Video Production. I also was a key, founding member of No Refund Theatre, a student theatre group that is still going strong at Penn State. After graduating, I eventually found my way to Austin, where I became deeply involved in the theatre community. I struggled as an actor, muddled competently as a director, lost my shirt as a producer-- but found a voice as a playwright. My real drive, however, was to write fantasy and sci-fi novels. After several failed attempts, I finished my first fantasy novel. It was absolutely terrible, and I've shoved it deep into a drawer. But that didn't stop me, and I've kept cranking out more novels ever since.

I live in South Austin with my amazing family-- my wife teaches Spanish with Live the Language, and my son is an artist whose talent never ceases to amaze me.