Thank you for taking an interest in me. By now, you know that I’m Bryan Nowak, and the author of the books No Name, The Dramatic Dead, Riapoke, and Crimson Tassels. I grew up in Steger, Illinois, a South Suburb of Chicago. When I was a child, we spent lots of summers in Indiana. So much so, that I consider myself to be part Hoosier. Many of my relatives still live in Indiana and it’s a frequent destination for summer vacations. I was born in the summer of 1973. I had the good fortune of attending Eastview Elementary School. There I learned the value of a good library through our Librarian, and one of my neighbors, Mrs. Lavelle. I exhausted the library of ghost stories, and tales of monsters. One in particular I remember was the tale of the restless spirits of dead pirates. It was supposedly a true story. Years later, after the advent of the internet, I would find out that the story was well known, and the location of the story is presently a bed and breakfast in South Carolina. Reading those stories are what gave me a firm foundation of suspense and the paranormal. Eighth grade was a pivotal year for me. This was the year I left Central Junior High School, and Northern Illinois, forever. I moved to the little lake-shore town of Excelsior, Minnesota. Till this day it still stands out in my mind as an idyllic place to live. I continue to compare every other city to its quaint grandeur. In Minnesota I joined the US Army Reserves and the National Guard. I am a proud veteran. I went to college in Minnesota and met my wife there. Our first son was born in Minnesota. It is safe to say that I will always have a soft spot in my life for the state that I once called home. It was during my time in the U.S. Army that I was sent to the state of Virginia. I was filling in with an active duty unit who needed some extra help. I repeated this process over and over for the next three summers. It was during these active duty tours that I learned to really love the state of Virginia and vowed it would be my home if I was unable to live in the state of Minnesota. Many years later, my wife and I moved our family to Virginia. We have been residents of Virginia ever since, with our three children. I generally prefer horror to other genera, but I am not necessarily a purist. I like a good solid mystery to go along with it to keep you turning the pages or flicking the screen of your e-reader. I prefer a story line that doesn’t ooze blood, but I want it saturated in tension and dread. I’m a firm believer that if I can entertain you while scaring you a little, I have done my job. I sincerely hope you enjoy reading my books. If you are reading this, then you are already paying me the highest compliment you can pay any writer. Sincerely, and from the bottom of my heart, I want to say thank you. -Bryan Nowak, Author