Kirk Wolcott is a novelist, short story writer, retired diplomat, and former journalist. He grew up in and around Seattle and has spent much of his life crisscrossing the globe. A Simple Game is his first novel. After starting as an award-winning reporter in California and North Carolina, he set off for farther shores. Work as a peace and conflict resolution officer at The Carter Center, former President Jimmy Carter’s NGO in Atlanta, sent him to Bosnia, East Timor, Nigeria, and other global hotspots. The next 20 years he served as a U.S. diplomat in Kuwait, Sarajevo, Tunis, Kabul, Brussels, Washington, Istanbul, and Dublin. Kirk lives in Baltimore with his wife and two intrepid cats, writing a second novel and book of short stories.