ABOUT THE AUTHORS
Herbert A. Beas II became the Line Developer for BattleTech in 2007, taking the helm after Randall N. Bills. Nobody’s really sure if that was a good choice, considering that his previous work experience was retail, clerical work, and something to do with hotel banquet hall set-ups, but he did have about ten years’ experience as a freelance writer for BattleTech before that, so they probably just took pity on the poor guy. Having dreamed of being a professional writer since he could pretty much learn to walk (and even has the grade school pictures of himself slaving away on a manual typewriter to prove it), Herb declared success when he sold his first work to FASA in 1997—and probably hasn’t at all noticed that ever since then, all he’s really written about (including that brief stint of writing for Reaper Miniatures’ first edition of the CAV game line) are big walking ’Mechs blowing each other apart. (Please don’t point it out to him, by the way; we have a bet running about how long he can remain this fixated on one thing…)
Phaedra M. Weldon is the author of several BattleTech stories/novellas (available via
http://www.battlecorps.com), including the continuing Sandoval Saga: En Passant and Epaulet Mate and the Isis Marik series, The Art of War.
Her other publications can be found in various DAW anthologies, as well as works in the Star Trek universe for Starfleet Corps of Engineers, and The Next Generation series, Slings and Arrows. She is also the author of the Zoë Martinique series from ACE Fantasy.
Jason M. Hardy is a beloved storyteller, international peacemaker, and revered philosopher who always enjoys the opportunity to write his own bio. He is the author of the MechWarrior: Dark Age novels The Scorpion Jar, Principles of Desolation (with Randall N. Bills) and The Last Charge, along with the Shadowrun novel Drops of Corruption. He’s contributed a number of stories to the BattleCorps website and, with the editor’s indulgence, will continue to do so. He lives in Chicago with his wife, son and daughter.
Jason Schmetzer has been writing and editing fiction professionally for more than twelve years, in both print and electronic markets. When not making things up, he is also a full time marketing copywriter and holds an MFA in fiction writing (he didn’t make that part up). He lives in Indiana with his daughter and the menagerie of voices in his head.
Steven Mohan, Jr. lives in Pueblo, Colorado with his wife and three children and—shockingly—no cats.
He has sold more than twenty stories to BattleCorps, including the Jihad serial “Isle of the Blessed.” He appeared twice in Total Warfare, and has done work for several upcoming BattleTech sourcebooks. His original fiction has appeared in Interzone, On Spec, Polyphony, Paradox, and several DAW original anthologies, among other places. His stories have won honorable mention in The Year’s Best Science Fiction and The Year’s Best Fantasy and Horror and he was nominated for the Pushcart Prize for his alternate history tale, A Monument More Lasting Than Brass.
After experimenting with numerous occupations,
Louisa M. Swann, a native Californian (ack! She admits it!) settled on writing as her long-term mental aberration. During her excessively loud oral dissertations (proven integral to her writing process, as evidenced by numerous short story sales to DAW, Pocketbook, and BattleCorps), husband and son shake their heads and mutter something about “the muse.” In the interests of survival, husband Jim acquired an 80-acre compound complete with coyotes, frogs, and screech owls to serve as nightly backup band for a raving writer’s rants. Interdimensional traveling provides fodder for the muse, allowing Louisa to discover wonderful new places like the BattleTech world and put them on her list of favorite places.
Randall N. Bills has served as the BattleTech line developer, continuity editor, art director, and a primary author/novelist for almost a decade, where he’s led the publication of over seventy-five products for that universe.
He also served as the MechWarrior: Dark Age continuity editor, working for WizKids to help in the creation of that original universe, including its thirty full-length novels. In addition he’s published fiction and game design in the Eclipse Phase, Shadowrun, Earthdawn, Crimson Skies and Vor: The Maelstrom universes.
As one of the primary founders of InMediaRes Productions, LLC, which launched the successful Internet publishing venture BattleCorps.com, Randall is a key component in the development of Catalyst Game Labs to publish exciting, dynamic universes and games.
He lives in the Pacific Northwest with his beautiful wife Tara, and three busy children: Bryn Kevin, Ryana Nikol and Kenyon Aleksandr.
Ilsa J. Bick is a child psychiatrist, film scholar, surgeon wannabe, former Air Force major, and an award-winning author of dozens of short stories and critically acclaimed YA novels, including the ASHES Trilogy, Draw the Dark, Drowning Instinct, and The Sin-Eater’s Confession. Forthcoming: Monsters, Book III of the ASHES Trilogy, (Egmont USA, 2013) and White Space, Book I in the Dark Passages series (Egmont USA, 2014). Drop by for a visit:
http://www.ilsajbick.com, Facebook, and Twitter @ilsajbick
Chris Hartford has lived in the Inner Sphere for over a quarter of a century and has contributed to numerous BattleTech sourcebooks. In 2006 he wrote the Star League-era novel Fall From Grace, focusing on his beloved House Marik. He has also written for Crimson Skies, Vampire: Dark Ages and Heavy Gear. Chris grew up in Nottingham, England, which may explain his odd spelling and turn of phrase. He currently lives in London.
