Neal Barrett, Jr.

Neal Barrett, Jr. was an American writer of fantasy, science fiction, mystery/suspense, and historical fiction. He was born in San Antonio, Texas, but grew up in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma after his family relocated there in his infancy. Barrett's first published science fiction story was "To Tell the Truth" in the August 1960 issue of Galaxy Science Fiction. After that, he contributed short work to science fiction magazines with some regularity, but he was better known for his novels. His reputation was made in the late 1980s with the publication of his novel Through Darkest America and its sequel, Dawn's Uncertain Light. Beginning in the 1990s and continuing into his later years, Barrett focused less on science fiction and more on crime thrillers, though he continued to work in both genres. He died in 2014 at the age of 84. Barrett also worked under the pseudonyms Victor Appleton, Chad Calhoun, Franklin W. Dixon (Stratemeyer Syndicate house names), Rebecca Drury, and J. D. Hardin.