The Paradise Aperture
PAUL PEDERSON
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
David Carani was born and raised in Illinois, where he became familiar with both cities and cornfields. Despite his love of corn and tall buildings, he found he prefers neither. Instead, he lives in a place that is a wondrous combination of the two, called a suburb.
The oldest of eight, David grew up wandering the acres of forest behind his home. A heavy rainfall or snowstorm could transform those woods into another world, and he often spent his days exploring and creating stories.
After earning a degree in economics from the University of Illinois (hence the cornfields), he returned home and married the girl of his dreams. Like any good editor, when she isn’t diligently working to improve his stories, his wife gives him all the encouragement he could ever need.
Beyond writing, David works in sales, reads submissions for the Hugo-nominated Lightspeed Magazine and writes articles for the website Fantasy Faction. This is his first published work.
ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR
Paul Pederson was born August 11, 1980, in Bessemer, Alabama. He was raised in St. Augustine, Florida (the oldest city in the nation). Art and history were prominent features in the small tourist town and this had a tremendous influence on him. At an early age, he loved to draw and paint. Paul and his older brothers were always fascinated with works of fantasy and science fiction. Subsequently he leaned more toward fantasy illustrations. Paul’s parents established a private school known as Taldeve (Talent Development) School of the Arts that Paul attended through middle school and high school. This gave him the rare opportunity to study one-on-one under professional artists in the north Florida area. After high school, Paul moved to Australia for two years, spending much of his time learning the Aboriginal culture and doing freelance art. He later studied art and design at Dixie State College in Utah, and has worked for over ten years as a graphic designer, painting murals and illustrations. He currently resides in St. George, Utah, where he works as an illustrator and hopes to take full advantage of his talents.