The First Warden

Kai Wolden

ALEXANDER GUSTAFSON


ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Kai Wolden is a writer, editor, and fantasy fanatic from Northern Wisconsin. Home-schooled as a child, Kai started reading at an early age and writing not long afterward. Kai aspired to be an author at age ten and completed their first novel at age twenty-two.

Kai has a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and writing from the University of Wisconsin-Superior, where they graduated cum laude in 2015. Kai has three short fiction publications in the literary journals Red Fez and The Nemadji Review, and is a two-time winner of the UWS Women’s and Gender Studies Essay Competition. Kai is also an alumnus of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society.

Among Kai’s (many) inspirations are the works of Anne Rice, N. K. Jemisin, Garth Nix, and the great Ursula K. Le Guin. Kai’s other interests include cosplay, Dungeons & Dragons, and traveling everywhere possible. Kai lives in the Twin Cities, Minnesota, with their partner and spoiled cat, Clawdia. www.facebook.com/kaiwolden

ABOUT THE ILLUSTRATOR

Alexander Gustafson is an illustrator, concept artist, and maquette sculptor. Growing up in the icy mountains of Vermont, he enjoyed drawing, telling stories, and playing Dungeons & Dragons to ward off the cold. He also spent hours in those formative years admiring the works of modern masters like Todd Lockwood, Chris Van Allsburg, James Gurney, and Brom. All of this eventually compelled him to seek out a career in fantasy illustration, where he has the freedom to create worlds and tell stories with pictures. He graduated from Savannah College of Art and Design in 2008 with a master’s degree in illustration, and continues to pursue his passion for fantasy, sci-fi, and steampunk art. www.illustratedpixels.com