Michael Merriam was born in Flint, Michigan, in 1965. He spent most of his life in west-central Oklahoma and north Texas before moving to Minnesota in 1999.
Like most writers, Michael has done a variety of odd jobs over the years: actor, poet, late night disc jockey, short order cook, bassist in a rock-a-billy band, and booking agent for a puppet troupe. Michael is legally blind due to retinitis pigmentosa, and started writing seriously in 2002.
Michael is an award-winning author, performer, playwright, and screenwriter. He is the author of the steampunk and weird western series Sixguns & Sorcery, and his essays and stories have appeared in Uncanny Magazine, Cast of Wonders, and Andromeda Spaceways Inflight Magazine. His latest novel from Queen of Swords Press is Last Car to Annwn Station. He has published a dozen books and over 100 pieces of short fiction and poetry. His scripts have been produced for stage and radio, and he has appeared in the Minnesota Fringe Festival, Not-So-Silent Planet, StoryFest Minnesota, and over the air on KFAI and Minnesota Public Radio.
Michael is Organizer Emeritus of the Minnesota Speculative Fiction Writers, and a member of SFWA and Story Arts Minnesota.
Michael lives in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Michael Merriam can be contacted at [email protected].
You can find Michael’s Press Kit here!
Want to know more about Michael’s journey in blindness? Learn about me and RP!
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PRAISE FOR MICHAEL’S WORK:
“Last Car to Annwn Station is a great novel.” – Hugo Award-winning blogger and reviewer Cora Buhlert.
“There is so much Minnesota in this book, grounding the reader in reality before slowly sliding the narrative into the surreal of ghostly street cars slipping through downtown unseen.” – World of Mayhem
“Should We Drown in Feathered Sleep is a moving novella full of deep, emotional imagery and transcendent beauty. It is easily one of the top five stories I have read all year.” – Kenneth Mark Hoover, author of Haxan
“…Merriam has a sure touch for the voice of young protagonists.”
-The Fix Short Fiction Review
“Michael’s dry and wry sense of humor shines…” – Conrad Zero
“One of the hardest-working men in short fiction.” — Scott Lynch, World Fantasy Award-nominated author of The Lies of Locke Lamora
“Michael is one of the hardest-working, most prolific and most dedicated writers I know. His stories have both craft and heart, making it no surprise that his list of publications is ever-growing. I look forward to saying that I knew him when…” — Jaye Lawrence, author of “Kissing Frogs,” nominated for the James Tiptree, Jr. Award for Short Fiction