J.D. Dresner
Born in Toronto, Ontario, Canada, J.D. Dresner graduated from the University of Toronto with a B.Sc. in Psychology, and a B.A. in English. With the double major under his belt, much of his writing contains sprinkles of psychology, the human condition, and portrayals of the imperfect character. Ever since he could pick up a crayon he has been creating new worlds. When he was under 10 years old, Dresner was drawing cartoons and caricatures on the backs of restaurant napkins. He would create half-human, half-beast creatures, and would eventually start developing back stories for them. When he was in his teens, he started to expand his imaginary universe, creating maps of the land and the stars, and he would spend time developing the magic and mechanics systems that Corwyn would eventually adopt. When the family got its first computer, Dresner began to draft his initial story: a fantasy who-dunnit that was a soft blend of Forgotten Realms meets Clue, the board game. He only reached chapter 4 of the manuscript when a file corruption error made the work unreadable. Disheartened, Dresner didn't write again. . .
until a series of fortunate events led to his rejuvenation. At the same time the following happened: (1) An old landlord of his asked him to stay at their place free of charge for three months so someone could look after their dog. The catch: he had to remain at home a lot for their naturally anxious pet. (2) a friend of his was staring a Dungeons & Dragons campaign and had asked Dresner to write up a story for him (3) Dresner had just purchased a brand new, state of the art laptop he was eager to try out. He hadn't written in a long time, and certainly hadn't played AD&D in many years, but he had the time, he had the means, and he had the opportunity. Originally, the story followed a traditional five-part, hunt for the five elemental artifacts trajectory. Each character, if successful, would obtain powers from each of the elements: air, water, fire, earth, and life. Sadly, when he finished his 60-page campaign, his friend told him they weren't playing the game anymore. So, what was he to do? Keep writing, of course! Dresner's 60-page campaign layout eventually became a 4-book story that went through many revisions. Now it is the backbone for the hundreds of other tales that remain to be discovered in the world of Corwyn.
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J.D. Dresner has written two self-published (and on the market) novellas: A Goblin’s Mind, and Sword & Witchhhazel, both available in the Shop page of this site. Along with the four unpublished Talisman Series novels, he has also written a science fiction novella that is currently in the editorial stage of development, a completed full-length jukebox musical focusing on music from The Barenaked Ladies, and several short stories that have yet to be published. He is also writing a poetry book with visual elements that highlight his experience as a book layout artist and designer and has begun a new novel that also takes place in the world of Corwyn.
When he is not writing, Dresner provides layout, design, and editorial work for small publishers in both paperback, and eBook formats.