J Raymond Gad

I was born in Orlando, Florida, and raised in a small town in East Tennessee, Sunbright, where I live with my two kids.

 My love for writing came from the bedtime stories my mom told me, and my sister when we were kids, and the stories my Granny told us when she was growing up in Jonesville, VA. I was surrounded by a lot of storytellers, including my Grandpa. Listening to what it was like to grow up during the Depression, WW2, and post-war Appalachia influences my writing today. 

Folklore and History also influence my writing. I have a Bachelor of Science in History from Tennessee Tech University where I graduated in 2005.

 I've been reading comic books since the 6th Grade. A friend introduced me to X-Men, Spawn, and Spiderman and I was hooked. I was also fortunate to grow up with great TV and movies: X-Men Animated, Spider-Man, Batman Animated Series, Spawn (I had to watch this at my friend's house due to the mature content. lol), Tim Burton's Batman, and so much more.