Doug Wilhelm's Bio -- In his own words

I was born in 1952 in Portland, Oregon, and moved to suburban New Jersey when I was in kindergarten. All through elementary school I was an avid reader. Suddenly, in middle school, I began to write. I was writing stories, poems, even a play. Until then, I hadn't been good at much of anything—I was tall, skinny, awkward, and not very popular—and it made a big difference to feel that this was something I could do.

Like the main characters in The Revealers, I was bullied a lot in middle school. The idea for the novel grew, in part, out of my own experiences. To read about that, go to The story behind The Revealers.

I studied English and played basketball at Kenyon College in Ohio, and after graduating I traveled by land from Europe to India and Nepal. It was a great adventure, and I dreamed of going back. After working as a newspaper reporter and editor back in New Jersey for several years, I did return to Asia, to spend time talking and listening with young people who were Muslim. I wrote a book about my experiences, called Street of Storytellers—but no one would publish it. It was rejected about 75 times! In those years I learned how challenging it is to be a professional writer.

I kept at it, moving up to Vermont and earning my living by writing articles, newsletters, brochures, and things like that for all kinds of organizations. My son Bradley was born in 1987. His mom and I were divorced a few years later, but we stayed good friends. I'm very proud of my son, who's now a tall, strong, kind young man.

In 1992 I was asked to write a science-fiction novel for "Choose Your Own Adventure," a popular series of interactive fiction for young readers. I went on to write eight "Choose" books, and I learned a lot about writing stories that could keep young readers turning the pages.