James Elliott

I live in the Intermountain West in the United States. I love gardening, raising my children, hanging out with my wife, reading, writing, hiking, fishing, cooking, and many other things. I received by B.A. from Southern Utah University and my master's degree from the Department of Political Science at Utah State University.

I was born and raised in the cultural region sometimes called the Mormon Corridor (sometimes it is derisively called the Moridor). I grew up in a small dusty Nevada town. Our house was on a dead-end dirt road near the railroad tracks. It was the Mormon version of a Tom Sawyer and Huck Finn upbringing. I spent my summer days playing in the hills or catching catfish in the little muddy stream that flowed through town. This place, and my childhood experiences there, have inspired much of my writing.

I live in Utah now, right smack in the middle of it. If you try to identify the geographical center of Utah, and place your finger there, you're probably pointing at the town I live in. It's a pretty place, surrounded by mountains and filled with good people.