Al Riske (edit name/settings)

Al Riske is the author of the novel Sabrina’s Window (due out in February) and the story collection Precarious. His stories have also appeared in Hobart, Switchback, Pindeldyboz, Word Riot, Blue Mesa Review, 34th Parallel, and the Beloit Fiction Journal. He has worked as a newspaper reporter, magazine editor, copywriter, and ghostwriter. Born and raised in the Pacific Northwest, he now lives in California with his wife, Joanne, and their dog, Bodie.

Honors: Winner of the Blue Mesa Review Fiction Contest in 2008 for the short story “Pray for Rain.”

Nominated for the 2010 Story Prize, an annual award for short story collections, for Precarious.

Influences: John Knowles, Earnest Hemingway, Philip Roth, Truman Capote, Norman Mailer, Joan Didion, Elizabeth Tallent, Milan Kundera, Catherine Ryan Hyde, Frederick Barthelme.