Roger Zelazny is a three-time Nebula Award and six-time Hugo Award-winning American author who studied English literature and Elizabethan drama at Western Reserve University and Columbia University before channeling his extraordinary imagination—ranging from working for the U.S. Social Security Administration to practicing competitive judo and aikido—into writing highly poetic, fast-paced science fiction and fantasy novels that captivated global audiences with intricate mythological systems, psychological depth, and immortal, witty protagonists. His professional career launched during the 1960s American New Wave of science fiction, where he quickly became legendary for blending ancient folklore with gritty, hard-boiled detective narration, most famously realized in his massive, multi-dimensional masterpiece, The Chronicles of Amber.