Born and raised in Dayton, Ohio, Carl R. Merritt is the principal author and owner of the Abe's Tomb. Although Carl has only written for his web site, horror magazines, and his hometown newspaper, his first attempt at a science fiction novel, Fleet of Angels, took first place in the First Novel Writing Competition hosted by Gardenia Press in the Fall of 2000.

Carl, a factory worker at General Motors, surprised his fellow employees with this achievement. Everyone was shocked that a "mere" blue collar worker could produce a work of fiction which was so well written that it could win such an award. Carl told them, "Just because you work in a factory doesn't mean you can't improve yourself. Everyone has the capability to reach their goals. Just know what you want to do with your life, reason out the best way to proceed, and don't stop until you're a winner. You've only lost when you quit trying."

Biography provided by the author