BRENT HARTINGER is an author, teacher, playwright, and screenwriter. Geography Club, the book in which Russel Middlebrook first appears (as a teenager), is also a successful stage play and a feature film co-starring Scott Bakula.In 1990, Brent helped found one of the world's first gay teen support groups, in his hometown of Tacoma, Washington. In 2005, he co-founded the entertainment website AfterElton.com, which was sold to MTV/Viacom in 2006. He now lives in Seattle with his husband, Michael Jensen. Read more by and about Brent, or contact him at brenthartinger.com.