John Erickson was born in Midland, Texas in 1943. He graduated from the University of Texas in 1966 and studied for two years at Harvard Divinity School. He began to publish short stories while working full-time as a cowboy, farmhand, and ranch manager. In 1982, he started his own publishing company and called it Maverick Books. He is the author of the best-selling "Hank the Cowdog" series. Titles in the series include It's a Dog's Life, Let Sleeping Dogs Lie, The Case of the Kidnapped Collie, The Case of the Saddlehouse Robbery and The Fling. Hank the Cowdog series was the winner of an Audie for Outstanding Children's Series from the Audio Publisher's Association in 1993. He currently… resides in Texas.