After leaving his ball and chain at the workplace, Yaroslav Barsukov goes on to write stories that deal with things he himself, thankfully, doesn’t have to deal with.

He's a software engineer and a connoisseur of strong alcoholic beverages—but also, surprisingly, a member of SFWA and Codex. His science fantasy novella Tower of Mud and Straw was shortlisted for the Nebula Award and received a Kirkus Star. His stories appeared in Galaxy’s Edge, Nature: Futures, and StarShipSofa, among others.

At some point in his life, he’s left one former empire only to settle in another.