Dean Wells is an educator, conference speaker, and author of retro-futurist science fiction that ranges from darkly humorous to deeply existential. His published works include the neo-steampunk novel The Clockwork Mechanicals (2026), along with short fiction featured in Queer Sci Fi, Beneath Ceaseless Skies, and the anthologies Rise (2023), Ink (2021), The Best of Beneath Ceaseless Skies (2013), and Ceaseless Steam (2012). His work has also appeared in Ideomancer, Quantum Muse, 10Flash Quarterly, ShadowKeep Magazine, and The Nocturnal Lyric. Dean is an active member of the Science Fiction and Fantasy Writers Association. He lives in the Pacific Northwest with his wife, a cat, mountain beavers, and a family of thoroughly indifferent raccoons.