Lincoln Peirce (pronounced “purse”) is a New York Times bestselling author and cartoonist/writer in Portland, Maine. He lives with his wife and two children, and gives lectures to students about cartoon creating. Peirce is the creator of the comic strip Big Nate, that debuted in 1991 and appears in 250 newspapers in the US and online daily at www.comics.com, and is featured on the website Poptropica, www.poptropica.com. His is the author of Big Nate: In a Class by Himself and Big Nate: Strikes Again, the first two books in the Big Nate series, and BIG NATE FROM THE TOP, a collection of the most hilarious BIG NATE comic strips (Andrews McMeel, Fall 2010 pub). Lincoln Peirce was born in Iowa, earned a B.A. from Colby College, a Master’s Degree in drawing/painting from Brooklyn College, studied at the Skowhegan School of Painting and Sculpture, and has also taught art Xavier High School in New York. A fan and collector of classic country music, Lincoln also hosts a radio show called South by Southwest, dedicated to honky tonk and western swing, from 8:30 to 10:30 every Monday morning on WMPG (a community radio station in Portland, Maine). A huge thrill of his was interviewing Willie Nelson on board his tour bus a few years ago. You can visit him online at www.bignatebooks.com, where Lincoln blogs twice a week.