RAY VILLAREAL is the author of numerous young adult novels, including Don’t Call Me Hero and On the Other Side of the Bridge.

He writes in a hi/lo (high interest, low level reading) style aimed at “boys who don’t like to read.”

Ray graduated from Southern Methodist University with a BA in Education and a Master of Liberal Arts. He has over thirty years of experience working as a classroom teacher, an instructional reading/language arts coach, a student-teacher supervisor, and a university instructor.

With the writing program he developed, A Meat & Potatoes Approach to Teaching Writing, Ray has trained thousands of teachers on how to help their students improve their writing skills. He has also presented at the National Council of Teachers of English, the Arizona English Teachers Association, the Texas State Reading Association, the Texas Library Association, the Region I Librarians Conference, the Duval County Public Schools Literacy Expo, the Sanibel Leadership Conference, the Region 5 ESC Librarians Conference, and the TexTESOL Conference.

Additionally, Ray makes author visits at schools and book festivals across the country to promote reading and writing.

He lives and works in Dallas, Texas.