Justin Germain (aka Demitrios Lopez) is a native of Fort Worth, Texas, where he was raised by his mother and grandmother. After high school, he attended the University of North Texas where he majored in history and joined the Air Force ROTC. After college, Justin received a commission in the U.S Air Force where he served as a company grade officer for three years on active duty and four years as a reservist. Justin was an aircraft maintenance officer and he led two overseas deployments to both Curaçao and Uruguay. When he finished his active-duty service, Justin returned to school to pursue a Masters in ancient history. This was where his love of the Classics took hold and he began his study of ancient Greek and Latin. After completing his masters, Justin lived as an ex-pat for a year in Tena, Ecuador, where he taught English. Tena is situated in the Amazon Jungle and allowed for a very unique living experience. After he returned to the States, Justin began teaching Latin. He eventually returned to academia for a third time to pursue his PhD at Indiana University in Classics. But after two years in the program, Justin accepted a lecturer position at Southern Methodist University where he has been ever since, teaching Greek, Latin, and the history and culture of the Greco-Roman world. Justin has given numerous academic presentations on ancient Sparta and early Christianity, and his first article is coming out this August in the Works in Progress periodical. Justin is also publishing his fiction. The first book in his fantasy/scifi, crossover series, ΣI: Thumos Rising is releasing on July 15th. Justin’s study of the Classics, as well as his time in the military very much sowed the seeds for the Σ series. Justin is currently working on the second and third books, and has completed a short story set in the world of the series although it is separate from the narrative of the novels. Other influences on Justin’s fiction include He-Man and the Masters of the Universe, Robert E. Howard’s Conan mythos, the Cthulhu mythos of H.P. Lovecraft, and the historical fiction of Steven Pressfield. The main calling of Justin’s life is being a father to his five-year-old little girl. He lives with her, his dog, and her cat (Justin doesn’t like cats but his daughter loves them) in Dallas, Texas. When he’s not daddying or writing, Justin can be found trying to play piano, practicing Jiu Jitsu, meditating, and of course, reading. He enjoys Zack Snyder’s DC films (especially Man of Steel), anything Greek, and peanut butter. Read more about this authorRead less about this author