About
J. D. Byeli (he/they) is a retired professor who writes genre-blending literary and speculative fiction. Lately, J. D. has been experimenting with invented history in all its forms: alternate history, adaptations and retellings, found narratives, fictional biography, and more. J. D. isn't online much except to research their next novel, but they post occasionally on Substack at https://jdbyeli.substack.com with publishing news, craft talks, and historical tidbits.
Featured Work
The Ballad of Boss Krenkel
For five hundred years, the demigod known as Kris Kringle has ruled the northland with an iron will, compelling the native Alephs to labor in his Work Shop. Now this mythic figure is dying, and it falls to the only surviving Aleph storyteller to recount the tale.
That tale is THE BALLAD OF BOSS KRENKEL, a centuries-spanning epic of longing and loss. Narrated by the Aleph lore-keeper Aezhiil Engaart, it is a saga of the power of dreams: the sated dreams of children, the shattered dreams of a people. And it is the story of one man’s struggle to preserve a stolen past, only to find that he must gather the courage to face an uncertain future.
Featuring two richly imagined worlds, a cast of larger-than-life characters, and a haunting mythology, THE BALLAD OF BOSS KRENKEL revives an ancient winter legend for modern times.
