After leaving his ball and chain at the workplace, Yaroslav Barsukov goes on to write stories that deal with things he himself, thankfully doesn’t have to deal with.  He’s a software engineer and a connoisseur of strong alcoholic beverages – but also, surprisingly, a member of SFWA and Codex. His science fantasy novella Tower of Mud and Straw was shortlisted for the Nebula Award and received a Kirkus Star. His stories Appeared in Galaxies Edge, Nature: Futures, and StarShipSofa, among others. At some point in his life he’s left one former empire only to settle in another