Stumps and Smokes: The stories are true. Down in the bush, dark things are at play. Thomas Alan was born and raised in the dry, Australian heat. He graduated the University of Queensland with a major in creative writing and a graduation gown ruined by pit stains. His writing looks at Australian adolescence and magnifies the condition of a society that never truly comes-of-age. When he's not outside working as a carpenter, he's inside basking in the air-conditioning, hopefully writing, working to get out of this damn heat.