John Clayton (www.johnclaytonbooks.com) is an independent journalist, essayist, and business writer based in Montana. John's major book, "The Cowboy Girl: The Life of Caroline Lockhart," is a narrative biography of the Montana/Wyoming novelist, journalist, and homesteader Caroline Lockhart. It was a finalist for the 2007 High Plains Book Award.

John is also the author of "Images of America: Red Lodge" and "Small Town Bound." His new project is a narrative history of the Teton Dam disaster, a 1976 flood that marked a significant change in environmental policy in the American West. It is currently scheduled for publication in late 2009 by Riverbend. John's articles appear regularly in the Montana Quarterly, Horizon Air, Montana Magazine, and dozens of regional newspapers through the Writers on the Range syndicate. You can learn more about John at his website, www.johnclaytonbooks.com.