Colin Asher is the author of the forthcoming The Midnight Special: The Secret Prison History of American Music, which will be released on June 30, 2026. He also wrote Never a Lovely so Real: The Life and Work of Nelson Algren, a literary biography written as a work of creative nonfiction. That book was celebrated in The New York Review of Books, the New Yorker, and the New York Times Book Review, among others. It was named “One of the Most Anticipated Books of 2019” by Apple Books, a “Book of the Week” by Publishers Weekly, and an “Editors’ Choice” selection by the New York Times Book Review. Both Publishers Weekly and Booklist gave it starred reviews. 

Born in Morgantown, WV, and raised in Brooklyn, NY, Colin dropped out of high school and spent a decade in California, working as a bike messenger, stocking shelves in a warehouse, and driving a truck. Eventually he started working in homeless services, then enrolled in the City College of San Francisco. Later, he received a Bachelors of Science from Northeastern University, and a Master of Arts from the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Despite the fact that he wrote a book about musicians, Colin has no musical talent – but that didn't stop him from spending one of the best years of his life playing in a band with Spencer Ackerman.

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Colin is represented by Ria Julien at the Francis Goldin Literary Agency.

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