Jack A. Nelson

A retired Brigham Young University communications professor and former journalist, Jack A. Nelson built his writing around real events, place, and character. BYU Magazine notes that he earned a BA from BYU in 1954 and later published Flashes in the Night: The Sinking of the Estonia, a nonfiction account of the 1994 ferry disaster in the Baltic Sea.

According to BYU Magazine, Nelson traveled with his wife to Sweden and Estonia to research the book, interviewing survivors and others connected to the tragedy. The same article says the book earned third place in the nonfiction category of the 2011 International Book Awards, reflecting the care he brought to reporting and storytelling.

His Amazon author page describes him as the son of a Norwegian immigrant who grew up in Bellflower, Southern California, and says he was long drawn to real mysteries and dramatic historical events. That mix of journalistic curiosity and love of story also shaped his fiction, including To Die in Kanab, a mystery tied to the landscapes and legends of southern Utah.