L. Sprague de Camp

Lyon Sprague de Camp (1907–2000) was an American author of science fiction and fantasy books, non-fiction and biography. In a writing career spanning 60 years, he wrote over 100 books, including novels and notable works of non-fiction, including biographies of other important fantasy authors, notably Robert E. Howard, whose work de Camp successfully returned to the public eye decades after Howard's death. De Camp contributed popular works to the alternate history and time travel genres.

Harry Turtledove's interest in writing alternate history was sparked by de Camp's novel, Lest Darkness Fall. In 2005, Turtledove edited a volume of short stories called The Enchanter Completed, which celebrated de Camp's writing. Turtledove's own contribution was "The Haunted Bicuspid".