Markus Heitz trained to be a teacher after studying history and German literature, then going on to an MA in History. He spent several years as a journalist, writing in his free time, before the runaway success of The Dwarves allowed him to give up the day job. His debut epic fantasy novel, Schatten über Ulldart (Shadows over Ulldart) was the first of many of his books to win the Deutscher Phantastik Preis (Germany's premier literary award for fantasy) in 2003. Since then he has frequently topped the bestseller charts, and his Number One bestselling Dwarves and Aelfar series have earned him a place among Germany's most successful fantasy authors. The DOORS series, where each book follows the adventurers as they choose a different door, have earned him a whole new audience as he plays with fantasy, thriller and mystery tropes to keep the reader always interested. He currently lives in Saarland, in Germany.