Born in Dublin in 1973, Oisín McGann spent his childhood there and in Drogheda, County Louth. Art college ruined any chance he had of getting a real job, so when he left in 1992, he set himself up as a freelance illustrator. In 1998 he moved to London, and through no fault of his own he ended up working in advertising as an art director and copy writer. After three and a half years he began to fear for his immortal soul. He returned to Ireland in the summer of 2002 much as he had left it - with no job, no home and some meagre savings. Ever the optimist, he now works once more as an illustrator and mercenary artist by day and escapist writer by night.