Meet Duke Conklin
Collaboration
Duke Conklin is the collaborative pen name of authors Thomas Dukeman and Richard Fish. The name itself reflects the partnership behind the Green Nexus series: "Duke" comes from Tom's surname, Dukeman, while "Conklin" was the maiden name of Richard's mother. Together, the two writers combined their names—and their decades of creative experience—to create a shared identity for their storytelling.
Although their backgrounds are different, Tom and Richard share a lifelong fascination with science fiction, history, technology, and the power of storytelling. Between them, they have spent decades working in publishing, broadcasting, audio theater, media production, acting, and writing. Their collaboration brings together Tom's experience as a writer, producer, and creative professional with Richard's deep roots in audio drama, broadcasting, and speculative fiction.
The idea for Green Nexus grew out of a simple but intriguing question: What if the mysterious green fireballs reported around the world since 1948 were not natural phenomena at all, but evidence of an event that has not happened yet? That question led to a larger exploration of climate change, quantum technology, time travel, and humanity's struggle to overcome its own short-term thinking.
At its heart, Green Nexus is not simply a story about future technology. It is a story about choices. The series explores how scientific breakthroughs can be used for either progress or profit, how ordinary people can find themselves carrying extraordinary responsibilities, and whether humanity can change course before it is too late. Through adventure, mystery, and suspense, the books invite readers to consider one of the most important questions of our time: What kind of future are we creating, and do we still have time to change it?
Storytelling Through the Lens of Climate Consequence
Thomas Dukeman is a writer, producer, and creative professional whose career has spanned storytelling, media production, publishing, technology, and the sciences. Over the past 30 years, he has written and produced numerous music projects, radio programs, and television commercials, while also engineering and editing audiobooks for bestselling authors through his company, Dukeman Creative.
Born and raised in "The Region," the industrial northwest corner of Indiana, Tom grew up thinking Chicago was the center of the universe and never imagined that the rolling hills, forests, and scenic beauty of southern Indiana lay just a few hours away. Today, he divides his time between Sanibel Island, Florida, and Bloomington, Indiana, home of his alma mater, Indiana University, where much of the inspiration for the Green Nexus series was born.
Tom is the coauthor of the Green Nexus series with Richard Fish, a speculative science-fiction saga that blends climate change, quantum technology, time travel, and adventure against the backdrop of mysterious green fireballs reported around the world since 1948. The series reflects his lifelong fascination with science, history, exploration, and humanity's ability to shape its own future.
Throughout his career, Tom has worn many hats. He has worked in sales, pharmaceutical and reproductive-health communications, film and television production, event planning, web development, graphic design, data analysis, and learning management systems. He has also written extensively for the medical and pharmaceutical industries.
Outside of writing, Tom is an avid traveler, historic-property renovator, musician, and lifelong learner. He has performed in numerous rock bands, and even played American football in Europe. A self-described psuedo-polymath, he is endlessly curious and believes that every new skill, experience, and adventure eventually finds its way into a story.
Richard Fish is a native of New Jersey who lives in Bloomington, Indiana by choice. His reasons will be obvious if you've visited both places. He's a musician, but doesn't work at it. He's also an actor, who abandoned the stage for radio and brags that he hasn't memorized a script since [DATE RECUSED]. He considers himself the luckiest voice actor in America, having performed audio theatre coast to coast with many famous talents. As a devoted fan and longtime friend, Richard has collaborated and performed with members of The Firesign Theatre. (If you don't know that name, click on it and find out. You have some amazing discoveries ahead of you.)
Richard has been a science-fiction fan since he discovered Robert A. Heinlein's Red Planet at the age of 8 and became a lifelong Heinlein fan, with a lifelong regret that they never met. Richard has been a science-fiction fan since he discovered Robert A. Heinlein's Red Planet at the age of 8 and became a lifelong Heinlein fan, with a lifelong regret that they never met.
He has corresponded or worked with a number of well-known names in SF, including Spider Robinson, Ray Bradbury, Harlan Ellison, Marina Sirtis, Anthony Daniels, Claudia Christian and Patricia Tallman. He has more SF books on his shelves than he can count. Among his favorite authors are David Weber, E.E. “Doc” Smith, Randall Garrett and Keith Laumer.
When the best writer he ever met, Oscar-nominated and two-time Peabody Award Winner Norman Corwin, asked him to collaborate, Richard became a writer. “Norman thought I could write,” he says, “and I wasn't silly enough to argue with him, of all people, about that.” (If you don't know Corwin, the same thing applies. Take the time, you'll be amazed.)
As a broadcaster, since 1993 Richard has hosted a weekly radio program called The Firehouse Theatre, presenting audio theatre old and new, on Community radio station WFHB-FM. The show also streams live on the internet.
Richard has committed fan fiction by writing the 8th Harry Potter novel, which imagines the American wizarding world much better than J.K. Rowling did, and has been very successful without making any money, dammit. Click here to read: Harry Potter and The Americans.
Also, being a great fan of legendary comedian Jack Benny, Richard insisted on recording the audio versions of Green Nexus. You can hear a sample here. Click below: