Author & Storyteller

Stories about time, mortality, and what it means to be human

Novelist and former journalist exploring identity, memory, and the moral weight of the choices we make.

Explore the Books

Books

Fiction and nonfiction exploring justice, memory, mortality, and the human condition.

The Death and Life of A.J. Mercer book cover
Literary Fiction

The Death and Life of A.J. Mercer

by Gary Goldhammer · Published January 2026

After surviving the electric chair, a legally dead murderer walks free, igniting a battle between those who see divine intervention and those determined to finish what the state couldn't. When Alabama straps A.J. Mercer into the electric chair for murder, the state believes it is delivering justice. But shortly after the execution, an impossible rhythm returns to A.J.'s heart — throwing the prison, legal system, and the world into chaos. The courts rule the state cannot execute him again, yet releasing him means admitting the impossible: a man who doesn't exist. A.J. may go free only if he remains "dead" on paper — a ghost stripped of any legal identity.

A provocative, emotionally charged novel about justice, mercy, and the thin line between redemption and revenge.

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The Soul of the Rose book cover
Literary Fiction

The Soul of the Rose

by Gary Goldhammer · Published May 2025

A timeless meditation on memory, grief, and the fragile beauty of human connection. Will Ambrose has outlived his wife, his son, and every life he's ever known. Grief made him immortal. Disconnection made him invisible. But now, the price of all that distance is coming due. Then Eddie walks into his diner — a teenager with a taste for French toast and an impossible memory. He remembers Will from a battlefield in France, from a classroom in Brooklyn, from multiple past lives. As the two strangers unravel the threads that bind them across time, Will must confront a truth more terrifying than immortality.

A genre-defying novel of quiet miracles and long-forgotten promises, told across centuries and continents.

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Zaria's Gate book cover
Speculative Fiction

Zaria's Gate

by Gary Goldhammer · Published 2017

Zaria had everything she ever wanted: a close family, a good job, and a safe place to live in what was left of the world. But all that changed with the Reaping Law. Now her parents are gone, and her sister has just been murdered. When a strange dream convinces Zaria that there might be more beyond her city's gate, she sets off to follow the visions and find her sister — alive, dead, or somewhere in between. All she has to do is become what she hates to save the sister she loves.

A novel exploring the limits of faith, the truths hidden in dreams, and the lengths we will go for love.

Reader Reviews

"Imaginative and thought provoking. Although this is not my go-to genre, I found that it was an effortless and enjoyable read."

— Amazon Reader

"The writing style is engaging, dark, compelling, emotional, personal and intelligent all at the same time. The concept is fresh."

— Amazon Reader

"Loved this book! Couldn't put it down."

— Amazon Reader

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Make Sure They Don't Die in the Parking Lot book cover
Nonfiction · A Pandemic Story

Make Sure They Don't Die in the Parking Lot

by Gary Goldhammer

A humorous and only somewhat harrowing look-back at the Pandemic Age through one person's story of spending New Year's Eve in a Covid medical ward.

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Beyond the Books

Blog posts, essays, and commentary on storytelling, technology, and the human experience.

Below the Fold Blog

Long-form essays on storytelling, culture, technology, and the moments that shape us — with new posts added regularly since 2012.

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A LinkedIn newsletter exploring what happens to human identity, consciousness, and agency as we merge our lives with artificial intelligence.

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Gary Goldhammer

Gary Goldhammer

Novelist, journalist, storyteller.

I'm a novelist and former journalist drawn to stories about time, mortality, memory, technology, and what it means to be human.

For more than three decades, I worked as a reporter, editor, and storyteller across newsrooms, brands, and emerging technologies. I began my career in journalism with The Associated Press, United Press International, and Scripps-Howard Newspapers, where I learned to observe closely, write with clarity, and navigate complex moral terrain. That foundation still shapes my work today.

My fiction and nonfiction explore moral systems under pressure — justice and mercy, identity and humanity, power and consequence. In my corporate life, I help organizations tell more human stories about technology and change. This work continues to influence my fiction, particularly as AI, automation, and digital identity reshape our lives.

I believe stories matter because they slow us down. They resist simplification. They remind us who we are and what we can still become.

University of Missouri School of Journalism, Class of 1989
Former reporter — The Associated Press, UPI, Scripps-Howard
Author of four published books
International speaker on storytelling and narrative strategy