Linwood Barclay was born in the United States, but moved to Canada just before turning four years old. He received a B.A. in English from Trent University in Peterborough, Ontario. He worked for the Peterborough Examiner before joining the Toronto Star in 1981. He held such positions as assistant city editor, chief copy editor, news editor, and Life section editor, before becoming the paper's humor columnist in 1993. On June 28, 2008, he wrote his last column announcing his retirement from the Star. He is the author of both fiction and non-fiction works including Last Resort; Bad Move; Bad Guys; Lone Wolf; Stone Rain; No Time for Goodbye; Too Close to Home; Fear the Worst; and Never Look Away.