Robert Paul "Tad" Williams (born 14 March 1957 in San Jose, California) is an American writer. He is the author of several fantasy and science fiction novels, including standalone novels Tailchaser's Song, The War of the Flowers, Caliban's Hour, and Child of an Ancient City, as well as longer multi-volume series, including the Memory, Sorrow, and Thorn series, the Otherland series, the Shadowmarch series, and the Bobby Dollar series.