Abdul-Razak Zachariah grew up in West Haven, Connecticut, and based the story’s apartment complex and community on his own. A graduate of Yale College, he was deeply involved in diversity and inclusion advocacy while there, and he received the Mellon Mays Research Fellowship and the Nakanishi Prize. He is currently working in college student recruitment and community partnerships at LEAP, a New Haven literacy organization. The Night Is Yours is his first book.