G. T. Karber
Greg T. Karber is an American writer, best known as author of the Murdle series of murder mystery puzzle books and its accompanying website.
Early life and education
[edit]Karber was raised in Arkansas, the son of a judge and a civil rights attorney.[1][2] His maternal grandfather worked as an FBI agent in San Francisco in the 1960s.[3]
He earned a bachelor's degree in mathematics and English literature from the University of Arkansas, and an MFA from the USC School of Cinematic Arts.[2]
Career
[edit]After graduating with his MFA, Karber remained in Los Angeles and worked adapting novels into screenplays.[4] (As of 2013, he had written five unpublished novels.)[4] He also began making comedic YouTube videos.
In 2013, he came across some 2006 comments by Abercrombie & Fitch CEO Mike Jeffries: "In every school there are the cool and popular kids, and then there are the not-so-cool kids. Candidly, we go after the cool kids...A lot of people don’t belong [in our clothes], and they can’t belong. Are we exclusionary? Absolutely."[5][6] Karber made a video excoriating Jeffries' comments titled "Fitch the Homeless," in which he handed out Abercrombie & Fitch clothing to homeless people on Los Angeles' Skid Row. The video became a viral hit, earning national media coverage.[4][7][8][9] While many initially applauded the video, others saw it as "backwards-ass activism" and "as insensitive as the A&F chief he’s targeting."[4][7][8]
Karber is a computer programmer.[10] A mystery enthusiast, in 2022 he created Murdle, a web-based daily murder mystery game modeled on Wordle.[10] The first two paperback volumes of Murdle were published in 2023, with the third volume published in March 2024.[10][11]
In December 2023, Karber undertook a U.K. bookshop tour, and appeared on BBC Radio 4's Start the Week.[12] For Christmas 2023, Murdle was the bestselling book in the U.K.,[13][14] making Karber only the third non-British person to achieve that distinction, following Dan Brown and Michelle Obama.[3][15] In May of 2024, Murdle received the British Book Award for overall book of the year.[16]
In January 2025, Karber announced his next family of puzzles, Bordergrams, a "spy connection puzzle" set to debut in September 2025.[17][18]
Personal life
[edit]Karber lives in Los Angeles.[13]
References
[edit]- ^ Wogahn, Manon (19 September 2023). "Author Interview: G.T. Karber". Mystery Manon. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b "G.T Karber". profilebooks.com. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b Clover, Jack (23 December 2023). "Murdle: meet the puzzle author who's Christmas 2023's bestseller". The Sunday Times. Retrieved 24 December 2023.
- ^ a b c d Glazek, Christopher (19 June 2013). "The Story Behind "Fitch the Homeless"". The New Yorker. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ Denizet-Lewis, Benoit (24 January 2006). "The man behind Abercrombie & Fitch". Salon. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ Lutz, Ashley (May 3, 2013). "Abercrombie & Fitch Refuses To Make Clothes For Large Women". Business Insider. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ a b ""Fitch the Homeless" Is Backwards-Ass Activism". VICE. 16 May 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ a b Abad-Santos, Alexander (16 May 2013). "Which Is Worse: Tone-Deaf Abercrombie or the Viral 'Fitch the Homeless' Response?". The Atlantic. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ "This'll Show Abercrombie & Fitch". HuffPost. 14 May 2013. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ a b c Cogdill, Oline H. (October 8, 2023). "A complicated plot begins on a train". South Florida Sun-Sentinel. ProQuest 2873878414. Retrieved 2023-12-24 – via ProQuest.
- ^ "International: 30 bestselling books of the week for May 4". www.msn.com. Retrieved 2024-05-17.
- ^ Spanoudi, Melina (15 December 2023). "Karber completes UK bookshop tour". The Bookseller. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ a b Knight, Lucy (20 December 2023). "Murder mystery puzzle book Murdle tops UK Christmas bestseller chart". The Guardian. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ Sanderson, David (20 December 2023). "Murdle puzzle book tops Christmas bestsellers' chart". The Times. Retrieved 23 December 2023.
- ^ Tivnan, Tom (19 December 2023). "Murdle 'sleighs' the competition to grab the 2023 Christmas number one". The Bookseller. Retrieved 21 January 2024.
- ^ Rackham, Annabel (13 May 2024). "Children's author wins top British Book Award". BBC.com. Retrieved 31 May 2024.
- ^ Bordergrams. St. Martin's Griffin. Retrieved 3 February 2025.
- ^ Spanoudi, Melina (11 Dec 2024). "Souvenir Press scoops new puzzle series by Murdle creator G T Karber". The Bookseller. Retrieved 4 February 2025.