Vernon Hinkle earned a B.a. from Ithaca College, NY and M.F.a. from Yale Drama School, 1961. Bradford College, Ma, Head of Drama Dept. until 1971. Eclectic writing career including magazine articles, speeches for corporate executives, etc. Novels include Music to Murder By and Murder after a Fashion.

Vern has directed in educational, community and professional theaters, high points being The Odd Couple and Golden Boy in Athens, Greece. One of the Greenwich one-acts was translated and broadcast twice from Athens over Greek national radio. His one-acts have been presented in New York City at Theater-Studio and, by Love Creek Productions, at the Harold Clurman Theater. A trilogy of one-acts featuring older actors was presented twice at the Westbeth Theater Center. Some other presentations have been in Florida (City Theater--Coral Gables, Theater With Your Coffee--Miami), New Jersey (Puttin' On The Ritz--Oaklyn), Pennsylvania (Gettysburg College), and Virginia (Mill Mountain Theater--Roanoke). His one-act She's Been Away was a finalist in THEATRE THREE's Sixth Annual Festival of One-Act Plays and won the Market House Theatre (Paducah,KY) competition.

Using the pen-name of H. V. Elkin he continued the John Cutler series oringally started by John Benteen (see author's entry for detail) with book three onwards, contributing four titles in all.