About the Author

Brad C Cerullo is a writer and critic whose work explores the intersection of mythology, identity, and popular culture, with a particular focus on superhero narratives and modern genre storytelling. He is drawn to stories that endure not because of spectacle or scale, but because they reveal something essential about the people who carry them. His writing examines how masks—literal and symbolic—shape character, meaning, and moral choice, and why the humanity beneath those masks matters.

Brad holds a Bachelor of Fine Arts from Emerson College, where he studied Writing, Literature, and Publishing, with minors in Film and Print Journalism. That interdisciplinary background informs his approach to criticism and long-form analysis, allowing him to move fluidly between literary interpretation, cinematic language, and cultural history. He approaches superheroes not merely as entertainment or intellectual property, but as modern myth—stories that reflect our fears, hopes, contradictions, and evolving values.

His work is deeply influenced by J. R. R. Tolkien, whose understanding of myth, subcreation, and moral clarity continues to shape Brad’s thinking about fantasy and heroism. He is particularly interested in Tolkien’s belief that stories endure when they are rooted in compassion, humility, and an understanding of loss. That lens extends beyond Middle-earth into his engagement with superhero comics, where he sees clear parallels between ancient mythic structures and modern caped figures.

Brad’s formative influences are wide-ranging and unapologetically personal. He grew up immersed in genre storytelling—reading Terry Brooks, watching classic television like ALF, and discovering superheroes through characters such as Green Lantern, Superman, and Batman. These stories were not simply escapism; they were entry points into larger questions about identity, responsibility, and what it means to try to do the right thing in an imperfect world. Many of the themes explored in his writing trace directly back to those early encounters with story.

Although his published work to date is nonfiction and criticism, Brad is also a fiction writer. His creative projects explore similar themes—hidden selves, legacy, moral choice, and the cost of heroism—often through fantastical or speculative frameworks. While his fiction remains unpublished, it continues to inform his analytical work, grounding theory in an active engagement with storytelling craft.

Brad grew up in Tewksbury, Massachusetts, in a family deeply connected to small business and community life. That background shaped his understanding of work, responsibility, and continuity—ideas that later became central to his interest in legacy within superhero narratives. He remains closely tied to those roots and brings that perspective to his writing, particularly when examining how long-running characters evolve—or fail to—across generations.

He currently lives in southern New Hampshire with his wife, Stephanie, whose support and collaboration have been instrumental in his creative work, and his two children, who inspire him every day. Family life, partnership, and the daily realities of responsibility continue to reinforce his belief that the most meaningful stories—whether mythic or mundane—are grounded in human connection.

The Hero Behind the Mask is his first book-length work. It reflects years of reading, reflection, and engagement with the superhero genre as both a lifelong reader and a careful critic. Brad sees this book not as a final word, but as part of an ongoing conversation about why these stories matter—and how they can continue to matter, if we remember the people behind the masks.