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Shannon Gilligan is an author of interactive fiction and computer games. She graduated from Williams College in 1981 and spent a year abroad at Doshisha University in Kyoto, Japan. She has been extensively involved in the Choose Your Own Adventure series, having written five books in the main series and six others in the "Younger Readers" series. Her stepson, Ramsey Montgomery, wrote several books in the series as well and Shannon is married to the series co-founder, R. A. Montgomery. She also writes the History Mystery Series and Our Secret Gang series for children. Over 2 million copies of her books are in print in several languages including English, Italian, Spanish and Turkish. She also worked in mystery computer games for Activision such as The Elk Moon Murder and the Murder Mystery series for Creative Multimedia. She was the first person to be inducted into the Mystery Writers of America based on interactive works.

Some of her works include:

in the Choose Your Own Adventure books for younger readers series

• #14 The Search for Champ (November 1983)
• #15 The Three Wishes (April 1984)
• #21 Mona Is Missing (October 1984)
• #29 The Fairy Kidnap (August 1985)
• #33 Haunted Harbor (April 1986)
• #43 Home in Time for Christmas (December 1987)

in the Choose Your Own Adventure series

• #44 The Mystery of Ura Senke (May 1985)
• #53 The Case of the Silk King (February 1986, adapted by ABC for an hour-long prime-time special)
• #81 Terror in Australia (July 1988)
• #119 The Terrorist Trap (November 1991)
• #127 Showdown (August 1992)

mystery games

• The Elk Moon Murder
• Who Killed Brett Penace? The Environmental Surfer
• Who Killed Sam Rupert?
• Who Killed Elspeth Haskard?
• The Magic Death
• Who Killed Taylor French?
• Comic Creator, called the best software of 1995 by People magazine