Dr Tom van Laer is Associate Professor of Narratology at the University of Sydney, having previously worked at British, French, and Dutch institutions. He is an expert on how stories change reality. His papers are published in leading and highly-regarded academic journals, including the Journal of Consumer Research, International Journal of Research in Marketing, Journal of Interactive Marketing, Journal of Management Information Systems, Journal of Service Research, European Journal of Marketing, Journal of Business Ethics, Journal of Business Research, et cetera. His research has been covered by the ABC, Nine Network, Network 10, SBS, the Age, the Australian, Financial Times, Guardian, Newsweek, Sydney Morning Herald, Wall Street Journal, and on national TV and radio stations in Austria, Germany, the Netherlands, and the UK, among other news outlets. Though he has won awards for his academic research, teaching, and media exposure, Tom counts winning his high school's story recital competition in 1995 as his most impressive accomplishment.