Craig Cassell grew up in Steele City, Nebraska. On August 1, 1979, while swimming in the Little Blue River, he injured his spinal cord, resulting in paralysis from the shoulders down. Craig was 17 at the time.

Following rehabilitation at Craig Hospital in Engelwood, Colorado, Craig returned home to Steele City. With plenty of time on his hands, his parents encouraged him to try drawing with a pencil in his mouth. Devoting more time to drawing, he had a dentist construct a special mouthpiece to hold his pencils (see picture at right).

In 1986, Craig moved to Lincoln to attend the University of Nebraska. He graduated from the university in 1994 and still resides in Lincoln.  Although, not working in his field of study, he devotes most of his time to drawing. Craig does not sell any of his original work. Instead, he has his drawings reproduced into note cards and prints.