About John the Writer.

John began his writing career at the age of eight with a riff on "Waiter, there's a fly in my soup." Thereafter he took a much-needed sabbatical before studying theatre at Montclair State College, Chicago Dramatists Workshop, Northwestern University, and more recently, with Northwest Theatre Workshop. He is thrilled to have had his short one-act, Calling Names, published in Smith & Kraus’s Best Ten Minute Plays 2021. Other plays of his, which include Pas de Dieux, Candied, Manful!, All Together, Apostrophe and Rebuke, Monologue for Two Players, Street Corner Profit, and Expiration have been performed in New Jersey, Washington, Chicago, and Portland, Oregon where he currently is a member of the Dramatists Guild and Willamette Writers. John is an avid reader and has recently branched out into novel writing during the pandemic. His latest work, Henry Lee Has Dreams of Being Thoughtless will be available soon!

Why Words Come Into Play

While some may argue that a play doesn't really require words, well, I'm one of those who would respectfully disagree. I love words and I love how words are put together and how words are brought to life on stage, not merely because they are spoken, but how they are spoken, and what is happening when they are spoken. Words lie to us and simultaneously reveal deeper truths about the human condition. They can enslave and manipulate and they can free the mind and heart. They can be funny things.

My works won't spoon-feed messages and they won't give you a monster to rail against. They ask you to consider the complexities of life, to care about the people in it, and it is hoped, to find the humor inherent in all of it.

The Rest

I have another career as many artists do to pay the bills. In this case, it is not merely a means to an end, but an alternate love and a different kind of artistry: acupuncture and Chinese herbalism. Not only that, but I have the fortune to be a part of an awesome Chinese medicine cooperative in Northeast Portland, called The Vital Compass. You can read about it here.

The fella I'm with to the right here is my husband, best friend, and award-winning story writer, Rick Austin. We’ve been together for nearly 30 years now and have been through a lot. I wouldn't have it any other way.