Look and Listen

Biography

From a very early age, John knew he was destined to be a writer. He penned his first "novel" in the third grade. The story, written in orange marker, was about the adventures of three hamsters and won him a school-wide award in Creative Writing. Since then, he has studied creative writing in New York City at Gotham Writers' Workshop, and in Washington, DC at The Writer's Center and The American University. Both a recovering Nihilist and a recovering Existentialist, John is inspired more than anything by the mystery of life. He believes that no matter how hard we try, we humans will never be able to completely comprehend everything about this strange three dimensional world we live in. He believes that only by accepting our limitations and quieting our discursive mind can we then open ourselves up to the subtle ways the Universe communicates with us. If he had to summarize his view of the meaning of life, he would borrow the last few lines from a poem of one of his characters (Katya) which read: "Love is the beginning, and Love is the end, and here in the middle is where we must mend."

Inspiration

John has long had a strong affinity for all things Russian. His favorite writers are Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, and Turgenev, and his favorite composers are Tchaikovsky and Shostakovich. In college, he studied the Russian language and also received an 'Emphasis' in Russian Studies. While doing his post-graduate studies, John met and fell in love with an enchanting Russian woman whom he would later marry. Since then, John has travelled several times with her to Ukraine and Russia. He has been to Kiev, Moscow, Crimea, and of course Leningrad (now known as Saint Petersburg).