Authors Not-So-Anonymous Week #10

Welcome everyone to the tenth Authors Not-So-Anonymous weekly meeting!! This weekly series is about authors from Twitter and Facebook!  This week, I would like to introduce John Lawson into Authors Not-So-Anonymous!

John Lawson isn't a "traditional" author.  He is both self-published and published by his publishing company.  He hasn't picked just one genre to write in, but writes in them all.  "I guess I just consider my self a storyteller, or better yet a translator for the characters who deny me rest until I've committed them to paper."  John is most widely known for his poetry and "bizarro" writing.  "Bizarro is a new literary movement that got its name form a massive discussion on my blog back in, what, 2005 I suppose.   I'm not the "creator" of bizarro, just one of a handful who influenced its development way back in the beginning."

Despite battling learning disabilities when he was young, John has been writing since he learned how.  During school he was in the media/communication arts magnet program, causing him to spend years with an increased level of reading and writing.  During his twenties, John was an audio engineer who ran a small recording studio and wrote screenplays in-between secessions.  "My first short story took second place in the Fiction International Emerging Writers competition, was nominated for the Pushcart Prize, got published in a prestigious literary journal, and earned me a huge chunk of money.  It was just like, 'Wow! Being an author is easy!' Afterwards I spent years struggling to be published... I cannot stop the composition occurring within my skull.  I can only do my best to stay out of its way."

John's biggest writing influences have come from his fellow Authors at Raw Dog Screaming Press.  "I'm a very, very lucky person to not only do the things I love on a regular basis, but also work with the people I admire in my industry."  His favorite authors are Chuck Palahniuk, Bret Easton Ellis, and Sylvia Plath.

John's books can be found on his site here.  He has two books coming out within the next few months - a novella and a collection of poetry (SuiPsalms) - and several more books due out within the next year.  John can be found on Twitter (@bizarroguy) and his website here.

Have an author to nominate?  Send me a message via Twitter or leave a comment with the author(s) name and Twitter name.  I'd love to add new members!  Happy Reading!