John Schreiber (writer)

John Schreiber (born 1954) is an American author, teacher, and theater director. He has taught for over 40 years in southern Minnesota, was a finalist for Minnesota Teacher of the Year in 2003, and has directed over 140 plays and musicals.[1] In 2012, he was Minnesota's first Theater Educator of the Year.[2]

For the baseball player, see John Schreiber (baseball).

Biography

As an author, Schreiber is best known as the writer of the Ironwood County Chronicles, a series of novels that take place in southern Minnesota. Schreiber's Chronicles consist of: Hillcrest Journal (published 2002), Passing Through Paradise (2003 first edition), Life on the Fly (2005), and Catching the Stream (2015). The short story collection Tales from 2 A.M. (2004) also includes some stories based in the fictional Ironwood County.

The fictional Ironwood County is located between Steele County, Minnesota, Dodge County, Minnesota, and Olmsted County. Unlike other novels based in small towns, the Ironwood County series portrays small towns as realistic microcosms of humanity, not as idyllic, romantic locales nor as backwater societies.[3]

In 2007, Schreiber published Heartstone, an epic fantasy that employs a fast-paced, cinematic writing style "with no transitions between scenes."[4] The fantasy revolves around Derrick, a lame young man who discovers he has the power to unlock unlimited power through heartstone, and his struggle to maintain his "true beliefs."[4]

In the fall of 2008, a second edition of Passing Through Paradise was released in both hardcover and paperback. This edition is recognizable by its red cover with a childlike crayon sketch. The second edition includes discussion questions for book clubs as well as a map of Paradise.[5] The first edition has a yellow cover with a photograph of a railroad trestle in Kenyon, Minnesota.

He has also written two short plays, "I AM: the Jesus Incident" (included in Tales from 2 A.M.), a religious play that has been performed by numerous churches throughout the world,[6] and "I Never Saw a Moor", a one-act play that explores the pain and alienation felt by those who suffer from epilepsy.

The sequel to Heartstone entitled Heartstone: Under the Shadow was published in August, 2011 in both paperback and ebook formats. It centers around Derrick, ten years after the events recounted in Heartstone. His wife is kidnapped by the Shadow Empire and he must design a plan to rescue her without plunging his country into war.

In 2014 he released three shorter ebooks: "Galactic Pariah: the Legend of Methuselah Brown," "Me and Josh and Gideon," and "The New Jerusalem Poems and I AM: the Jesus Incident."[7]

In 2015, Schreiber published the sequel to Life on the Fly entitled Catching the Stream that continues the adventures of protagonist Matthew Blake but also involves many of the supporting characters from the previous Ironwood County novels.[8]

In 2016, Schreiber published several ebooks: The New Jerusalem Poems that includes the play 'I AM: the Jesus Incident'; his thesis The Shape of the Hero in Modern Fantasy; and began the serial The Irregulars. The ongoing volumes grow into a mix of metafiction and superheroes.

Bibliography

Ironwood County novels
  • Hillcrest Journal
  • Passing Through Paradise
  • Life on the Fly
  • Catching the Stream
  • Kindle Vella: On the Corner of Hope and Hell: My Secret Journal Dedicated to my (Dumb) Brother Who Killed Himself by Anonymous

Fantasy
  • Heartstone
  • Heartstone: Under the Shadow
  • Tales from 2 A.M.

Kindle books
  • Galactic Pariah: the Legend of Methuselah Brown
  • The Shape of the Hero in Modern Epic Fantasy
  • New Jerusalem Poems and 'I AM: the Jesus Incident
  • Monsters in Paradise
  • Me and Josh and Gideon
  • Master of Gravity (Irregulars Vol. 1)
  • Epileptic Dreamer (Irregulars Vol. 2)
  • Burned (Irregulars Vol. 3)
  • Irregulars: The Third Body (Irregulars Vol. 4)
  • Irregulars: Family (Irregulars Vol. 5)
  • Irregulars: Curtain Call (Irregulars Vol. 6)

References
  1. Schuenke, Bryn. "Local Author John Schreiber Publishes." Kenyon Leader. Wednesday, Nov. 12, 2003.
  2. Hanson, Ruth, "Schreiber Named Minnesota Theater Educator of the Year," Star Herald, Vol. 143, Number 39, Wednesday, Sept. 26, 2012
  3. "Make Your Next Stop Ironwood County". Fictitious travel brochure by Author. 2006.
  4. Campbell, Terry. "West Concord Author Releases New Novel." News-Enterprise. Wednesday, Nov 21, 2007.
  5. Author webpage:http://frontiernet.net/~jamsch/Site/Paradise.html
  6. Fate, Kay. "I Am: The Jesus Incident". Owatonna Peoples Press. April 2004.
  7. "Welcome to Ironwood County ! (Featuring books by John Schreiber)".
  8. Rochester Post-Bulletin, Monday 8/24/2015
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