Jonathan Janz (born October 27, 1973) is the pen name of Craig Shaeffer, an American horror author of multiple novels.

Early life

Jonathan Craig Shaeffer grew up in

Colorado Springs, Colorado Colorado Springs is the most populous city in El Paso County, Colorado, United States, and its county seat. The city had a population of 478,961 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, a 15.02% increase since 2010 United States Census, 2 ...

. He was raised by his mother near a graveyard, where she would check out books on albums from the library. Early influences during this time include ''

The Twilight Zone ''The Twilight Zone'' is an American media franchise based on the anthology series, anthology television series created by Rod Serling in which characters find themselves dealing with often disturbing or unusual events, an experience described ...

'', '' In Search Of...'', the works of

Edgar Allan Poe Edgar Allan Poe (; January 19, 1809 – October 7, 1849) was an American writer, poet, editor, and literary critic who is best known for his poetry and short stories, particularly his tales involving mystery and the macabre. He is widely re ...

, as well as the audio version of ''

The Signal-Man "The Signal-Man" is a horror mystery story by Charles Dickens, first published as part of the '' Mugby Junction'' collection in the 1866 Christmas edition of ''All the Year Round''. The story is told from a fictional first-person perspective. ...

'' by

Charles Dickens Charles John Huffam Dickens (; 7 February 1812 – 9 June 1870) was an English novelist, journalist, short story writer and Social criticism, social critic. He created some of literature's best-known fictional characters, and is regarded by ...

. During childhood, he was prone to

sleepwalking Sleepwalking, also known as somnambulism or noctambulism, is a phenomenon of combined sleep and wakefulness. It is classified as a sleep disorder belonging to the parasomnia family. It occurs during the slow wave stage of sleep, in a state of ...

, and describes a time when he woke up in a pitch-black room of a friend's house, navigating his way through a maze of boxes because the family had just moved in. He adopted the pseudonym of Jonathan Janz as a way of honoring his maternal grandparents, who helped to raise him.

Career

In 2011, Janz published his debut novel, ''The Sorrows''. The book received praise from author

Brian Keene Brian Keene (born September 22, 1967) is an American author and podcaster, primarily known for his work in horror, dark fantasy, crime fiction, and comic books. He has won the 2014 World Horror Grandmaster Award and two Bram Stoker Awards. In ad ...

, who called it "the best horror novel of 2012." Keene would also describe Janz as "One of the best writers in modern horror to come along in the last decade." Between 2011 and 2016, eight of Janz's novels were released by Samhain Publishing. After this, Janz signed a deal with

Flame Tree Publishing Flame Tree Publishing is an independent publisher of books, calendars and other stationery items, based in Fulham, London, United Kingdom with an editorial office in New York. It focuses on art, music, lifestyle and fiction categories. Flame Tr ...

, which published four more novels as well as reprintings of his earlier works. Other novels have been released through Sinister Grin Press,

Earthling Publications Earthling Publications is an American small press run by Paul Miller and specialising in limited edition books in the horror and dark fantasy genres. In 2003, Earthling won the Horror Writers Association Specialty Press Award. Books published b ...

, and Cemetery Dance. His manager, Ryan Lewis, also works with Josh Malerman. Janz cites multiple influences on his career, including

Stephen King Stephen Edwin King (born September 21, 1947) is an American author. Dubbed the "King of Horror", he is widely known for his horror novels and has also explored other genres, among them Thriller (genre), suspense, crime fiction, crime, scienc ...

, Joe R. Lansdale,

Richard Matheson Richard Burton Matheson (February 20, 1926 – June 23, 2013) was an American author and screenwriter, primarily in the fantasy, horror, and science fiction genres. He is best known as the author of '' I Am Legend'', a 1954 science ficti ...

, among many others. In March of 2023, Janz won the Wilburn-Thomas Award at the Scares That Care event in

Williamsburg, Virginia Williamsburg is an Independent city (United States), independent city in Virginia, United States. It had a population of 15,425 at the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. Located on the Virginia Peninsula, Williamsburg is in the northern par ...

. This is a charity event organized by author Brian Keene and the award is given to authors who have helped other writers and their community.

Personal life

Jonathan Janz is the pen name for Craig Shaeffer. Janz teaches high school English, film literature, and creative writing at

West Lafayette Junior-Senior High School West Lafayette Junior-Senior High School (also informally known as West Side High School or simply West Side) is the only high school within the West Lafayette city limits, and is administered by the West Lafayette Community School Corporation. ...

. He currently resides in

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

with his wife and three children.

Novels

Collections

Short Fiction

Non-Fiction

References

External links

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GoodreadsSimon & Schuster
{{DEFAULTSORT:Janz, Jonathan 1973 births Living people 21st-century American writers 21st-century American short story writers American horror novelists American male novelists People from Colorado Springs, Colorado