David James Parr

Writer David James Parr was born on a cul-de-sac in suburban Ohio and grew up on a farm in rural Pennsylvania, where he learned how to spell "cul-de-sac" and to mispronounce "rural", respectively. He is the author of the novels Violet Peaks and Beauty Marks, as well as the collection How To Survive Overwhelming Loss & Loneliness in 5 Easy Steps: Stories. His title story How To Survive Overwhelming Loss & Loneliness in 5 Easy Steps was chosen by Michael Cunningham (The Hours) as one of the Top 10 Stories in The Tennessee Williams Fiction contest, and is included in the anthology The Best Gay Stories of 2017. David's story Mata Hari was also selected in 2015 as one of the winners of The Tennessee Williams Fiction contest.

David's plays Slap & Tickle, Albee Damned and Pluto Is Listening have been produced all across the U.S. including Chicago, Dallas, New York, Provincetown and St. Petersburg, and his play Mimi at The 44th Parallel was a Top 10 Finalist in The Austin Film Festival's 2019 Playwriting Competition. His fiction has appeared in Saints + Sinners, Mosaic and Feminisms. His play Eleanor Rigby Is Waiting is being produced by Boundless Theater in April and May of 2022 at The Duplex Theater in NYC, and was made into a film which premiered at the 2019 Manhattan Film Festival, winning Best Independent Feature.