Jonathan Janz

Jonathan Craig Shaeffer grew up in Colorado Springs, Colorado. 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, In Search Of..., the works of Edgar Allan Poe,^[1] as well as the audio version of The Signal-Man by Charles Dickens.^[2] During childhood, he was prone to sleepwalking, 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.^[3] He adopted the pseudonym of Jonathan Janz as a way of honoring his maternal grandparents, who helped to raise him.^[4]

In 2011, Janz published his debut novel, The Sorrows. The book received praise from author Brian Keene, who called it "the best horror novel of 2012."^[5] Keene would also describe Janz as "One of the best writers in modern horror to come along in the last decade."^[6]

Between 2011 and 2016, eight of Janz's novels were released by Samhain Publishing. After this, Janz signed a deal with Flame Tree Publishing, which published four more novels as well as reprintings of his earlier works.^[7] Other novels have been released through Sinister Grin Press, Earthling Publications, and Cemetery Dance.

His manager, Ryan Lewis, also works with Josh Malerman.^[8]

Janz cites multiple influences on his career, including Stephen King, Joe R. Lansdale, Brian Keene, Richard Matheson, among many others.^[9][10]

In March of 2023, Janz won the Wilburn-Thomas Award at the Scares That Care event in Williamsburg, Virginia.^[11] 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.

Jonathan Janz is the pen name for Craig Shaeffer.^[12] Janz teaches high school English, film literature, and creative writing at West Lafayette Junior-Senior High School.^[12][13] He currently resides in Indiana with his wife and three children.^[14]