J.R. Dawson (she*/they) is a writer and educator with shorter works in places such as F&SF, The Year’s Best Science Fiction and Fantasy 2018, and Lightspeed. THE FIRST BRIGHT THING (Tor, 2023) is her first novel, and follows a queer magical circus through time and space. After living in Omaha and Chicago, Dawson now has found a home in Minnesota with her loving spouse and three goofy dogs. She splits her work between teaching at Drexel’s MFA program and assorted nonprofits that bring the power of the performing arts to children in the Midwest.

Agent Contact: Stevie Finegan