Penn Javdan
novelist, screenwriter, essayist
BIo
Originally from Iran, Penn Javdan was born in the grip of a war that killed over a million people.
he's completing a PhD in political philosophy at the University of Toronto.
coupling his personal experience as a refugee with his academic expertise in political violence, he writes atmospheric dramas about characters who overcome persecution in the face of big shadows-- conspiracies, political power, and dark technology.
recently, his short story was published in best small fictions, an international anthology where guest editors have included pulitzer prize, pen/faulkner, and pen/malamud award winners.
On the journalism side, his most recent work was an interview with Don Mckellar, co-showrunner of HBO’s THE SYMPATHIZER, where he discusses the nature of writing, working with Robert Downey Jr., and the Vietnam War.
currently, he's at work on a psychological thriller novel, and on teleplays about the nature of memory, and on crime in the crypto world .
penn is based in Toronto, but has lived all over: Tehran, Paris, New York City-- and maybe someday the moon.
RECENT Accolades
Best Small Fictions Alternating Current Press 2023
Winner Harvardwood Writers Competition (drama screenplay) 2022
Best Drama Runner-Up Script Pipeline First Look Project (screenplay) 2020