Havens, Jeff 1978-

PERSONAL:

Born 1978, in Urbana, IL; married; wife's name McCall. Education: Vanderbilt University, B.A. (summa cum laude), 2000. Hobbies and other interests: Writing, comedy, carpentry, drums, poker, pool, and the environment.

ADDRESSES:

Home—Nashville, TN. Agent—Stacey Olson, Olson Entertainment Group, 636 Oak St., South Milwaukee, WI 53172.

CAREER:

Taught high school for two years before becoming a writer and comedian; stand-up comic, 2004—.

MEMBER:

Phi Beta Kappa.

AWARDS, HONORS:

Starving Artist Award for Poetry, from Sensored, 2004.

WRITINGS:

Reality: The Novel, Academy Chicago Publishers (Chicago, IL), 2006.

Also author of Nine Easy Ways to Uncrapify Your Life! and unpublished works.

SIDELIGHTS:

Jeff Havens began his career as a high school English teacher before becoming a professional comedian. He performs nationwide at colleges and comedy clubs, spending anywhere from 150 to 200 days a year on the road. He also serves as a motivational speaker, and his lectures serve as the basis for his self-published work: Nine Easy Ways to Uncrapify Your Life! Havens writes fiction and poetry in addition to his motivational and comedic material. His Reality: The Novel is a satirical mystery set in the world of reality television. The book features Trent Tucker, a programmer who is intent on providing viewers with quality shows. Trent, however, faces strong opposition from his coworkers, who are only interested in exploitive programming that panders to the masses while bringing in money from advertisers. A reviewer for Publishers Weekly commented that "the characters are clichéd and the plot hackneyed," but concluded that "the clever surprise ending puts everything in perspective." A contributor to Kirkus Reviews found Havens's effort to be "a pleasant slow roast of Hollywood's studied inanity, complete with laugh-out-loud reality-show pitches."

BIOGRAPHICAL AND CRITICAL SOURCES:

PERIODICALS

Kirkus Reviews, September 1, 2006, review of Reality: The Novel, p. 866.

Publishers Weekly, August 28, 2006, review of Reality, p. 26.

ONLINE

Gig Masters Web site,http://www.gigmasters.com/ (February 25, 2007), Jeff Havens's listing.

Jeff Havens's Home Page,http://www.jeffhavens.com (February 25, 2007).

Jeff Havens's MySpace Page,http://www.myspace.com/jeffhavens (February 25, 2007).

Nashville Speakers Bureau Web site,http://www.nashspeakers.com/ (February 25, 2007), Jeff Havens's listing.