Jack Jensen

Chicago born and bred in the ‘50’s, Jack Jensen has labored hard since the age of 10 as a first a paperboy, then landscaper, carpenter, logger, cowhand, journalist, merchant seaman, architect, mason, green developer, consultant, curriculum writer, sculptor, trainer, and novelist, and continues to labor away quite happily six days a week, in many of the above roles, all of which he greatly enjoys.

In 2007 he founded a non-profit which builds green housing locally and internationally using volunteers, and without using any source of subsidy funding—Community Building Works! Inc, which is doing nicely. Working with high school and college-age volunteers will keep you lively; working overseas will keep you humble. In all these various roles, he has tried to be always be excellent, and honest. Once in a while he gets fired from some job for insubordination, but never for lack of attention to detail, energy, or drive. By far novels have proven the hardest of all his career challenges; he’s written two, plus a book of short stories, and is constantly hammering away at a third. But writing is easy compared to raising daughters, and his turned out the best—Jamie and Jordan. He also married quite well—the incomparable Mica—talented, patient, fun-loving, AND beautiful.

His literary influences are as eclectic as his work history: James Agee, Mike Royko, Studs Terkel, Hunter Thompson, Wild Bill Faulkner, Maya Angelou, and Elmore Leonard’s books weigh down his shelves, and he also loves him some Dave Barry and Carl Hiassen. He also credits Dan McCall and Brad Edmondson with being enormous influences on his work. He lives in an idyllic part of Upstate New York, the exact location of which he is hesitant to divulge lest other people move there and ruin it.

His artist’s statement is the same as his journalist’s statement: learn the truth, tell it well. But keep it short.