John grew up in the Kansas suburbs of Kansas City before attending the University of Kansas. He was working on his PhD in Psychology when his career took a dramatic change as he and his good friend Greg opened a business in Lawrence.

John became an entrepreneur, owning several businesses before entering the world of consulting. He was chugging along with his career when his life was interrupted and nearly terminated with Stage IV cancer. This life-altering event caused a reevaluation of priorities, which led to his pursuit of life-long ambition of becoming an author. His first book was Duty and Defiance, a young adult science fiction adventure.

John is happily married with two grown children, Matthew and Elizabeth. He and his wife, Holly, share their home with six cats and two dogs, all rescue.