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Dan O'Brien

@bydanobrien.bsky.social
1.5K followers 623 following 388 posts

Plays, poems, prose danobrien.org

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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
We, a group of established writers who have had the privilege of teaching in the Sewanee Writers’ Conference over the past six years, are writing to express our outrage and dismay at the unexpected departure of the Conference Director, Leah Stewart. >>>Read the full letter by following the link.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 24/09/2026
We, a group of established writers who have had the privilege of teaching in the Sewanee Writers’ Conference over the past six years, are writing to express our outrage and dismay at the unexpected departure of the Conference Director, Leah Stewart. >>>Read the full letter by following the link.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 18/09/2026
My upcoming essay collection from @acrebooks.bsky.social has a page (cover coming soon). Available even to pre-order now, if you like to get in on a good thing early 🙏🏻
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Adam Sternbergh @sternbergh.bsky.social · 16/09/2026
RIP Annie Dillard, one of the great, if not the greatest, non-fiction stylists of our time www.nytimes.com/2026/09/16/b...
nytimes.com
Annie Dillard, Meditative Author of ‘Pilgrim at Tinker Creek,’ Dies at 81
Her Thoreau-like account of journeys in the woods, published when she was 28, was the first of many ruminations on life and nature, good and evil.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 15/09/2026
Somehow this book of prose poems (& some of my photographs) is three years old today. Thank you to @acrebooks.bsky.social and to the readers 🙏🏻
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Grateful to @sternbergh.bsky.social & NY Times Opinion for recirculating today my essay about the Palisades Fire and the far-reaching health effects of 9/11. Sadly relevant again in light of recent disclosures about toxic air from WTC dust, smoke, and ash www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
Opinion | What 9/11, Cancer and the Palisades Fire Taught Me (Gift Article)
We’ll never know with certainty that carcinogens in the smoke, dust and ash from the World Trade Center caused my wife’s cancer and my own.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
Grateful to @sternbergh.bsky.social & NY Times Opinion for recirculating today my essay about the Palisades Fire and the far-reaching health effects of 9/11. Sadly relevant again in light of recent disclosures about toxic air from WTC dust, smoke, and ash www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
Opinion | What 9/11, Cancer and the Palisades Fire Taught Me (Gift Article)
We’ll never know with certainty that carcinogens in the smoke, dust and ash from the World Trade Center caused my wife’s cancer and my own.
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Adam Sternbergh @sternbergh.bsky.social · 11/09/2026
posting a gift link to this excellent essay by Dan O'Brien about watching his world burn, twice: Once in NYC on 9/11 and once in the Palisades Fire in LA. Both O'Brien and his wife developed cancer from toxic air—which seems timely given the revelations of this week www.nytimes.com/interactive/...
nytimes.com
Opinion | What 9/11, Cancer and the Palisades Fire Taught Me (Published 2025)
We’ll never know with certainty that carcinogens in the smoke, dust and ash from the World Trade Center caused my wife’s cancer and my own.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Manuscript delivered. ‘Ash: Catastrophe, Performance, & the Craft’ (essays) publishing in May with @acrebooks.bsky.social ✨
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 08/09/2026
Manuscript delivered. ‘Ash: Catastrophe, Performance, & the Craft’ (essays) publishing in May with @acrebooks.bsky.social ✨
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DavidGrimm @davidgrimm.bsky.social · 04/09/2026
Still a few seats open for my Playwriting class at HB Studios. 10 Sundays, starting 20 Sept. hbstudio.coursestorm.com/category/pla...
hbstudio.coursestorm.com
Playwriting | HB Studio
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Happy to share this news: I’ve been named to the Fulbright Specialist Roster for the next three years. I’ll be available to collaborate with universities and arts organizations around the world, particularly in teaching creative writing with a focus on personal and geopolitical trauma.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 18/08/2026
Happy to share this news: I’ve been named to the Fulbright Specialist Roster for the next three years. I’ll be available to collaborate with universities and arts organizations around the world, particularly in teaching creative writing with a focus on personal and geopolitical trauma.
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Irish Literary Times @irishlittimes.bsky.social · 07/08/2026
It's Friday. The weekend is just about upon us.
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The Fiddlehead @fiddlehd.bsky.social · 27/07/2026
Check this out if you are interested in the history of our Journal!
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Howard Sherman @hesherman.bsky.social · 24/07/2026
Like so many arts writers, I've been the victim of downsizing. But I'll continue to write and you can find my work here, for free. Maybe I'll be a respite from all the political Substacks. Thanks!
hesherman1.substack.com
Yes, Yet Another Substack. But On The Arts.
15 years after launching my website, I have adopted the platform de jour.
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Acre Books @acrebooks.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
Many thanks to the Midwest Independent Publishers Association for awarding Acre Books "Best Small Press" for 2026! We are grateful for this recognition! 🎉🎉🎉 #publishers #booksky
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 30/06/2026
🙏🏻 @filmquarterly.bsky.social @textplusimage.bsky.social online.ucpress.edu/fq/issue/79/4
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Many thanks to David Weldon Hudson @ the Criterion Current for the kind words about my essay on EEPHUS in @filmquarterly.bsky.social 🙏🏻 @textplusimage.bsky.social www.criterion.com/current/post...
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 28/06/2026
Many thanks to David Weldon Hudson @ the Criterion Current for the kind words about my essay on EEPHUS in @filmquarterly.bsky.social 🙏🏻 @textplusimage.bsky.social www.criterion.com/current/post...
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Film Quarterly @filmquarterly.bsky.social · 26/06/2026
Many thanks to @dwhdaily.bsky.social at Criterion Current for this note on FQ's new issue: "Playwright and poet @bydanobrien.bsky.social has a beautiful piece in the new Film Quarterly on Carson Lund’s Eephus (2024), 'a perfect little film'..."
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Acre Books @acrebooks.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
We are always delighted to publish new books by Acre author @bydanobrien.bsky.social! 🎉🎉🎉 #booksky
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Acre Books @acrebooks.bsky.social · 15/06/2026
Delighted to see Acre twice represented on the finalist list for the Julie Suk Award for Best book of #poetry! Congrats to @marthasilano.bsky.social (TERMINAL SURREAL) and CD Eskilson (SCREAM / QUEEN)! 🎉🎉🎉 #booksky jacarpress.com/suk-award/
jacarpress.com
Julie Suk Award - Poetry Book Contest - Jacar Press
Enter the Julie Suk Award Competition for the best poetry book published by a small, literary press in 2024. Call Jacar Press.
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Chise @sailorrooscout.bsky.social · 21/06/2026
Vaccines save lives. This is the FIRST time that ZERO cervical-cancer deaths have been recorded for this age group, and it’s thanks to the introduction of a vaccine against the human papillomavirus (HPV). Yes, you read that correctly. ZERO.
ctvnews.ca
Cervical cancer deaths for vaccinated young women fall to zero in England: study
The HPV vaccine for cervical cancer has reduced the risk of dying from the disease before the age of 30 in England to almost zero, the first study of its kind showed Thursday.
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Acre Books @acrebooks.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
With the coming retirement of our extraordinary publisher / editor Nicola Mason, the Acre masthead will soon enter a new era! Stay tuned for details. In the meantime, our sister publication @cincinnatireview.bsky.social is in need of a new managing editor! Details below. #booksky 🖊️
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Film Quarterly @filmquarterly.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
Copies of FQ’s Summer Issue are landing in subscribers’ mailboxes and Inboxes (thanks to @ucpress.bsky.social), Cover: My Father’s Shadow (Akinola Davies Jr.). Inside: Alexandra Juhasz’s Please Hold, Horror in the High Desert, Marie Epstein, The Boys/Gen V, interview w/ J. Hoberman & other gems!
Cover of Film Quarterly, Summer 2026. Cover Image: My Father’s Shadow (Akinola Davies Jr.).
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Adam Sternbergh @sternbergh.bsky.social · 13/06/2026
imagine drawing a crowd in the middle of the night to watch them remove your name from a building
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 12/06/2026
In print 🙏🏻 @filmquarterly.bsky.social @textplusimage.bsky.social
First page of essay by Dan O’Brien in current issue of Film Quarterly Cover of current issue of Film Quarterly
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Lisa Ampleman @lisaampleman.bsky.social · 11/06/2026
Update: I'm going to move over to @acrebooks.bsky.social full-time starting in Aug. Sarah Haak and I will be co-executive editors there as Nicola Mason moves into a consulting role after 10 ears founding and running the press. So we're seeking a new managing ed at @cincinnatireview.bsky.social!
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
‘The Body of an American’ announced for early next year at LAC Lugano in Switzerland, before touring to the National Theaters of Rome, Naples, and Genoa. Very grateful to Director Jacopo Gassmann, the artistic team he’s assembled, and the co-producing theaters for their care and artistry.
Photo of Jacopo Gassman director of The Body of an American by Dan O’Brien premiering at LAC Lugano early 2027 before tour of National Theaters of Rome, Naples, and Genoa
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 10/06/2026
‘The Body of an American’ announced for early next year at LAC Lugano in Switzerland, before touring to the National Theaters of Rome, Naples, and Genoa. Very grateful to Director Jacopo Gassmann, the artistic team he’s assembled, and the co-producing theaters for their care and artistry.
Photo of Jacopo Gassman director of The Body of an American by Dan O’Brien premiering at LAC Lugano early 2027 before tour of National Theaters of Rome, Naples, and Genoa
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Brian Trapp @btrapperkeeper.bsky.social · 01/06/2026
So excited that this magazine is back in the world. Read it!
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Northwest Review @northwestreview.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Check out our recent interviews and reviews before our relaunch issue goes live on Monday! nwreview.org
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Very pleased to share that I have a new book coming out with @acrebooks.bsky.social in May 2027. The title is “Ash,” and it’s a collection of personal essays about, well, as the subtitle says, “catastrophe, performance, and the craft.” I can’t wait to collaborate with everyone at Acre again.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 28/05/2026
Very pleased to share that I have a new book coming out with @acrebooks.bsky.social in May 2027. The title is “Ash,” and it’s a collection of personal essays about, well, as the subtitle says, “catastrophe, performance, and the craft.” I can’t wait to collaborate with everyone at Acre again.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Imagine dialogue co-written by Samuel Beckett & Yogi Berra. The situation—amateur players at the final game before their stadium is torn down—had a lot to say to this midcareer playwright. Thanks to editor @textplusimage.bsky.social, and to @csvich.bsky.social for tipping me off to see this film.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 27/05/2026
Imagine dialogue co-written by Samuel Beckett & Yogi Berra. The situation—amateur players at the final game before their stadium is torn down—had a lot to say to this midcareer playwright. Thanks to editor @textplusimage.bsky.social, and to @csvich.bsky.social for tipping me off to see this film.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Thrilled to share that The Body of an American is heading to Europe in 2027. The play will be produced at the Teatro di Roma, directed by Jacopo Gassman and starring Danilo Nigrelli and Paolo Mazzarelli. Part of a year-long tour across Italy and Switzerland—more details in the weeks ahead ✨
Announcement of The Body of an American at Teatro di Roma in 2027, with photo of Director Jacopo Gassman
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 22/05/2026
Thrilled to share that The Body of an American is heading to Europe in 2027. The play will be produced at the Teatro di Roma, directed by Jacopo Gassman and starring Danilo Nigrelli and Paolo Mazzarelli. Part of a year-long tour across Italy and Switzerland—more details in the weeks ahead ✨
Announcement of The Body of an American at Teatro di Roma in 2027, with photo of Director Jacopo Gassman
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 21/05/2026
Author copies arrived ✨
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 07/05/2026
Available for preorder. I’ve loved this play about love for a very long time. Glad it’s out there.
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
ONDINE has a cover… Available soon
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 05/05/2026
ONDINE has a cover… Available soon
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
🙏🏻 @newharmonyproject.bsky.social www.newharmonyproject.org/lets-talk-bl...
newharmonyproject.org
Transcript: Let's Talk Parenthood — The New Harmony Project
Pursuing an artistic life requires dedication and determination, against sometimes incredible odds. And artists who are parents often struggle with a lack of support and sometimes face outright discri...
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 04/05/2026
🙏🏻 @newharmonyproject.bsky.social www.newharmonyproject.org/lets-talk-bl...
newharmonyproject.org
Transcript: Let's Talk Parenthood — The New Harmony Project
Pursuing an artistic life requires dedication and determination, against sometimes incredible odds. And artists who are parents often struggle with a lack of support and sometimes face outright discri...
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Pleased to learn that ‘The Cherry Sisters Revisited’ will be (comically) haunting the boards this month at Bath Spa University in England 🍒
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Proofing
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 01/05/2026
Proofing
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Dan O'Brien @bydanobrien.bsky.social · 27/04/2026
Contract signed — my adaptation of Jean Giraudoux’s classic ONDINE coming from Broadway Play Publishing 🙏🏻 www.danobrien.org/plays/ondine
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Brian Trapp @btrapperkeeper.bsky.social · 17/04/2026
Thanks to @wbur.org for adapting my essay into an audio piece. You can hear me and Danny at age 5, 8, and 25, including us joking about who is the evil twin. But it also wonderful to hear my mom talking to Dan again. Please check it out and share. www.wbur.org/cognoscenti/...
wbur.org
My twin brother was disabled, but I don't consider myself a 'glass child'
"Sometimes I had to be my brother’s arms, legs, eyes and voice," writes Brian Trapp. "It often didn’t feel like a burden, more like an alternative way of moving through the world."
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